DETROIT – The Motor City Casino in Detroit is set to reopen Wednesday, and when it does, it will look very different because of the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Dealers will be wearing face shields and everyone will be required to wear masks. There will be plexiglass dividers as casinos try to keep the environment as safe as possible.
Detroit’s casinos are limited to 15% capacity when they reopen, which equates to about 1,600 people at a time for Motor City Casino.
It will officially reopen at 10 a.m. Wednesday, officials said.
The entry process will start in your vehicle, and it could end there, too. Expect to have your temperature taken and to answer questions about symptoms and exposure. Anyone who has symptoms or has been exposed will be asked to leave.
“We’re going to do everything to make sure that there is nobody in here who can transmit it,” casino President Bruce Dall said.
As for the games, every other slot machine will be closed. Table games will be cut from six positions to three.
“Then, we’re adding plexiglass to each table so that if you’re close, and that’s true with the cages, a club booth, sports book -- anywhere you’re face-to-face with a transaction, we’re trying to get plexiglass up,” Dall said.
Nearly 1,000 casinos across the country are competing for plexiglass. No table will have it by Wednesday, so customers will likely see dealers and other employees wearing face shields.
Only the burger deli and Little Caesar’s Pizza stand will be open, serving boxed meals. A VIP section will offer more food options.
Dining tables are socially distanced.
“There won’t be any eating inside the casino because you have to lower your mask,” Dall said. “You have the opportunity, quite frankly, to order drinks though the slot machine. A cocktail server will bring it to you in a disposable glass, and when you’re seated at a machine, you can drink it -- pull your mask down, take a sip, pull your mask back up.”
Sanitization spray gun gadgets will also be used.
“We’ll close down a section of 250 machines at a time, spray them down,” Dall said. “They dry in five minutes, and then you essentially eliminate the virus.”
This is the plan that was submitted to Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in April.
The buffet, Iridescence, the Soundboard, the theater, the spa and the hotel will all remain closed for now.