Washington: Snoqualmie Casino reopens at reduced capacity

Snoqualmie Casino reopened Thursday morning after a prolonged closure to support Washington State’s Stay Home, Stay Health order.

Snoqualmie Casino began welcoming members of its Crescent Club earlier in the week as it prepared to reopen to the general public yesterday. The majority of the extended closure was spent implementing new enhanced safety protocols upon reopening, including plexiglass partitions at gaming tables and popular slot machines; securing needed masks for guests and extensive PPE for employees with extended exposure to guests, like dealers.

“The health and wellness of our guests, team members, and community takes precedence over anything else,” said Snoqualmie Tribe Chairman, Robert de los Angeles, as reported by Living Snoqualmie. “As an entertainment venue that welcomes guests from all over the region, it is our responsibility to do everything we can to not only adhere to health guidelines and recommendations, but to exceed them.”

With King County transitioning into Phase 1.5 and providing guidelines to begin re-opening restaurants and retail, Snoqualmie Casino Interim CEO and President Stanford Le outlined the casino’s comprehensive reopening plan supporting the state’s health recommendations. The changes include temperature scans upon entrance, required masks, fewer slot machines in operation and reduced capacity at gaming tables, among others.

Le said Snoqualmie Casino capacity is currently limited to 1,000 guests, noting the facility has a maximum capacity of 8,000. On-floor guest capacity is at 12.5% per hour. The Falls Buffet has also transitioned to a full-service restaurant. He said making that restaurant transition helped save numerous local jobs, explaining other casinos had chosen to close their buffets which forced employee furloughs.

Although all team members and guests are required to wear masks, Snoqualmie Casino Advertising and PR Manager Tarah Smigun explained that guests at slots machines are allowed to smoke, but there is no smoking at any gaming tables. Guests can also remove masks in casino restaurants.

Stanford Le said: “Careful consideration and planning went into our opening strategy to ensure that we could provide the safest environment possible. We’ve been looking forward to welcoming our guests back and know that our decision to wait until it was safe to do so was the right one.”