Poor Phil Ruffin

Posted on July 13, 2015 by David McKee

trump-14First he gets skunked in his attempt to secure the last Kansas casino license, now’s he being used as a prop in Donald Trump‘s traveling freak show. Ruffin, by the way, is Trump’s designated mandarin of China policy. If the Chinese want to negotiate with a casino mogul, they’ve always got Sheldon Adelson and plenty of him. Speaking of which, has Ruffin been dipping into Adelson’s hair dye?

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Bluhm tries, tries again; Caesars sees profits

Posted on July 10, 2015 by David McKee

“Metal panels and precast stone” are the look of Rivers Casino 3.0, as Rush Street Gaming struggles to find a design that sits well with Schenectady city fathers. The casinos is the $330 million linchpin of a Rivers Schenectady$480 million development which includes a rather plain-looking hotel, bike paths and condos. (Design has never been a strong point of Rush Street’s.) Neil Bluhm’s company has endeavored to retool the exterior appearance without changing the casino’s footprint. The modernistic solution it has devised is advertised as an attempt to reflect “new Schenectady.”

“It’s a much more refreshing, modern look. I don’t want to use the word high-tech, but it’s a little bit high-tech, so I think Continue reading →

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White knight for Caesars?; Missing the Blarney Stone

Posted on July 10, 2015 by David McKee

Caesars Entertainment may have to cede more equity in Caesars Entertainment Operating Co. in order to get junior creditors behind a Chapter 11 restructuring. A Paulson & Co. initiative caesars-palace-02reportedly aims to do exactly that. In tandem with Canyon Partners and Soros Fund Management, Paulson is said to be discussing a new bankruptcy reorganization, sources say. As the third-biggest investor in the Caesars mothership, Paulson carries a lot of clout, which it is flexing on behalf of junior creditors. It’s also bailed out Caesars co-owner Apollo Management from its Realogy Holdings fiasco, in addition to having de-levered Caesars in the past, so there’s reason for Caesars, Apollo and Texas Pacific Group to hear what Paulson has to say.

Meanwhile, the mothership could be tipped into bankruptcy, too, if Judge Benjamin Goldgar permits Continue reading →

Posted in Dan Gilbert, Derek Stevens, Detroit, Downtown, Economy, Harrah's, Internet gambling, MGM Mirage, Sports, Wall Street | Comments Off on White knight for Caesars?; Missing the Blarney Stone

SLS: House of Pain

Posted on July 8, 2015 by David McKee

Former Revel President Scott Kreeger, now running SLS Las Vegas, must feel like he’s gone from the frying pan into the fire. An Sam Nazarianunusually trenchant Howard Stutz column lays out the problems facing the new casino, a hipster joint sitting all by its lonesome in a bad neighborhood. (If this was Sam Nazarian‘s “vision,” the people who bought into it must have been snorting his leftover cocaine.) Kreeger tells Stutz that it will take as long as two years for SLS to become viable. It may not have that much time. Resorts World Las Vegas still hasn’t started work that will take three years and next-door neighbor All-Debt, er, I mean All-Net Arena probably never will. (Even Stutz calls it Continue reading →

Posted in California, Carl Icahn, Dining, Eldorado Resorts, Florida, Fontainebleau, Genting, Marketing, MGM Mirage, New York, Reno, Riviera, Sam Nazarian, SLS Las Vegas, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Around the Midwest

Posted on July 8, 2015 by David McKee

Iowa was as flat as much of its landscape last month. Amidst the prevailing revenue stasis (sign of a perfectly sized market) there were a few significant movers. Isle of Capri Casinos‘ three properties were HET Council Bluffsup a collective 2%, while Boyd Gaming had a mixed month, gaining 6% at Diamond Jo ($5 million) but ceding 3% at Diamond Jo Worth ($7 million). Customers migrated from racetracks to casinos, which cost Horseshoe Casino 9% of its business ($19.5 million) while Harrah’s Council Bluffs (left) was steady. Ameristar Council Bluffs had a slightly adverse month, down 2% to $13 million. (Where were all those Council Bluffs players going?)

The big gainers and losers were small fry like Continue reading →

Posted in Ameristar, Boyd Gaming, Dan Gilbert, Full House Resorts, GLPI, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Isle of Capri, Neil Bluhm, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Warner Gaming | Comments Off on Around the Midwest

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 8, 2015 by David McKee

“[Donald] Trump sues when he is made to feel small, insufficiently trump_gold_ap_328wealthy, threatened or mocked. He sues for sport, he sues to regain a sense of control, and he sues to make a point. He sues as a means of saying ‘you’re fired’ to those he does not employ. But he sues, most of all, to make headlines and to reinforce the notion that he is powerful.’ — Olivia Nuzzi, chronicling Trump’s long history of litigation, which includes suing himself.

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Stale fare for New York; Web sites taken hostage

Posted on July 7, 2015 by David McKee

New York gaming regulators gave the state’s southern tier a second chance to submit plans for a casino — and they got leftovers. The only bidder was Tioga Downs owner Jeff Gural (left) who essentially Guralproposed a supersized, $145 million version of his previous (rejected) plan … 1,000 slots, 50 table games and 161 hotel rooms. A rival, top-secret bid had been shaping up under developer Jeffrey C. Hyman, intended for Binghamton and promising “seismic impact.” However, at the eleventh hour Hyman dropped out, blaming the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation. Intended for a remediated industrial site, Hyman’s project didn’t qualify for redevelopment tax credits. Game over.

Now the question becomes on of whether the state accepts a Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Colony Capital, Cordish Co., Entertainment, Harrah's, Internet gambling, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Racinos, Regulation, Technology, Tribal | 1 Comment

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 7, 2015 by David McKee

atlantic_city_boat“The enormous amount of refunds that the city must pay back on successful tax appeals is simply unsustainable. We continue to make cuts and run city government more efficiently, but it is the taxpayers who will suffer in the long run without tax stabilization.” — Atlantic City Mayor Don Guardian (R), on a $63 million tax-refund awarded to Borgata. The shortfall will be passed on to the city’s citizenry.

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GLPI ups ante for Pinnacle

Posted on July 7, 2015 by David McKee

Wall Street has been consistently saying that Gaming & Leisure Properties‘ previous offer for Pinnacle Entertainment wouldn’t get the deal done. Now GLPI has put $47.50/share on the table, to a cool pinnacle_logo_lrresponse from Pinnacle management. J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff wrote, “we are surprised (and frankly scratching our heads) that PNK wouldn’t accept GLPI’s upwardly revised offer. $47.50 is a nice bump to its last public offer of $35.77 as well as the low $20 range the shares traded just six months ago.”

Greff added that he didn’t think Pinnacle could get the stock price that high on its own nor that Continue reading →

Posted in GLPI, history, International, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Sports, The Mob, The Strip, Wall Street, Wisconsin | 1 Comment

2016: Know thy enemy

Posted on July 6, 2015 by David McKee

A Las Vegas Sun roundup of the presidential field gives some helpful guidance. For instance, we’ve long known that Jeb Bush (R) was anti-christiecasino, despite gambling expansion on his watch in Florida. Martin O’Malley (D) was in similar circumstances in Maryland but could at best be called a lukewarm supporter. Enthusiastic supporters are relatively few: Lincoln Chafee (D), Chris Christie (R, left) and Donald Trump (R) and, at least to an extent, Rand Paul (R). Bernie Sanders‘ (D) position is inscrutable, although Vermont is hostile territory to gaming, while George Pataki (R) is schizoid, strongly supportive of terrestrial gambling but opposed to it on the Internet. GOP candidates are more often than not opposed to Web wagering … they want Sheldon Adelson‘s money after all.

Some candidates were against gambling before they were for it, such as Continue reading →

Posted in Donald Trump, Election, Florida, Maryland, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Tribal, Vermont, Wisconsin | Comments Off on 2016: Know thy enemy

From Russia with baccarat; Massachusetts tribe has no quit in it

Posted on July 6, 2015 by David McKee

North Korean, South Korean and northern Chinese punters will relatively soon have at least two opportunities to take short-hop flights to Vladivostok, where two casinos — relatively modest in NagaCorp-Vladivostok-Russia-rendering-e1414487130641budget by American standards — are in progress. The junior of the two is NagaCorp, which is in the first of three phases of what will be a $150 million to $200 million casino, with 100 tables and 500 slots. It’s part of Primorsky Entertainment Resort City, in which NagaCorp is being beaten to the finish line by Lawrence Ho. His $700 million Tigre de Cristal casino should be open by September — four months behind schedule — and will feature 65 tables (divided between VIP and mass-market play), 800 slots and 119 hotel rooms. But if Ho’s running behind schedule, NagaCorp’s just getting started.

Since Nagacorp’s budget has been scaled back from $369 million, it makes you wonder Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, CityCenter, Donald Trump, history, International, Lawrence Ho, Massachusetts, New York, Racinos, Regulation, Slot routes, Technology, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off on From Russia with baccarat; Massachusetts tribe has no quit in it

Atlantic City, Trump Resorts play for time

Posted on July 6, 2015 by David McKee

Atlantic City can breathe a little easier: It’s bought a year’s reprieve from a ballot question which would revoke its casino monopoly.
WhelanTechnically, it could still get done if the Legislature votes it through by August 30. But it has to pass both houses by supermajorities, must be subject to a public hearing and has to sit on the legislative calendar for 20 days. All this, plus the opposition of state Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D) means the issue is dead for 2015. “I wish it was never going to be on, but at some point I think it will be on the ballot. Given the polling information, I’m not sure it will pass,” said state Sen. James Whelan (D above), who represents the Boardwalk.

Whelan and others believe the issue Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Carl Icahn, Election, Genting, International, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Taxes, Trump Entertainment Resorts, TV | 1 Comment

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 6, 2015 by David McKee

“The next wave of people aren’t going to stand there and play slots. The industry has to change or disappear.” – game developer Greg Giuffria, on the prospect of skill-based slot machines.

Posted in Technology | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

MGM goes to Atlanta; Pechanga named #1

Posted on July 2, 2015 by David McKee

Instead of waiting for an incremental creep of acceptance of gambling in Georgia, MGM Resorts International is taking the bull by the ron stephenshorns. While it says that it is in the “very preliminary” stages of proposing a casino for Atlanta, it also called it “a beautiful market.” MGM has at least been confident enough to share its plans with state Rep. Ron Stephens (R, left), who said, “I’ve seen what they want to do, and it’s going to blow your mind. It’s massive in its size and its elegance. ” He called the $1 billion project a “game-changer,” although the governor and most lawmakers seem inclined to play by the same rules as before.

There is, however, a Stephens-penned constitutional amendment working its way through the legislature that would permit Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, California, Economy, Foxwoods, Georgia, Hard Rock Hotel, Harrah's, Indiana, Internet gambling, Louisiana, MGM Mirage, Mississippi, Mohegan Sun, Neil Bluhm, New York, Pinnacle Entertainment, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Station Casinos, Technology, The Strip, Tourism, Tribal | Comments Off on MGM goes to Atlanta; Pechanga named #1

Reprieve for Dotty’s; Straub changes course again

Posted on July 2, 2015 by David McKee

By one vote, Dotty’s eked out a four-month grace period while the Las Vegas City Council ponders whether or not to lower the boom on the newest in this mammoth chain of slot parlors and taverns. Known for Dottys.jpgits homey, smoker-friendly atmosphere, Dotty’s is equally notorious for living dangerously when it comes to the requirement that a restricted gaming licensee’s slot machines be “incidental” to its overall revenue. The new Dotty’s derives a robust 91% of its monies from slot play, which hardly seems “incidental” by any reasonable definition. (On a personal note, I happen to live a couple of blocks from the original Dotty’s, at the intersection of Maryland Parkway and Tropicana Avenue.)

Dotty’s and competitors like Jackpot Joanie‘s ought to be very worried if Continue reading →

Posted in Arizona, Atlantic City, Carl Icahn, Dotty's, Foxwoods, Glenn Straub, Laughlin, Massachusetts, Regulation, Tribal, Trump Entertainment Resorts | Comments Off on Reprieve for Dotty’s; Straub changes course again

Quote of the Day

Posted on July 2, 2015 by David McKee

Trump in LV“Yes, the 2016 Republican field is so wide and diverse it includes perhaps the nation’s first presidential candidate with his own fragrance, and, it must be noted, not just any fragrance. Success has ‘a masculine combination of rich vetiver, tonka bean, birchwood and musk,’ and ‘captures the spirit of the driven man.’” — National Review Editor Rich Lowry on “Success by Trump,” the cologne of bankruptcy.

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Mohegan Sun’s eastern inspiration; Bumper crop in Colorado

Posted on July 1, 2015 by David McKee

You’d never know Mohegan Sun has been experiencing financial difficulties on the home front to judge by the scale and expense of its InspireSouth Korean partnership with Incheon International Airport Corp. The two sides have finalized conceptual plans for Inspire Integrated Resort and they’re ambitious to say the least. The linchpin would be a 250-table, 1,500-slot casino, augmented by two hotel towers with an aggregate 1,000 rooms. Other components would be a retail mall, art gallery, music venue, an arena seating 20,000 people, an amusement park, a “Korean cosmetic and beauty hub [and] a Korean village celebrating Korean food and music, and a Native American cultural and arts experience.” You know, just your average casino.

An incomplete cost estimate for Inspire tops out at Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Colorado, Economy, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Neil Bluhm, Regulation, South Korea, Steve Wynn, Wall Street | Comments Off on Mohegan Sun’s eastern inspiration; Bumper crop in Colorado

Macao: Victory or status quo?; No more soft opening at Linq

Posted on July 1, 2015 by David McKee

Deutsche Bank was predicting a 37% dropoff in Macao gaming revenues for June. They came in 36% under last year’s numbers. Is this Galaxy Macaogood news or not-so-bad news? Probably the latter. The novelty factor of Galaxy Phase II was quick to fade (everywhere except at Galaxy, it seems), as the sequential decline in Macao from May to June was 12%, not the historical 8%. Galaxy, however, evicted Sands China from the top spot in market share of table-game play, 24% to 22%, with Sociedade de Jogos de Macau close behind at 20%.

Wynn Macau (11%) and MGM Grand Paradise (10.5%) did surprisingly well against Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Economy, Environment, Harrah's, Macau, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Sheldon Adelson, Stanley Ho, Steve Wynn, Technology, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off on Macao: Victory or status quo?; No more soft opening at Linq

Loveman: The blessed and the damned

Posted on June 30, 2015 by David McKee

Bankruptcy’s good for Caesars Entertainment Operating Co., which posted a $53 million profit in April (not having to pay interest on IMG-20130507-00006$18.4 billion in debt can’t hurt). As for outgoing CEO Gary Loveman, his move upstairs to the chairmanship of the Caesars Entertainment empire plays to mixed reviews in the Wall Street Journal. He is praised for acts of kindness toward the families of Caesars executives, as well as for a willingness to take the mickey out of himself (not a trait I witnessed in any of several encounters with Loveman).

He also gets zinged for his decision to live in Boston and essentially run Caesars from Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Harrah's, Macau, Marketing, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Pinnacle Entertainment, Regulation, South Korea, The Strip | Comments Off on Loveman: The blessed and the damned

This just in … Trump dumped

Posted on June 29, 2015 by David McKee

Our long television nightmare is over.

Posted in Donald Trump, TV | Comments Off on This just in … Trump dumped