del Lago Resort & Casino names GM

TYRE, N.Y. — The upcoming del Lago Resort & Casino has hired Jeff Babinski as vice president and general manager.

Babinski comes to del Lago from Lumiere Place Casino & Hotels in St. Louis, Missouri, where he held the same title since 2010.

In that role, he managed all gaming and non-gaming departments at Lumiere, a property of Tropicana Entertainment Inc., located in downtown St. Louis.

Prior to that, Babinski was the general manager and director of marketing at Boomtown Casino & Hotel in Reno, Nevada.

“Jeff offers that unique combination of strong leadership and a collaborative nature that we know will serve him and the community well in this role,” Jonathan Swain, COO at del Lago Resort & Casino, said in the news release issued Monday. “Not only does he more than meet the professional requirements of the position, he also has the personal character we look for in individuals we want to employ throughout the company.”

Babinski has spent time in upstate New York, having attended Cornell University’s professional development program during the summers of 2007 and 2008, the company said. The Cornell program partly focused on marketing for hotels and restaurants.

Before announcing Babinski’s hiring, the company on March 3 announced the name change from Lago to del Lago, which means “of the lake,” as it will serve as a “gateway” to the Finger Lakes region.

In the March 3 statement, Swain also commented on the name change.

“The newly evolved name reinforces that the resort and casino embodies the essence of the Finger Lakes Region and is a community steward for the entire area encompassing Seneca County and the great Finger Lakes,” he said.

Rochester–based Wilmorite, Inc., the company that owns the casino, originally referred to it as Wilmot Casino and Resort in its proposal for a gaming license.

The company in June 2014 then changed the name to Lago Resort & Casino.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com