More than six weeks after they were ordered to close due to the pandemic, B.C. casinos will be staying dark for the foreseeable future.
Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said Thursday casinos would be “last on my list to consider for reopening at this point.”
Because casinos are closed indoor environments frequented by seniors and others vulnerable to the virus, she said their reopening would be considered “further down the line.”
“I would have to be convinced that there is a valid reason and a safe way to do it,” she said.
“It is certainly not in the first phase of what I’m considering, or what we are considering in terms of how we get things moving again in our economy and in our social structures.”
B.C. casinos contribute considerably to the budgets of their host local governments, which are entitled to 10 per cent of a casino’s net gaming revenue. The City of Penticton, for example, is expecting to lose out on $2 million in casino revenues this year.
- By Colin Dacre / Castanet
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