New player raises gaming stakes

Fresh off a successful June 24 opening, Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville, Mass., is banking on its newness in the marketplace as nearby rival Twin River in Lincoln touts its regional niche.

“We’re a lot more than a slots parlor, which is what has been developed at Plainridge,” said John E. Taylor Jr., chairman of the Twin River Worldwide Holdings, the owner of Twin River. “Obviously, they’re doing a nice job there, but we’re making sure people are reminded that we offer a different experience.”

Taylor said Twin River is a “convenience casino,” offering live table games as well as slots, dining, entertainment, and soon, a small hotel. Unlike the tribal resort casinos in Connecticut or the destination casinos slated for Massachusetts, Twin River is a modest size but big enough to fit Plainridge Park on its second floor, Taylor noted.

Plainridge has 106,000 square feet of gaming space and 1,250 slot machines, while Twin River has 162,000 square feet of gaming space and, by fall, will drop from 4,500 to about 4,225 slot machines after adding 28 table games and a new poker room. Twin River’s owner also expects to close soon on the purchase of Newport Grand, and could relocate it in Tiverton.

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Plainridge, however, considers itself more than a slots parlor, since it offers electronic table games, dining and entertainment, and horse racing, said Michele Collins, vice president of marketing for owner Penn National Gaming Inc. of Wyomissing, Pa.

“If you’re a casino customer you’re going to go check out what’s new in town,” she said. And when they do, Collins added, “they [will] see it is … a true casino.”

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission recently reported gross revenue of more than $6 million in Plainridge Park’s first week. Taylor anticipated Twin River’s June revenue would hold steady [unaudited figures last week showed a slight increase], which he said would be a sign “what Plainridge is doing is actually growing or expanding the market.”

Clyde W. Barrow, professor and chairman of the Department of Political Science at the University of Texas-Pan American, and former director of the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Policy Analysis, said the region may not have hit its saturation point yet.

“You’re going to get the maximum impact [to revenue], because there’s going to be a curiosity factor at Plainridge,” Barrow said. “Yet, once the [Massachusetts resort] casinos go up, Plainridge will face losing market share.”

Gaming analysts project Twin River could lose 10-15 percent of its slot revenue to Plainridge, Barrow said. But if that doesn’t happen, he added, “it says there was more demand in the market than we thought.” •

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