{"id":19766,"date":"2017-05-25T07:12:52","date_gmt":"2017-05-25T15:12:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/?p=19766"},"modified":"2022-04-30T14:00:37","modified_gmt":"2022-04-30T22:00:37","slug":"sands-bethlehem-sale-fizzles-packer-peddles-alon-acreage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/sands-bethlehem-sale-fizzles-packer-peddles-alon-acreage\/","title":{"rendered":"Sands Bethlehem sale fizzles; Packer peddles Alon acreage"},"content":{"rendered":"

For the second time, Las Vegas Sands<\/strong> has decided that Sands Bethlehem<\/strong> was too valuable to sell<\/a>, especially after it set a state \"\"record for table game revenue. (Earlier, Sands was bruited to be in talks with Tropicana Entertainment<\/strong> to sell the place for $1 billion,) Negotiations with MGM Resorts International<\/strong> over the property have “collapsed,” according to multiple Morning Call<\/em> sources. Sands COO Rob Goldstein<\/strong> made the case for keeping its Bethlehem<\/strong> presence in a recent investor call, saying\u00a0“Bethlehem represents a pretty extraordinary investment in terms of what we put into the market versus what it returns to us, although it’s a small number, obviously, relative to our other assets.” Analysts blamed a potentially watered-down gambling market (slot routes, DFS, Internet<\/strong> gambling) for the fruitless end of the negotiations.<\/p>\n

Even the breakdown of talks with MGM doesn’t mean that Sands’ $90 million expansion is back “on” again. The company is holding it hostage to a legislative vote over gaming expansion.\u00a0“If job-\"\"killing policies that expand gambling are put in place, it’s infeasible to reinvest in this property,” said company spokesman Ron Reese<\/strong>. You’d think, given those remarks, that Sands would get out will the getting was good, but CEO Sheldon Adelson<\/strong> obviously thought otherwise. Noting that Sands hadn’t fully monetized its acreage, Bethlehem Mayor Robert Donchez<\/strong> said,\u00a0“It’s very important for the Sands or MGM to continue developing the site, and if they are not interested in developing the site, consider selling off parcels to developers who are.”<\/p>\n

Other sources speculate that it was MGM that got cold feet<\/a> upon seeing the Lege’s expansion proposals, even though casinos would probably be juiced in on DFS and despite the fact that MGM has Internet gambling in New Jersey<\/strong>. While a Sands Bethlehem sale would have bolstered MGM’s growing East Coast portfolio, with many cross-marketing opportunities, hanging onto it reduces Sands’ exposure to the vicissitudes of the Macao<\/strong> market, however slightly.<\/p>\n

* Crown Resorts<\/strong> is trying to score a profit\u00a0on its Alon<\/strong> acreage, which it acquired for $280 million\u00a0and now hopes to shop around for $400 million<\/a>. (In the irony of ironies, they could always sell it back to Phil \"\"Ruffin<\/strong>, who would like to piggyback a casino expansion onto Trump International<\/strong>.) That’s just south of $12 million an acre and we say ‘Good luck,’ because Las Vegas Strip<\/strong> land isn’t moving at that price, even with tourism at record levels. Besides, as one analyst said, companies are more fixated on improving their existing resorts<\/a> than building new ones. (Wynn Resorts<\/strong>‘ board only approved Wynn Paradise Park<\/strong> after its budget had been shaved by two thirds.) And those who *are* talking about new projects — I’m looking at you, Mark Frissora<\/strong> — have land already that isn’t being monetized.<\/p>\n

Bumbling Crown owner James Packer<\/strong> once remarked that\u00a0\u201cyou can\u2019t be in the gaming industry and not have a special reverence for Las Vegas<\/strong>.” However, just because you have reverence for Sin City doesn’t mean you have the aptitude to invest there, as Packer keeps demonstrating. Mariah Carey<\/strong>‘s wedding dress wasn’t the only Packer investment that’s gone up in flames or quietly faded away. You have to feel sorry for the guy; nothing seems to go his way.<\/p>\n

* Carpers who say the casino industry never gives anything back should talk to the folks in the\u00a0Bettendorf,<\/strong> Iowa<\/strong>, area where the Scott County Regional Authority<\/strong> is funding new projects<\/a> through taxes paid by Isle of Capri Bettendorf<\/strong>. The grants are as ambitious as $250,000 toward a health-and-wellness center at St. Ambrose University<\/strong> and as modest as an all-inclusive playground where wheelchair-bound children like Gabe Cypret<\/strong> will be able to play. As Cypret’s mother, Gloria, said, “This always makes me cry that they are as passionate as we are.\u201d Good on Scott County<\/strong> and on Isle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the second time, Las Vegas Sands has decided that Sands Bethlehem was too valuable to sell, especially after it set a state record for table game revenue. (Earlier, Sands was bruited to be in talks with Tropicana Entertainment to … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23,24,199,7,37,86,85,96,62,93,11,95,119,12,92,32,9,21],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19766"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19766"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19766\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31100,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19766\/revisions\/31100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}