The Choctaw Casino in Durant is reopening Wednesday after more than two months of being closed. Starting Wednesday at 10 a.m., the casino will be open at reduced capacity. Seating will also be. 'Cherokee Nation's response to the covid-19 pandemic has set a high standard and this phased reopening plan is an extension of that standard.' The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma.
© Provided by Sherman-Ada KXIIOKLAHOMA (KFOR) – Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby announced this week that the Chickasaw Nation plans to begin implementing a phased reopening of casinos, other businesses and offices soon. NBCUniversal, Inc. WinStar World and Choctaw casinos and resorts, just across the Texas-Oklahoma border, will open Wednesday for the first time since March. North Texans are looking for ways to get.
DURANT, Okla. (KXII) - The Choctaw Casino in Durant is reopening Wednesday after more than two months of being closed.
Starting Wednesday at 10 a.m., the casino will be open at reduced capacity.
Seating will also be arranged for social distancing.
'For the first time in our history, those doors were secured,' said Regional Director of Marketing Bryan Prettyman.
There haven't been locks on the doors of the Choctaw Casino in 32 years until March, when they closed due to the pandemic.
'The cleaning started and the preparing for the opening started the day we closed,' Prettyman said.
He said that included markings on the ground to keep people six feet apart, monitors above displaying ways to stay safe and sanitizing stations.
'So we're encouraging the safe social distancing throughout the property,' Prettyman said.
Now, there's reduced restaurant seating, the buffet will be served by employees and no more self serve drinks.
Every other slot machine will be out of service, along with the game tables reduced to three chairs instead of six, only every other table open.
'Probably the biggest is an increased non-smoking area to better accommodate for the health aspect of the pandemic,' he said.
He says the south casino will be entirely smoke free, plus the east and west travel plazas and travel plazas across the Choctaw Nation.
'So that's almost a 50 percent footprint of our facility here will be non-smoking,' Prettyman said.
They'll be closing every morning from 4 to 7 a.m. for deep cleaning.
Masks are optional for guests, but required for employees, who will complete health screenings daily.
'Each one of them has remained on the payroll with full benefits from day one,' he said. 'I am thankful for that and I appreciate that. And I think all the associates here in Durant appreciate it too and are looking forward to coming back to work.'
They're doing a phased reopening. The gaming operation Wednesday is first, and the rest of the resort will open Friday including the hotel, pool and buffet.
The next phase will include all other Choctaw gaming destinations.
All concerts up until August were cancelled or postponed, and they say events after that will be monitored based on the current health situation.
Casinos in southern Oklahoma are preparing to reopen after being closed for more than two months.
North Texans are looking for ways to get away.
Choctaw Casino Oklahoma Reopening Casinos
Wednesday, two destinations within driving distance will reopen.
Both WinStar World and Choctaw casinos and resorts, just across the Texas-Oklahoma border, will open for the first time since March. Closest casino near troy mississippi.
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At WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Oklahoma, luck isn't the only thing visitors will need.
Guests and employees will be required to wear masks, and temperatures will be checked at the door.
“We're going to be patient and careful and not let emotion overtake patience,” WinStar General Manager Jack Parkinson said. How to make casino chips out of fondant.
Casinos in Las Vegas plan to reopen in early June with many of the same safety measures in place closer to home.
Slot machines will spaced out, half the chairs will be gone, and self-serve drink stations and buffets will be staffed. The non-smoking section has also been doubled.
“We'll have hordesof humans, employees, chasing after people, cleaning up after them and makingsure that we're sterile at all times,” Parkinson said.
Customers will see social distancing reminders and hand sanitizer everywhere, but the most striking difference will be table games that remain closed at WinStar.
When we do open it'll only be three people at a table instead of seven,” Parkinson said.
Table games will reopen at Choctaw Casino & Resort in Durant, Oklahoma, but limited to every other seat. Tables in play will be staggered. Guests will also be encouraged, but not required, to wear masks at Choctaw.
Both casinos said they planned to limit capacity and close for several hours overnight for deep cleaning, including a use of electrostatic sprayers and EPA-certified chemicals, according to Parkinson.
“It's a cost that's calculated and well worth it,” he said.
Choctaw Casino Oklahoma Reopening Date
Parkinson said WinStar has done everything to prepare and planned to reopen in phases because the stakes couldn't be higher.
Choctaw Casino Oklahoma Reopening
He said all 4,000 WinStar employees were tested for the coronavirus before they returned to work and the casino will perform random testing every two weeks.
Click here for reopening protocols for WinStar Word Casino and Resort and Choctaw Casino & Resort.
