Fire Rock defies gaming industry doldrums

 

W hile the Fire Rock Navajo Casino is doing great business, it's not doing as well as some people may believe.

In the month that the casino has been in operation, rumors say the revenue generated is so great that it has almost paid off the $25 million construction loan it received from the tribe.

Bob Winter, CEO of the Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise, said the rumors may have started because of information released that the casino generated $1.2 million on its first day of operation.

That figure is correct but it has been misconstrued, he said.

"That was cash in," he said.

In other words, that was the money that came into the casino and does not take into account the amount paid out in winnings.

The net take has not been released but generally slot machines pay out 80 to 90 percent of the money that is put in, which would mean that the casino's actual net for the first day was around $200,000 - nowhere near the multi-million dollars it spent on start-up costs.

Winter said federal laws prohibit him from releasing information on casino earnings but he did say that revenues for the casino exceed projections so far.

Vice President Ben Shelly said the figures he has seen show the casino attracting between 4,000 and 5,000 players a day.

Winter said the only time business has been slow is when the weather is really bad.

Attendance is so high that the casino has to station employees at the entrance to keep tabs on how many people are going in and out to ensure that they do not exceed the occupancy limits set by the fire department.

He said the casino also keeps tabs on the number of people in each area because there are limits for this as well, and there have been times when the casino had to restrict people's ability to go from one area to another.

Shelly said he goes into the casino on a regular basis to see how well it's doing and to eat at the food court.

"I'm seeing more and more non-Navajos going to the casino," he said.

The vast majority of customers continue to be Navajo, however, and this is seen as a mixed blessing.

Tribal leaders still say they don't want to see the venture's profitability depend on the Navajo customers, most of whom have little or no extra cash to put at risk.

But Shelly said his talks with people at the casino indicate that while Fire Rock is attracting a lot of Navajos, many would otherwise be spending their money at Sky City or one of the other casinos in the region.

The success of Fire Rock continues to buck the nationwide trend, in which gambling revenues are plummeting in most locations as Americans' disposable income dries up.

Business in Las Vegas is down 20 percent, said Winter, and the Indian gaming industry as a whole is reporting a decrease of 8 percent.

Normally, he said, the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is a slow one in the gaming industry as people spend more time shopping and in other holiday activities.

But that's not the case at Fire Rock, and casino officials are expecting that business will continue to be good come January and tax return season.

Last week, Winter sat down and talked with the Navajo Times about some of the internal matters at the casino.

Safety

The biggest payout so far has been $27,000 but a number of people have won several thousand dollars.

Winter said the casino encourages big winners to take a check, though cash is an option.

The casino keeps a certain amount of cash on hand to pay winners - just how much is a secret. It also keeps cash on hand to pay someone who wins a progressive jackpot, which can pay millions.

This doesn't mean, however, that it has millions around, Winter said. The big jackpots are usually paid out in annual payments over a long period.

But there have been indications that some people come into the casino to watch for big winners so the casino has a policy to provide anyone who asks with a security guard to escort them to their car.

He said that the tribal police are also present at the casino most of the time.

The Navajo Nation Gaming Enterprise has an agreement for the Navajo Nation police to provide two officers for the casino. The enterprise pays their salaries as well as the cost of a police cruiser. It also has put up a mobile trailer in the parking lot to act as a substation.

The police not only provide security but they help security guards patrol the parking lot looking for people who've left their children in their cars or are drinking alcohol on the premises.

Winter said no one has been caught drinking in the parking lot but workers have found evidence - empty bottles and cans - so everyone knows it is happening.

Restaurant

The daily buffet is a thing of the past.

Winter said that the restaurant went to menu service on Monday - it was offering a daily buffet because of lack of wait staff - and the only day a buffet will be served is on Sunday.

The restaurant now offers a full range of entrees and will be "competitively priced," Winter said.

Asked why the restaurant doesn't serve food at big discounts to attract people to come in and gamble, as many casinos do, Winter said it is not allowed under the compact the tribe signed with the state.

"We can't give anything away free as an incentive to gamble," he said, adding that the casino also can't comp rooms or provide incentives to attract the big spenders.

He said the only incentive the casino can offer is through its Player Club whereby members can get enough points - depending on how much they gamble - to get discounts on rooms in hotels with which the enterprise has agreements.

New Year's Eve

The casino is planning to host a concert on New Year's Eve in the bingo parlor.

The band will be Power Light, a rock-and-roll band that played at the casino a couple of weeks ago to good reviews.

There is no admission charge but the concert is by invitation only. Winter said invitations will be sent to about 500 of the 14,000 people who have signed up for the casino's Player Club.

Since the room only holds 540 people, the invites will go to Player Club members with the most points.

Speaking of events, Winter was asked when the casino would start offering poker tournaments.

That's still up in the air, partly because Fire Rock still only has three poker dealers. A couple more are in training and should be ready to work by the end of January, he said.

That will give Fire Rock the ability to operate five poker tables but Winter said he's not sure that would be enough to make a poker tournament feasible.

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