Revenue at Ohio gaming sites rising with temperatures

April 7, 2015 at 10:55p.m.

AUSTINTOWN

Higher temperatures coincided with higher revenue statewide for Ohio’s casinos and racinos, including Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course.

Credits played at the Austintown venue jumped almost $10 million from February to March — $65,501,788 in February to last month’s $75,138,893 — and credits won jumped more than $8 million to $66,637,349. Credits include cash and promotional offerings.

The net win, or revenue, increased more than $1.1 million to $7,985,259 in March. That net win was distributed with $5,283,646 staying at Hollywood Gaming, $2,675,062 going to the Ohio Lottery Commission and $26,551 to problem gambling services.

The Austintown racino averaged 865 video lottery terminals, one fewer than the previous four months, and the win per VLT per day was $298. For many of those categories, it was the first time the numbers hit close to October’s still-high posting during the racino’s first full month of operations.

“March is typically the month when revenues start to go up, primarily due to the weather, and it’s the month when people, for the most part, decide when they can go outside,” said Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for Hollywood Gaming’s parent company, Penn National Gaming Inc. Penn National does not comment specifically on monthly numbers.