Are we prepared to handle new COVID surges and the valley casino is expanding

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
·4 min read
More than 1,800 slot machine stations, including a new bar with 28 bar-top “slot seats” and an array of 4K televisions will be part of an expansion announced by Potawatomi Hotel & Casino.

Health experts are optimistic that even if COVID cases rise, hospitalizations and deaths should remain under control

  • The sense is that even with cases rising in Wisconsin and nationally, the combination of vaccines, anti-viral therapeutics, at-home tests and informed personal decision-making can all help the state close in on the goal public health officials set back in March 2020: to "flatten the curve" and prevent as many people as possible from ending up hospitalized or on the cusp of death.

  • Smoothing out the distribution chain of the anti-virals will be a key to getting to the next level. The expansion of "test-to-treat" clinics is key, said Ajay Sethi, an associate professor of population health sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "When we can scale that up to a point where we can feel confident that, 'Hey, I've got symptoms, let me pop into that CVS, get tested, it's positive, pharmacist gives me Paxlovid,' that's the next chapter," Sethi said. "I think it's the distribution issues that are keeping this from being a page-turner."

  • Overall, public health and medical professionals say they will closely watch whether the gap between the number of people getting COVID-19 and the number of people being hospitalized with it will continue to widen. "It's going to take a little time for the public to get used to the idea that cases can be potentially surging, and sort of feeling OK with that idea," Sethi said. "And that's understandable. It's been a rough couple of years."

  • When we see those surges, though, the basic precautions of masking and social distancing will still play a role in helping keep those who are most vulnerable safe. "As much as all of us would like it to be — and it's not the news any of us want to hear — we're not done with the pandemic," said Ben Weston, Milwaukee County's chief health policy advisor.

Potawatomi Hotel & Casino is adding 1,800 more slots, a Starbucks Coffee — and a restaurant from two members of the rock band KISS.

  • Those features will be built on the third floor of the casino, 1721 W. Canal St., in a $100 million renovation project that's to be completed by spring 2023.

  • The casino will now have 3,000 slots. Potawatomi is adding a full-service Starbucks as well as a Rock & Brews, a rock music-themed restaurant chain co-founded by musicians Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, from KISS.

  • Finally, Potawatomi is adding a new room for high-limit gamblers. It will feature a craft bar, gourmet kitchen featuring a brick oven and a stage for live performances.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Are we prepared to handle new COVID surges