Residents Asked To Weigh In On Future Of The Old Casino

The following is an article from The Falmouth Enterprise article published on January 23, 2026 on page 2,  entitled, “Residents Asked To Weigh In On Future Of The Old Casino”.

Residents Asked To Weigh In On Future Of The Old Casino

Falmouth Heights resident and author Theodore M. Murphy has lived about 100 yards from the Casino Wharf for all but four years of his life. Over the years, Murphy has seen the building change hands, be rebuilt, bustle with activity, clear out and endure the weather off Vineyard Sound as one of the most unique properties in town.

Once again, changes are coming to the Casino Wharf at 286 Grand Avenue, but this time, residents have been encouraged to provide their input on what should fill the restaurant and event space.

Owner of Shipwrecked and The Heights Hotel, Alex Khan, now owns the Casino restaurant and event space, which he will call The Old Casino. It is one of nine units in the building. The other eight units in the building are privately-owned condominiums.

Khan has called on the public for their ideas and input on what should go into Unit 9 next. In last week’s edition of the Enterprise, Khan ran a full-page advertisement asking residents to take the opportunity to provide thoughts on what the space, both upstairs in the event space and downstairs in the bar area, should be.

The survey asks participants to choose their preferences—seafood or pub fare, live music or DJs—and asks what the space should prioritize—community gatherings, charity events or comedy nights, to name a few possibilities.  

Murphy said he has fond memories growing up in Falmouth Heights and remembers hearing local musicians play at the wharf, buying and trading penny candy there with friends and getting lunch out the service window after a day spent on the beach. He added that he had some poor memories on the wharf’s boardwalk, where he said he often got splinters in his feet. At one point in the early 1900s, the wharf even had a movie theater and a post office, Murphy said.

“I think it’s nice we have a say,” he said of the survey. Murphy added that being able to provide input on the future use of the space is especially meaningful to residents who hope to patronize the business year-round. Whatever direction Khan chooses to go with the project, Murphy said he hopes the space will be accessible for the people who live and work in Falmouth, so they can enjoy it as much as he has over his lifetime in Falmouth Heights.

Khan said the number of responses received from the survey so far has been shocking. Khan is currently traveling and said he did not know the total number of survey responses received so far, but said “the responses have been insane” and have shown him how excited residents are to participate in the rejuvenation of the business. Gathering community input “is the only way to do it,” Khan said.