Smokefree policies
in gaming sites are proliferating
by Regina
Carlson, Executive Director
3 February 2006
Harrah's
created a 100% smokefree policy for one entire, separate,
8,000 square feet building at its Cherokee Casino and Hotel
in North Carolina in September 2005. The facility has about
280 games, including all the offerings of the complex's smoking-permitted
gaming facilities. "It's pretty much its own casino."
said Lynne Harlan, a public relations spokesperson for the
casino. Customers "overwhelmingly" wanted the facility,
said Lumpy Lambert, vice president of operations.
Smokefree
casino areas thrive in MotorCity in Detroit, at Churchill
Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun
in Connecticut, in Grand Casino Gulfport in Mississippi, and
in some of the big casinos in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.
The Blackfeet
Reservation in Montana made its gaming facilities smokefree.
The Lucky Bear Casino on the Hoopa Reservation in California
is completely smokefree, as is Taos Mountain Casino in New
Mexico where the marketing director, Marc Kaplan, declared
that marketing a smokefree casino is a joy and their customers
are very enthusiastic about the policy. Several other Native
American casinos offer smokefree areas.
The Metuchen,
New Jersey Roman Catholic Diocese created a smokefree bingo
policy. Many other bingo sites throughout the nation are smokefree.
Three
of Montreal's casinos originally went smokefree voluntarily,
except for a few smoking-only rooms with no gambling, food
or beverage service, etc. (Effective May 2006, Quebec Province
law requires them to be smokefree.) New Zealand's biggest
casino operator, Sky City Entertainment, voluntarily made
more than 40% of its gaming areas smokefree, before mandated
by law in December 2004.
This
page updated November 9, 2006
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