Sands Bethlehem‘s buyers are letting no grass grow beneath their feet. The Poarch Bank of Creek Indians will rename the megaresort Wind Creek Bethlehem. It remains to be seen whether they’ll have to deal with unionizing the work force: So far only security personnel are represented 
— the first union contract Las Vegas Sands ever signed. Wall Street continues to wax skeptical on the deal, with Jeffries analyst David Katz not budging off his “Hold” rating for LVS: “Given the company’s prior efforts to sell the property, increasing competition in the Northeast, and Pennsylvania’s recent legislative rulings, we believe the announcement is modestly positive for the shares but does not alter our neutral stance on the shares.”
Added Joseph Weinert of Spectrum Gaming Group, “A lot of people in the industry are going to be watching to see if this tribe has the resources, experience and expertise to at least maintain its performance level — if not improve it.” Nevertheless, the Poarch Creek Band feels that Sands Bethlehem throws off enough free capital to accelerate paying down the $1.3 billion purchase price, the biggest in Lehigh Valley history. There’s hope that Poarch Creek will make good on some unkept Sands promises, like the conversion of No. 2 Machine Shop into a Bass Pro Shops. One site has lain fallow so long that Bethlehem Mayor Robert Donchez is mulling using eminent domain in order to repurpose it. Casino President Brian Carr can rest easy: He and his management team are expected to be kept in place by the new owners,
* Despite the best efforts of Sands and Caesars Entertainment, casino gambling in Brazil is a no-go. The Brazilian cabinet voted down legalized gambling by a 13-2 margin, a crushing defeat in what had looked like a very promising market.
* Casino legalization in Japan is a poky little puppy and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party would like to move things along, with the goal of opening casino resorts before 2025. According to GGR Asia, LDP “lawmakers agreed that without a change of approach by the government, 
it would be beyond 2025 before any casinos could launch.” There is some tension within the LDP between the government, which would place a hard cap on casino floor space for instance, and the casino steering group, which would like some wiggle room on casino mandates. The steering group is also against limiting the initial grant of megaresorts to three, fearing that regional markets will be left out in the cold. However, the crucial Komeito Party says that such a concession would be “extremely hard” to achieve. Other sticking points include the steering group’s desire for only a monthly limit on visits by Japanese citizens, while the government would like to keep casino patronage to 3X per week. Why do we think the Komeito Party will get the final say on all this? History.
* Settlement of a longstanding lawsuit between Wynn Resorts and Universal Entertainment may have been good news to Wynn investors but was bad news for Universal shareholders. The amount of the settlement was lower than expected and less to severe shrinkage of Universal’s market capitalization.
* Actor Kiefer Sutherland is performing at Red Rock Resort on April 28. However, if you were hoping for recitation of Jack Bauer‘s most dramatic moments from 24 you’ll go away disappointed. The event is part of a rollout for Sutherland’s new Down a Hole C&W album.
