Jeff Gural, owner of Tioga Downs, addresses the hundreds of guests and the media that arrived for the grand opening of their casino as a full gaming facility on Friday. Gural gave a heartfelt and overwhelming address to community members.
After years of trying to convince New York State that they should be awarded a full gaming license, the efforts of Tioga Downs came to fruition on Friday as they celebrated their grand opening as a full gaming facility at their Nichols, N.Y. casino. The ceremony took place in the entrance area at Tioga Downs Casino, which was decorated in a fashion festive to the momentous occasion.
There were large cards, made from balloons, that graced the entrance of the gaming floor where the 33 new table games and brand new slot machines rounded out the final transition into a full gaming facility.
The new table games, which were delivered last month, include Blackjack, Craps and Roulette, and popular casino games like Pai Gow Poker, Ultimate Texas Hold ‘Em, Let It Ride, 3-Card and 4-Card Poker, and the Big 6 Wheel.
As of 3 p.m. Friday, the table games became operational as Tioga Downs celebrated the grand opening at their Nichols, N.Y. casino as a full gaming facility.
Tioga Downs offered a preview of the games Thursday evening, and then spent the day preparing for their grand opening on Friday. The celebration began at 2 p.m. and offered remarks from local dignitaries, as well as from Jeff Gural, owner of Tioga Downs.
In his address to those that arrived for the celebration on Friday, Gural gave a heartfelt and overwhelming address – thanking the community for supporting him all of the way.
“This was a labor of love to me,” said an emotional Gural.
But for Jeff Gural, and many of the supportive representatives on hand, Friday represented the results of their labor.
Photo of the new slot machines that replaced the older VLT’s at Tioga Downs Casino in Nichols, N.Y. They celebrated their grand opening on Friday as a full gaming facility.
Dignitaries that offered remarks included Assemblyman Tom O’Mara, Assemblyman Christopher Friend, Tioga County Legislative Chair Martha Sauerbrey and Senator Fred Akshar, among others.
When Sauerbrey went to the podium to address the guests, she stated, enthusiastically, “Merry Christmas Tioga Downs!”
Assemblyman Friend, remarked, “Everyone came forward to help, and Jeff Gural wanted to keep fighting for a full gaming license.”
Assemblyman Tom O’Mara thanked Gural for his commitment to the community.
But there was one dignitary that was not there, and when Senator Fred Akshar addressed the guests, he made mention of his predecessor, Senator Tom Libous.
Tioga Downs was decorated accordingly on Friday for a grand opening celebration at their Nichols, N.Y. casino as a full gaming facility.
Libous, who passed away earlier this year, was a strong partner in Albany as Gural battled through the politics of bringing table games to Tioga Downs.
Akshar’s remarks emphasized Senator Libous’ role in bringing Gural’s dream to fruition, and stated of Libous, “It is an honor to walk in the footsteps of a giant.”
And even though Libous wasn’t around any longer to witness the grand opening, his son, Nick Libous, was at the ceremony.
“I’m honored to be here for this,” said Nick Libous following the ribbon cutting and ceremony.
“I know he’s looking down today,” he added about his father, Tom Libous.
The opening of the new gaming area comes just over three years following the passage of New York’s Proposition 1, which authorized the issuing of a limited number of commercial gaming licenses throughout New York State. After an unsuccessful first bid for the Southern Tier license in 2014, Tioga Downs, as well as community leaders, led a campaign to re-open the bidding process to allow for the award of one additional license to the true Southern Tier.
Dealers prepare for their opening. As of 3 p.m. Friday, the table games became operational as Tioga Downs celebrated their grand opening at the Nichols, N.Y. casino as a full gaming facility.
The request was granted and after a successful second bid process, Tioga Downs was formally granted its full gaming license on Tuesday, Aug. 30. Since that time, construction crews and the entire Tioga Downs team have been feverishly working on first phase additions to the property to get the casino open.
As originally promised by the track’s owner, Jeff Gural, Tioga Downs was the first property awarded a gaming license under Proposition 1 to open its casino doors, despite having to go through a second bidding process.
“This has been a long journey, but one that I have stated from the beginning is an important one for the people of the Southern Tier,” said Gural.
He added, “We have created a lot of additional jobs, revenue, and opportunity for the region as well as benefitting local businesses and nonprofit organizations. I am so appreciative of our local and state officials, as well as Southern Tier community for the overwhelming support of the project that helped it come to fruition. It would not have been possible without their help.”
Balloons fell from the ceiling and confetti flew around after the ribbon was cut at Tioga Downs on Friday during their celebration and grand opening as a full gaming facility.
In addition to the opening of the casino, this year marks the tenth anniversary celebration for Tioga Downs. The entertainment complex offers live harness racing, casino gaming and live entertainment.
Jeff Gural owns Tioga Downs in Nichols, N.Y. as well as Vernon Downs in Vernon, N.Y. With a commercial gaming license now officially granted and the casino open, Tioga Downs will continue to push forward on the build of the additional amenities for its world-class gaming and entertainment complex. These include a hotel, spa, additional restaurant, events and convention center, and more.
For more information on Tioga Downs, visit www.tiogadowns.com.
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