While some guests used the casino’s online reservation module, many walked right in. Still, crowds were a little light by midday Monday, not typically a stellar day of the week for a casino, especially on its first day back from a 100-plus day hiatus. In fact, about 100 people waited in line for the casino to open Monday morning, said Kathy McCracken, the property’s executive vice president and general manager. “I was looking forward to coming back,” she said from behind an Adidas mask while her gloved hands rested atop a slot machine. Monday, about five hours after Wind Creek reopened to the public for the first time since March 15, Danzey was relieved to walk in and see temperature checks at the door, distanced mask-wearing guests and cleaning crews circulating the floor. When she arrived at the casino at 11 a.m. A casino regular, Danzey used to make the same trek a couple times monthly - but that was before a pandemic that upended the industry and forced Wind Creek to close for more than three months. Celeste Danzey wasn’t sure what to expect when she made the 70-mile trip Monday morning to Wind Creek Bethlehem from Newark, New Jersey.
