Gaming tables return to Gateway Casino Sault Ste. Marie

Table games are being returned to Gateway Casino Sault Ste. Marie.

Six tables – three black jack, one roulette and two novelty poker games – complete with dealers will be back on the casino floor, enhancing customer experience, said Rob Mitchell, Gateway Casino’s director of communication and public affairs.

The table games and live dealers had been removed as a result of safety protocols required during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the casino was permitted to be open, Mitchell said.

“We’re in our last stage of our reopening now and that means returning the table games,” he said.

The move does not require substantial renovations or interference with customer enjoyment, he said.

“We’re restoring the casino to what it had been prior to the pandemic,” he said. “We had some minor reconfiguration that was required at that time with social and distancing protocols but this won’t cause any disruption.”

The move also means Gateway Casinos is able to bring back nine employees who had been laid off during the pandemic and several additional hires.

Mitchell said Gateway Casinos – and the hospitality industry in general – is cautiously optimistic that business will be on the rise again this summer, but is still mindful about the current environment and continued concerns about masking and being in close proximity indoors.

“We’re seeing a return to the industry but it’s going to take awhile,” he said. “That degree of uncertainty is still there.”

The casino was forced to close several times for long stretches during the pandemic as a result of provincial lockdowns. Reopening occurred with imposed capacity limits.

Mitchell said that customers are pleased to be able to return to the casino and business has bounced back.

As more regulations are relaxed and it becomes easier to cross the International border, Mitchell said its hopeful that American clientele also returns to the tables.

The City of Sault Ste. Marie receives quarterly gaming revenue payments for hosting the casino in the community.

Since the casino opened its doors in May 1999, the city has received more than $32 million in non-tax gaming revenue.

Gateway Casinos and Entertainment Ltd. Is one of the largest and most diversified gaming and entertainment companies in Canada. It operates 26 gaming properties in Ontario and British Columbia and two properties in Edmonton.

The casino is open Sunday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. and on Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 .m.