Media get peek at Toledo casino

In some places, the floors are still concrete slabs, the walls unpainted, and the sounds of saws and hammering ring out instead of the bells of winning slot machines.

But Mike Galle glanced at a tile mural of Marilyn Monroe on the wall and paused during a private media tour of the Hollywood Casino Toledo on Friday.

"Two days ago, that wasn't even up," said Mr. Galle, the casino's vice president and assistant general manager. "That's how fast this project is going."

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The $300 million riverfront casino in East Toledo is expected to be built on time by mid-March, although it's still unclear when doors will officially open for gambling enthusiasts.

Penn National Gaming's tentative goal was to open April 1, but the Ohio Casino Control Commission has not yet granted a gaming license to the casino operator.

The commission has said the casino's opening likely will be pushed back at least two months, and general manager Richard St. Jean said the casino expects to know the official start date late this month.

"We're working very closely with the commission," Mr. St. Jean said Friday. "Once they feel comfortable on a licensing date, that's when we'll set our opening date. Hopefully, it's a matter of weeks, not months."

So far, the building's exterior is nearly finished while about 85 percent of the building's interior is completed. The project has stayed on budget with 85 percent of the construction budget spent so far, Mr. St. Jean said.

On Friday, metal frames were lined up in the game room, ready for crews to get the OK to install the slot machines on them, and plastic wrap covered part of the red carpet.

Within several weeks, the casino furniture stocked in warehouses could start to arrive.

The casino's theme, evident by the Marilyn mural and the elegant pillars, will be old Hollywood Art Deco.

During the tour, casino executives also gave new details on what the five restaurants and lounges inside the casino will be like.

The establishments will be Final Cut Steakhouse, a 130-seat fine-dining restaurant with a view overlooking the Maumee River and a sliver of downtown Toledo, and Skybox, a 173-seat sports bar and grill where television images will be projected onto a 20-foot-tall glass wall.

Also featured will be Epic Buffet, a 260-seat restaurant; a grab-to-go sandwich, salad, and dessert eatery with 40 seats, as well as an 80-seat entertainment lounge.

The 125,000-square-foot game floor will house 2,000 slot machines ranging from penny slots to $100 ones, 60 tables at which to play blackjack, roulette, craps, and other games, plus 20 poker tables.

Members of the media toured the casino Friday morning, wearing hard hats and safety vests, while construction crews painted walls and installed lights on the ceiling.

On Jan. 26, some members of the state commission also will tour the casino and see the facility's security and surveillance operations, which were off limits Friday.

A Penn National spokesman said the tour next week will not be open to the media because of security reasons.

Once completed, the casino will employ more than 1,200 workers -- 95 percent of them local.

There have been several job fairs to search for new employees, including one Thursday in Bowling Green.

The next job fair is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday at Owens Community College Student Health and Activities Center.

Contact Gabrielle Russon at: grusson@theblade.com or 419-724-6026.