Category Archives: Downtown

Bobby Ray Who?

Posted on January 7, 2009 by David McKee

Tamares Group's raggle-taggle bunch of downtown Vegas casinos is onto its third management company in four years. Its first stalking horse, Barrick Gaming, made a lot of grandiose noises but turned out to be a big bag of hot air. … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Regulation, Tamares Group | 1 Comment

Unwanted Vegas bargain

Posted on January 5, 2009 by David McKee

So, after making the big bad Fire Department the fall guy for Dec. 31's sucktastic fireworks display (more of an obfuscation than a display, really) it turns out that the culprit was organizer Las Vegas Events. Perhaps, in a new … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Downtown, LVCVA, The Strip | Comments Off

Nevada in October: It was the pits

Posted on December 10, 2008 by David McKee

Taken at face value, October's revenue numbers for Nevada casinos were calamitous. Looked at in context (i.e., coming off a 10% increase from October '06 to '07) they were … still bad. But I'm going to resist the temptation to … Continue reading →

Posted in Boulder Strip, Current, Downtown, Economy, Harrah's, Lake Las Vegas, Laughlin, Station Casinos, The Strip | Comments Off

New blogs on the block

Posted on December 4, 2008 by David McKee

A couple of new bloggers just rode into town, meaning I’m going to have raise my game a bit. Actually, they’ve been in town for quite a long time and know where many of the bodies are buried, but are … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Downtown, MGM Mirage, Movies, The Strip | Comments Off

Sally Rand has left the building

Posted on November 26, 2008 by David McKee

That corpse you may have stumbled across while strolling the riverbanks of Pittsburgh is Pennsylvania’s ‘one and one-third‘ rule. It was a legislative fig leaf whose ostensible purpose was to prevent the prime casino/racino opportunities in the state from being … Continue reading →

Posted in Don Barden, Downtown, Harrah's, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Regulation, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

Vegas electoral oddity

Posted on November 24, 2008 by David McKee

Today's Las Vegas Sun has a precinct-by-precinct breakdown of how President-elect Barack Obama won the Las Vegas metro area. In colorful map form, it shows Obama winning Downtown (handily) and most of the Strip … save for MGM Mirage's string … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Election, Lake Las Vegas, MGM Mirage, The Strip | Comments Off

Reader recommendations

Posted on October 28, 2008 by David McKee

Last week, I solicited recommendations for affordable hotel rooms, on behalf of a reader. For those of you who don't monitor the "Comments" threads, here's what some readers had to offer … • Why not the Main Street Station; it's … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Downtown, Harrah's, The Strip | Comments Off

Just say ‘no’

Posted on October 25, 2008 by David McKee

Fall is in the air here and so is election fever. I’m just back from early voting and a honkin’ big Obama rally is gearing up on the other side of town, so the mind is full of matters electoral. … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Election, Reno, Taxes, The Strip | Comments Off

Is Peter Carlino crazy?

Posted on October 24, 2008 by David McKee

Now I know that Penn National is all a-flush with cash these days and CEO Peter Carlino is probably feeling bullish. Still, in a recent visit to Vegas to assess possible casino acquisitions, he's alleged to have acted like he … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Downtown, Harrah's, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Riviera, Sahara, Steve Wynn, Tamares Group, The Strip, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

A reader asks …

Posted on October 23, 2008 by David McKee

… for good hotel-room suggestions, for an upcoming trip — preferably something that's maybe a little underrated and/or off the beaten path. Since you guys (and gals) stay in Vegas hotels more than I do, it seemed best to throw … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, The Strip | Comments Off

Sunday at The Palazzo with Sheldon

Posted on October 22, 2008 by David McKee

OK, so the big fella wasn't actually there, to the best of my knowledge, but let's not allow pedanticism to get in the way of a Stephen Sondheim reference. The Better Half and I partook of a $119/night room special … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, Tamares Group, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta | Comments Off

Plaza (the other one) & Gold Spike dispatches

Posted on October 21, 2008 by David McKee

According to the grapevine, El-Ad Properties' Plaza megaresort is not only a "go," but Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs are likely financiers. That is, if El-Ad and partner Nochi Dankner kick in more equity (I'm hearing $150 million), having exuberantly … Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Downtown, Tamares Group, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off

… or not

Posted on October 10, 2008 by David McKee

I’ve been informed that Tropicana Entertainment owner William J. Yung III has signed an irrevocable proxy and cannot vote his shares, no matter how many he owns. Nor he can he regain the reins of the company. Whether that is … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Downtown, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

One city, two Plazas

Posted on October 7, 2008 by David McKee

It's game, set and match to El-Ad Properties, after a Clark County jury ashcanned the remnants of Tamares Group's attempt to block El-Ad from building an oversized version of the New York Plaza on the Strip. (Parts of Tamares' … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, The Strip | Comments Off

Tamares mines comedic gold

Posted on October 3, 2008 by David McKee

Nothing says "quality" quite like a Tamares joint. As the trial dubbed "Plaza Versus Plaza" winds down, Tamares Group — owners of the downtown Plaza — came up with a good one. The Lichtenstein-based company would have jurors believe "that … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Tamares Group, The Strip | 1 Comment

Case Bets: PR, Trump

Posted on September 30, 2008 by David McKee

Press releases are always manna on a slow news day but sometimes you get one (OK, many) that make you want to pull your hair. For instance, I received such a specimen late yesterday from an agency that shall remain … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Dining, Donald Trump, Downtown, Harrah's, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

Pinnacle: "We're the boss here!"

Posted on September 26, 2008 by David McKee

“Pinnacle tells store owner to lower his price” reads the headline in the Press of Atlantic City, and it’s no exaggeration. Although the owner of the Atlantic City News Agency (a bookstore) has dropped the asking price for his property … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Downtown, Pinnacle Entertainment, Sports | Comments Off

Landry's vote set; IGT blues

Posted on September 25, 2008 by David McKee

Nov. 3 is the appointed day for Landry’s shareholders to vote on CEO Tilman Fertitta‘s $21/share buyout offer. The stock’s had a wild ride lately, hitting bottom at $12.42, following a precipitate dive during what might be called Hurricane Ike … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, IGT, Tilman Fertitta, Wall Street | Comments Off

Mohegan Sun in Kansas: D'oh!

Posted on September 22, 2008 by David McKee

A reader in Oklahoma City points out an obvious reason — one which I somehow managed to completely overlook — why the Kansas Lottery‘s casino-selection panel didn’t go with Mohegan Sun, which I foolishly thought to be a prohibitive favorite. … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Kansas, Regulation, Tribal | Comments Off

A "character" responds

Posted on September 17, 2008 by David McKee

You may recall that, some time back, in an item entitled "Blasts from the Past," I discussed an anomaly in the transfer of the El Cortez from Jackie Gaughan to an ownership group that included various longtime associates — and … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Regulation | Comments Off