PLAINS TWP. — David Parfrey likes to quip that he came along with the furniture.
When gaming operations began at Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs — now Mohegan Sun Pocono — in November 2006, Parfrey had already been on staff for six years.
“The old joke is I came with the sale of the property” to Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, he said during an interview Friday at the sprawling complex off Route 315.
Today, as the facility marks 15 years of casino gaming, Parfrey — now vice president of marketing — is among roughly 100 employees who have been with the company since day one.
And they have seen a lot of change.
“We’ve come a long way from that phase one temporary facility, which was just over 1,000 slot machines and a little food court,” Parfrey said Friday.
History
In late September 2006, Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs became the first applicant to gain approval for a gaming license from the state’s Gaming Control Board. It was the culmination of several years of planning as several facilities around the state vied for a chance to break into Pennsylvania’s nascent casino gaming industry. (See timeline below.)
As the Times Leader reported at that time, the actual license wouldn’t be issued until shortly before the casino begins operations, subject to certain conditions: The casino couldn’t open until all equipment is installed and tested, and the slot machines and computers were connected to a system that will allow the state to monitor gaming activity at all of the authorized 14 casinos in real time.
Fast forward a few weeks.
With successful tests under its belt and licence in hand, Pennsylvania’s first casino formally opened to guests at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2006, a few days after harness racing had ended for the season at the adjacent track.
According to contemporary Times Leader reports, 16,000 guests visited Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs, as it was then known, on opening day; nearly $7 million was wagered at its 1,083 slot machines during the casino’s first 14 hours of operation. The complex then employed 465 people for its round-the-clock operation.
The two-level, 90,000-square-foot temporary casino was constructed over the course of a year in the former grandstand of the harness racing track. The smoke-free main level held about one-third of the slots and a food court. The rest of the machines were on the lower level, where there was a bar and deli counter.
Already, however, bigger things were in the wind: As the paper reported in its 2006 year-in-review section, groundbreaking for a 400,000-square-foot expansion was set for the spring of 2007.
“All the while, the master plan was phase 2 — Project Sunrise — this part of the building you’re in now, a fully functioning resort and entertainment destination” Parfrey said Friday during an afternoon interview at the Breakers bar.
Substantial growth
Within 10 years of that initial launch, Mohegan Sun Pocono had net revenues of roughly $300 million, casino officials say.
Today, MSP, which is located on 400 acres, is home to more than 1,700 slot machines, more than 60 live table games including a poker room, live harness throughout most of the year, fine dining, various retail options, a world-class spa, live entertainment in Breakers, Bar Louie and the 20,000-square-foot Keystone Grand Ballroom, and the 230-plus room Hotel at Mohegan Sun Pocono, which opened on Nov. 14, 2013. The complex currently employs about 830 people, Parfrey said.
Another key milestone came in October 2019, with the opening of the Unibet Sportsbook at Mohegan Sun Pocono.
Community impact
For the community as a whole, however, the resort complex has meant more than that.
Since its inception, Mohegan Sun Pocono has also contributed more than $1.6 billion in slot and table game tax revenue to the Commonwealth through August of this year — and substantial amounts plowed back into area communities.
“Built into the tax structure of the gaming tax is a local share amount, a guaranteed $10 million (per year) in tax revenue from our proceeds that go to just the local communities,” Parfrey said, adding: “A lot of valuable dollars that have gone out into the community and done a lot of valuable work.”
MSP also has partnered with the community on many projects.
A longstanding partnership with the United Way of Wyoming Valley has produced regular giveaways and food bank initiatives and during the pandemic MSP served as a COVID-19 test-site for the region.
In 2016, MSP also updated to a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system that reduced energy consumption by 22% and limited its carbon footprint by 3,900 metric tons.
Its impact has not been lost on local leaders.
“The casino contributes to a large portion of the township’s annual budget,” said Plains Township commissioner Peter Biscontini.
“It has allowed the Board to only have to increase taxes a couple times in the last 15 years. It allows us to maintain the third largest police department in the county, a full time/fully staffed fire department, and collect garbage and recycling without having to outsource to outside companies,” Biscontini added.
Parfrey’s story
Parfrey is a native of Scranton’s Green Ridge section who earned an accounting degree from Penn State who started out working for a logistics company.
When talk of legalizing slots gaming to supplement the horse racing industry began to gather steam in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Parfrey spotted an opportunity.
“When I saw Gov. (Tom) Ridge talking about a potential slot bill — Vegas and Atlantic City were the only gaming jurisdictions in the country, aside from some tribal entities — this was big news for Pennsylvania,” he said. “I took a gamble, and through a contact I came to the race track.”
That was in 2000. For the young accountant, the move introduced him to a highly specialized area of his own profession.
“They don’t teach you racing accounting in college, but it was an interesting thing to learn, and one I appreciated,” he said.
Then, in 2004, state lawmakers gave their approval to the Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act, also known as Act 71, and the path to casino gambling opened up.
“Lo and behold that slot bill passed, and the Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority purchased the property,” Parfrey recalled.
“I also had a lot to learn on the casino side, and what a thrill that’s been,” he said. “What a company to work for, family-oriented, incredible culture, everything you would want in a work environment.”
He was named VP of marketing in January 2019.
Pandemic challenges
Parfrey’s first year in the role saw the sportsbook opening, a major event that tapped into a new source of revenue.
Six months later, however, the world changed.
As the COVID-19 pandemic began to grow, Mohegan Sun Pocono closed on the evening of March 16, 2020. Officials said their decision came in close consultation with the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board as well as local and state health authorities, as leaders looked to halt the spread of the coronavirus.
“The casino and entertainment industry relies on crowds to come out,” Parfrey said.
And crowds were the last thing government officials wanted at that time.
Mohegan Sun Pocono would not reopen until June 22, 2020, when Luzerne County entered the state-designated green phase of coronavirus recovery.
The time that passed was not idle, however.
“We started immediately planning what a re-opening would look like — how to protect our valuable guests as well as our valued team members. And every casino around the country was asking that same question,” Parfrey said.
As MSP President and General Manager Anthony Carlucci said at the time: “With the guidance of industry experts, regulatory agencies, and in closely mirroring the comprehensive protocols put in place by Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s flagship property in Connecticut, we feel we are well-prepared for our doors to open and can’t wait to welcome guests to a clean, safe and fun environment.”
Parfrey described some of those measures.
“Ultimately we invested a significant amount into those features, whether it was infrared non-invasive temperature scans at every entrance, Plexiglas everywhere. Sanitizing stations, wipes everywhere, so that everyone who did feel comfortable coming out, once they got through our doors, they saw MSP was taking that extra step,” he recalled.
As part of that June 2020 reopening, all restaurants and bars were to have reduced seating to allow for physical distancing and VIP Lounges would full service stations only.
In July 2020, however, an uptick in coronavirus cases statewide led Gov. Tom Wolf to impose more stringent restrictions on restaurants and bars. Under those regulations, alcohol could only be served to diners eating at a table or booth — not at bars — and indoor occupancy was limited to 25% of stated fire-code maximum.
For Mohegan Sun Pocono — as with so many business in the hospitality industry — the loss of patronage and scaled down operations did hit home: In August 2020, furloughed employees were informed that layoffs were in the offing.
Eventually, however the mitigation orders were lifted and patrons began to return in force.
“Everybody wanted to get back out,” Parfrey said of pent-up demand as lockdowns were lifted.
The proof has been in the numbers. As the Associated Press reported in July of this year, Pennsylvania smashed its record for gambling revenue, reporting nearly $3.9 billion in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021, as every category of wagering showed growth.
“Slowly we saw the mitigation orders drop off, and we started to see people come back out,” Parfrey added.
Celebrations underway
In 2021, Mohegan Sun Pocono also has been focused on commemorating its 15 years of growth and development.
Celebrations of the casino’s milestone anniversary have been underway this month:
• Full bands returned to Breakers during the first weekend of November.
• MSP also is rolling out a $40,000 Anniversary Extravaganza from 5 to 9 p.m. today where one lucky Momentum member will be selected every 15 minutes to win $1,500 free slot play with a grand prize winner taking home a $15,000 cash prize at the end of the night.
As Parfrey said, the growth and development is poised to continue.
“Where do we go from here? The future is bright, obviously. In the next year or so we’ll have some exciting development announcements for this property — I can’t tell you too much about those right now, but they will be widely popular amongst our guests and our team members.”
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HISTORICAL HIGHLIGHTS
Oct. 15, 2004: The Connecticut-based Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority and Penn National Gaming Inc. announce a $280 million sale agreement for the 40-year-old harness racing track and five off-track betting parlors.
July 21, 2005: The Mohegan group unveils plans for a 400,000-square-foot permanent casino that will include 2,000 slot machines, three restaurants, a buffet, several bars and clubs and retail space. Construction cost is estimated at $140 million to $160 million.
September 2005: Work begins on a $47 million temporary casino that includes 1,000 slot machines, a buffet restaurant and new simulcast area. The grandstand roof is removed and a 16,000-square-foot addition is begun.
Dec. 8, 2005: Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs files its application for a temporary and permanent gaming license with the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. It’s the first in the state.
Sept. 27, 2006: Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs receives approval for the first gaming license issued by the Gaming Control Board.
Nov. 14, 2006: Formal opening of the “temporary” casino adjacent to the harness track.
July 2008: The $208 million expansion project dubbed “Project Sunrise” opens to the public. The new, larger Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs offers 2,500 slot machines, 16 eateries, boutiques and retail shops, and 409,000 square feet of space.
July 2010: Table games premiere at the casino.
Nov. 14, 2013: Seven years to the day after first opening, the complex debuts its new hotel, Luzerne County’s largest hotel and convention center.
October 2019: Unibet Sportsbook opens, bringing in-person sports betting to Mohegan Sun Pocono.