On Thursday, the Lago Resort and Casino announced a name change for the Tyre, Seneca County project currently under construction off the New York State Thruway. The $425 million development will now be called del Lago Resort & Casino.
In a news release, Jonathan Swain, the resort and casino’s chief operating officer, said the resort casino, “Will serve as a gateway to the magnificent Finger Lakes Region of New York State,” according to a News10NBC report. Along with the name change, there is a new website and a slightly different logo.
The announcement of the name change arrives just as casino operators received news that a request for a preliminary hearing by Casino Free Tyre and several of its members was denied by an Appellate Court in Rochester. Had the requet been approved, work at the newly named de Lago Resort & Casino would have been halted, according to the Finger Lakes Times.
Lago was one of three casinos granted licenses by the gaming commission in December along with the Montreign Resort Casino at Adelaar and Rivers Casino & Resort at Mohawk Harbor in Schenectady. Since the December approval, Lago has been plagued by lawsuits and opponents including, Casino Free Tyre, and the Oneida Indian Nation’s Turning Stone and Yellow Brick Road casinos, and Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack (FLGR), which are all within close proximity of the Lago project. Opponents disapprove of a new gaming destination that, according to them, will cannibalize their businesses, harm local economies and create significant environmental impacts.
In addition to the casino’s 2,000 slot machines, 85 gaming tables, 207-room hotel and spa, the venue will include a unique shop, Savor New York. The shop will highlight products from the region including, local beers, wines, whiskeys, crafts and foods. The newly renamed resort and casino is expected to employ 1,250 to 1,500 workers and is on pace to open in February 2017.