Cole Johnson SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC NEWS) – The Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY is known to be home for gamblers looking to hit the slot machines or play on the Blackjack tables. However, Thursday, a new era of gambling opened up to the public.
As people filed in the Resort Casino on Thursday, there was a different kind of betting seen: sports betting.
The Turning Stone was set to open its doors for the grand opening of their new sports betting lounge, called “The Lounge with Caesar Sports.” This was the first glimpse of people being able to gamble on sporting events since the 1992 federal ban that prohibited sports betting. In May 2018, the ban was lifted.
Paul Durante, the Sports Book Manager, was excited to get this operation underway after years of waiting for the ban to be lifted. He said that even though plans had been in place for a while now, they still had their work cut out for them in order to be prepared for this event.
“Everything moved along very quickly. Our staff has only been training here for a little under a week,” Durante said. “It’s very exciting, for everybody involved, to finally see all the hard work we put in come to life.”
Durante noted that when sports betting started to become a reality, the endless phone calls they received every day regarding the opening was overwhelming. That all seemed to come to fruition with the large turnout and sensational buzz that filled the room on Thursday afternoon.
“People couldn’t be happier,” Durante said. “People were in line two hours before we opened today to celebrate.”
The setup consists of several rows of lounge chairs with cup holders, numerous tables for dining, a bar, and the betting station where the gambling takes place. To top it off, all of these amenities sit in front of eight big screen televisions airing the biggest sporting events of the day.
The Turning Stone joined Point Place Casino in Bridgeport as two of the Oneida Nation Casinos to open their sports booking today. Yellow Brick Road Casino looks to follow suit next month.
