BOSTON (AP) — Slot machine revenue at Plainridge Park Casino, Massachusetts’ only slots parlor, dropped for the second straight month, state regulators reported Thursday.
Plainridge generated $12.6 million in gross gambling revenue during the month of September, according to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.
The state’s first licensed gambling facility reported $18.1 million in slots revenue during July, its first full month of operation. That figure fell to $15.2 million in August.
Under state law, 49 percent of gambling revenue from the slots parlor is returned to the state. Of that total, 82 percent goes to cities and towns for local aid and 18 percent goes to a horse racing development fund.
The state collected about $5 million in taxes from Plainridge in September, down from $6 million in August and $7.2 million in July.
“The revenue trends we’re seeing are largely consistent with other new property openings where you open strong, the numbers settle over the first few months, and then you typically see them ramp back up to a more normalized run rate as your marketing takes hold,” Lance George, Plainridge’s vice president and general manager, said in a statement.
September is also historically slower for business than the summer months of July and August, George said. The facility, owned by Penn National Gaming, recently completed an expansion of its high-limit slot area and officials are pleased with the pace of customer loyalty card sign-ups.
Plainridge, located in the town of Plainville, also offers harness racing. It opened in late June and was forecast to bring in $200 million in gambling revenue over a full year.
The 2011 law legalizing casino gambling in Massachusetts allowed for just one slots parlor in the state along with three regional resort casinos.
Meanwhile, Connecticut’s two tribal casinos posted an increase in bets and slot revenue in September, reversing a summertime slide.
Foxwoods Resort Casino reported bets of $461.9 million, up 3.6 percent from September 2014. Slot revenue of $37.2 million rose 3.2 percent.
The Mohegan Sun reported bets of $578.5 million, up 1.6 percent from September 2014. Slot revenue of $47.7 million was up 2.7 percent.
Foxwoods, operated by the Mashantucket Pequots, posted higher bets and slot revenue in July while the Mohegan Sun posted declines that month. Both reported reduced bets and slot revenue in August.
Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods are seeking to open a casino in north-central Connecticut to draw gamblers from a planned MGM Resorts International casino in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Competition and the weak economic recovery have undermined the casinos’ business.
