CANYONVILLE — Seven Feathers Casino Resort reopened Friday after being closed for more than two months..

The Canyonville casino opened its doors at 7 a.m. and there was already a line of some 100 customers waiting to get in. Spokesperson Susan Ferris said those who entered had their temperatures taken and had to wear masks, as did the staff — all measures that will be kept in place for the foreseeable future. Other changes included reconfigured gaming areas, limited venues and shortened operating hours to give workers time to disinfect and clean.

Seven Feathers, which is owned by the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, is one of Douglas County’s largest employers and most well-attended attractions. Before shutting down on March 17 due to COVID-19, Seven Feathers had about 650 employees and averaged about 1,300 customers a day.

The sudden closure led to more than 500 of those employees to be furloughed and denied those customers a place to play electronic slot machines and enjoy food and drinks.

Wednesday night, Seven Feathers brought in about 300 frequent customers and around 100 employees for a test run of the newly configured casino and hotel. When that soft opening went well, the tribal council took a vote in a Zoom teleconference meeting Thursday and decided to reopen.

The casino posted a lengthy note on its web site Friday announcing the opening and describing in detail the numerous changes that were implemented to ensure the safety of customers and staff.

“Since we closed our doors on March 17, we have been hard at work making upgrades to the property to ensure the health and safety of everyone who enters our doors,” the casino said on its website. “You may have seen many of the safety measures we are implementing already in place in businesses across our communities. These practices follow best outlines for sterilization, sanitization and social distancing that have been outlined by health industry experts.”

Those changes include:

• Play at slot machines will be limited and the chairs have been removed to ensure proper spacing.
• Customers will not be allowed to congregate in groups.
• Staff will keep their distance from each other and customers.
• Slot machines and chairs will be cleaned after each use.
• Customers must wear masks at the gaming tables.
• Only every other table will be open to ensure spacing.
• Customers won’t be allowed to stand behind players at the tables.

Additionally, the restaurants will be open for limited hours, with limited menus and grab-and-go selections.

Seven Feathers is among four casinos in Oregon that reopened this week or announced plans to reopen soon.

This article was originally published by the News-Review in Roseburg, one of more than a dozen news organizations throughout the state sharing their coverage of the novel coronavirus outbreak to help inform Oregonians about this evolving health issue.