Gaming

Fontainebleau fires back, outlines bank dispute

Attorneys for the Fontainebleau Las Vegas resort leveled new allegations Wednesday against banks that terminated funding for the $2.9 billion hotel-casino, which now sits unfinished and in limbo while a bankruptcy court decides its fate.

8 July 2009
By Steve Green

Fontainebleau developers: Design change could help costs

Developers of the idled Fontainebleau resort in Las Vegas are hinting at a couple of strategies to help get the project back on track -- and keep them in control of the development. In a filing Thursday in Miami's bankruptcy court, Fontainebleau Las Vegas Holdings LLC and affiliated companies revealed they are considering design changes to the $2.9 billion resort to contain its soaring construction costs. Lenders say they've been told by Fontainebleau the financing cost alone is approaching $3.175 billion.

6 July 2009
By Steve Green

Prada, Christian Dior, Bulgari to be among CityCenter's retailers

The CityCenter project on the Las Vegas Strip.

More big names in the upscale retail and restaurant worlds are joining the retail center at MGM Mirage's CityCenter on the Las Vegas Strip, MGM Mirage announced today. The retail and dining center, Crystals, will open Dec. 3 at the $8.5 billion CityCenter resort that includes gaming, hotel, entertainment and condominium components. A spokeswoman said Crystal isn't disclosing what percentage of the retail and dining space has been leased, but is pleased.

6 July 2009
By Steve Green

Michael Paladino, lead gaming analyst for Fitch Ratings

Michael Paladino, lead gaming analyst for Fitch Ratings, says gaming is still "an attractive business with high profit margins of 25 and 35 percent and significant cash flow" despite recent problems with debt. That's in contrast to automaking and airlines, whose problems run deeper.

When business was booming, people like Michael Paladino — who assess bankruptcy risk — were little seen or heard. In the recession, Paladino, the lead gaming analyst for bond rating agency Fitch Ratings in New York, is making headlines with his assessments of the casino industry’s cash crunch.

6 July 2009
By Liz Benston

Tropicana Las Vegas emerges from bankruptcy

Tropicana Las Vegas has come out on the other side of its bankruptcy woes with a new leader and the bulk of its financial burden gone.

2 July 2009
By Amanda Finnegan

Court filings shed light on Fontainebleau financing

Big banks have offered new evidence backing their refusal to further finance the Fontainebleau Resort in Las Vegas. The bottom line, they assert, is that the project doesn't make economic or business sense.

2 July 2009
By Steve Green

Primm’s lure: Freebies

John Wang, center, deals blackjack to Jon Edwards, left, of Corona, Calif., and Michael Perk of San Diego at Buffalo Bill's in Primm.

On a recent Monday afternoon, Buffalo Bill’s — a Western-themed casino about 45 miles from the Strip at the California border — offers a glimpse of Las Vegas’ past. The place is hopping. A line to sign up for the players club snakes through the casino and toward the lobby. Nearby, people in shorts and flip-flops play slowly, pausing to gulp sodas and take in the crowd. In the food court, families and young couples take up most of the available seats, eating on the cheap amid kiddie rides and arcade games.

2 July 2009
By Liz Benston

Revenue slips at Las Vegas Sands’ Pa. casino

Revenue at Las Vegas Sands’ newest casino has dropped for a fifth straight week, according to a report this week by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board.

1 July 2009
By Amanda Finnegan

Venetian, Palazzo lay off workers amid downturn

The Venetian, left, and Palazzo hotel-casinos on the Las Vegas Strip.

The Venetian and Palazzo hotel-casinos in Las Vegas have laid off 194 employees since Monday in response to the continuing economic downturn and the resulting drive to cut costs. "It's an effort to continue to right-size our business," Las Vegas Sands Corp. spokesman Ron Reese said, adding the layoffs affected a variety of positions in multiple departments at the adjacent resorts on the Las Vegas Strip. On March 27, Las Vegas Sands said 283 people had been laid off.

1 July 2009
By Steve Green

Attorney suing Harrah's loses law license; case dismissed

An attorney suing Harrah's Entertainment Inc. on behalf of disgruntled bondholders has lost his law license after pleading guilty to felony charges -- and the case against Harrah's has been voluntarily dismissed.

29 June 2009
By Steve Green

Lower blackjack minimum may not be deal for players

In response to the recession, some casinos have lowered minimum bets for blackjack. But the cheaper games can have rules that boost the house edge, such as a 6-to-5 payout for blackjacks instead of the traditional 3-to-2. The change means a blackjack with a $10 bet wins only $12 instead of $15.

You’ve seen bargain-basement hotel rates and coupons for meals, show tickets and retail purchases — even volume discounts on bottle service in nightclubs and lounges.

29 June 2009
By Liz Benston

Practice of building before designs are done hits wall at Fontainebleau

Fontainebleau Resort on the north end of the Las Vegas Strip is shown under construction.

When Fontainebleau’s lenders pulled $600 million-plus in prearranged financing to finish the project, it exposed the strategy of how big resorts are built — quickly and with a wink between owners and lenders that more money probably will be needed.

28 June 2009
By Liz Benston

‘Hangover’ brings new customers, campaign to Caesars

The Caesars Palace suite that inspired the set for the movie "The Hangover."

What do you get when you throw four inebriated bachelors, a tiger and a baby into a suite at Caesars Palace? One of the summer’s biggest movies, a new marketing campaign and people curious about your hotel. And that’s exactly what Caesars Palace wanted. “The Hangover” is the tale of a Vegas bachelor party gone wrong and puts Caesars at center stage for the debaucherous trip. The film has grossed more than $150 million since its June 5 opening.

27 June 2009
By Amanda Finnegan

Greek Isles lender wants to sell, says owner has no equity left

The 202-room Greek Isles is shown April 23, 2009, on Convention Center Drive near Las Vegas Boulevard. Ownership of the property that opened as the Royal Inn in 1970 has changed hands often over the years. It has operated as the Clarion since 2009.

The lender, Canpartners Realty Holding Co. IV LLC, plans to press its case to immediately auction the Greek Isles during a hearing July 16. Greek Isles, with 202 hotel rooms and a small gaming operation, was forced into bankruptcy by other creditors April 6. A receiver appointed at the request of Canpartners has been running the property on Convention Center Drive between Las Vegas Boulevard and Paradise Road. Greek Isles, with 202 hotel rooms and a small gaming operation, was forced into bankruptcy by other creditors April 6.

26 June 2009
By Steve Green

Riviera stock delisted from N.Y. Stock Exchange

Riviera Holding Corp. announced that trading of its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange was suspended today.

25 June 2009
By Las Vegas Sun Staff
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