Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | August 2013 36 FEATURES E veryone has heard how tough it is to be successful under the bright and constantly glaring spotlight that is New York City. Yet the Genting Group’s Resorts World Casino New York City, the city’s first, and so far only, commercial casino, has achieved this and more. Opened in October of 2011, Resorts World New York City generated in excess of US$650 million in gross gaming revenue during its first year of operation. The property also contributed an astounding $825 million in tax revenues for the state over that same time period—$445 million from gaming and $380 million from a one-time licensing fee. Located in the New York City borough of Queens, Resorts World is also helping to revitalize its neighborhood, thanks in large part to its 10 million annual visitors. The casino has also resurrected a slice of NYC’s history—the Aqueduct Raceway, a horse track that originally opened in 1894 and where champions Secretariat, Man o’ War and Seabiscuit raced. In fact, Resorts World actually shares the same address as Aqueduct and is built into the raceway’s grandstand. The goal of the adaptive reuse project was to preserve as much of the Aqueduct’s existing grandstand as possible. Casino guests can walk out on the casino terrace, which is part of the original Aqueduct grandstand, and watch the horses in action on the track. Design with a Repurpose Resorts World Casino New York City shows an aging landmark can be reinvented into a profitable casino By JCJ Architecture and Tutor Perini Building Group The design and construction team collaborated and came up with inventive ways to reuse the existing geometry of the track.