The Bike Casino in Bell Gardens, California has reopened today, Friday, June 19, at 6:00 a.m. local time. All patrons must wear protective face masks.
Bicycle Hotel & Casino Welcomes Poker Back in California
Brick-and-mortar poker has returned to California with the Bicycle Hotel & Casino in Bell Gardens restarting operations on Friday, June 19. After three months of no casino poker action, players will be able to return while still having to comply with strict health and safety protocols now mandatory because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The Los Angeles-based poker room opened doors at 6:00 a.m. local time today, welcoming players back, but under specific provisos related to the safe use of gambling facilities in the establishment. On Wednesday, June 17, the Bell Gardens released a detailed brief that explained the safety protocols that must be observed to minimize the risk of infection, the statement read.
In the statement, the Bicycle Hotel & Casino said it had a long-standing commitment to protecting the health of guests, players and team members. The establishment had to consult numerous experts and took into consideration health advice issued by the CDC and state authorities, as well as consulting medical experts from UCLA and USC.
Though rigorous sanitation and observing the necessary protocols, the Bicycle Hotel & Casino now believes that it can offer players a safe gaming environment that will protect everyone involved, from employees to customers, to vendors.
Staying Safe Playing Poker at Bicycle Hotel & Casino
The Californian casino will oblige all patrons to wear mandatory face covers and the same condition applies to members of the staff. More protective equipment will be allocated to employees. There will be thermal screening stations and anyone registering above 100.3°F would need to undergo additional screening so that they may be admitted into the card room or turned away.
There will me multiple sanitation stations offering hand sanitizers and sanitizing wipes. More safety measures will be rolled out to ensure that gaming chips are also sterile. Further to these measures, the casino will limit the available seats at tables and introduce social distancing protocols that can be seen on-site today.
While the Bike casino has been shuttered over the past few months, the casino’s social media account has been pretty busy, offering frequent updates. In the meantime, the casino has other safety protocols, such as suspending entire game tables and any ancillary consumables, such as chips and cards, in the event someone, who has been to the casino, tests positive.
The casino also has a system in place to help any potentially exposed individual find out that they have been in contact with a COIVD-19 infected person. While brick-and-mortar poker has suffered, online poker has surged. Even amid reopenings, the May revenue results have shown a reassuring outlook.
