CHRISTIANA – Less than two years after being acquired by new investors, Delaware Park Casino and Racing is undergoing a $10 million renovation to update its look and bring new assets to patrons.
The renovations, which are underway and anticipated to be completed by this fall, aim to transform the main casino floor with new lighting, carpeting, murals and more. Many of its 1,900 slot machines are being updated for newer models that players are seeking.
It will also add new offerings for high-limit players, including a midi-baccarat and blackjack pit, new slot machines, an expanded VIP bar and a brand-new noodle bar restaurant concept, Foo Noodle, in the high-limit table games area.
The casino reportedly plans to reimagine all of its food and beverage offerings in the coming year, creating a variety of dining concepts.
New Delaware Park President & General Manager Terry Glebocki told Delaware Business Times that the new space “will make you think that you were in Atlantic City or Vegas or in some ultra-modern property.”
She would know, having experience at the top levels of the gaming industry.
Glebocki came into the gaming industry later in life after working as a CPA and looking for a new challenge. She worked in financial management positions at casinos up and down the Atlantic City Boardwalk, including stretches with Bally’s and the Trump Organization.
It was another leap of faith that saw her enter leadership, becoming the vice president of finance at the original Revel Casino in Atlantic City.
“I was there for the good, the bad and the ugly. For a while, I was the longest tenured employee at that property,” she said of the ambitious casino that entered bankruptcy.
After helping to oversee the sale of Revel in 2018, Glebocki left to take a C-Suite role at Tropicana Entertainment, where she got to see casinos around the country. When Revel’s new owners sought to right the ship of the newly branded Ocean Casino Resort, it called upon Glebocki who knew it best.
“I was fortunate enough that, when I got in there, I was able to work with the team and we brought it to profitability,” she said.
Glebocki was promoted to CEO of Ocean Casino and helped usher the property through COVID – including a state-imposed closure for 107 days – returning to strong success. She stepped down in October 2021 in an attempt at retirement, but a familiar face came calling.
Tom Benninger, whose Rubico Gaming acquired Delaware Park in December 2021 in a joint venture with Clairvest Group, called Glebocki about the property. He had previously served on the Revel board of directors and appreciated the job that Glebocki did.
“I came to the property and saw the things that were happening here, and it was just a perfect fit. It was just a kind of natural progression for me to take this job,” she said, noting that this is her first assignment to feature a thoroughbred racetrack and the first without an attached hotel.
The Rubico-Clairvest joint venture has given Glebocki the autonomy to run Delaware Park as a standalone casino, she said.
“So, we’re not part of this enormous corporate umbrella that’s run out of Vegas or somewhere else in the country to dictate what we need to do,” she said.
The longtime dedication to horse racing at Delaware Park is something unique to the Delaware property that Glebocki is excited to learn more about. While the calendar of racing has gotten smaller over the decades, the new owners are committed to keeping it a part of the casino, Glebocki said.
“Horse racing has a steep tradition. People in the area love it. It becomes a family-type affair,” she said. “We will try to expand on it, and we’ve started doing that with a Father’s Day event and a beer tasting event.”
