Durango Station is another locals casino planned by Station Casinos for a 67-acre site on the southwest corner of South Durango Drive at Route 215 (the Las Vegas Beltway) near the Rhodes Ranch master-planned community.
The original design, permits, and zoning for Durango Station were filed in 1997 by the then-owner of the property, Rhodes Ranch. At that time, little in the way of residential development was taking place in the far southwestern region of the valley, and Durango Station’s plans called for a massive 215,000-square-foot casino. Now, however, the area has been subdivided and residents have expressed displeasure with the prospects -- the size, the proximity to the Tanaka Elementary School, and the potential to create traffic tie-ups -- for a nearby casino.
In 2004, Clark County Commissioners discussed the plans for Durango Station, instructing Station Casinos to limit the size of the casino. Then last year, the Commissioners approved the redrawn plans: a 120,000-square-foot gaming floor (it would still be the largest locals casino in Las Vegas), along with 400 rooms, a movie theater, and six restaurants. A second phase is also planned, which would include another 600 rooms and an entertainment center.
Since then, however, Station Casinos has been focusing on a different project, Aliante Station in North Las Vegas. At the groundbreaking for Aliante Station last month, company executives said, "We haven’t figured out which [project] is next." They said they’re considering Durango Station, the first Station casino in Reno, and a flagship property to replace the Wild Wild West casino at the corner of W. Tropicana Avenue and Dean Martin Drive (formerly Industrial Road).
And in a story in the Las Vegas Sun last December, business writer Liz Benston reported, "Station is mum on when it plans to break ground on Durango Station, and it may not happen for years."
