Northern Nevada casino project gets approval after long wait

Executives of a Las Vegas firm have waited a very long time to see their imaginative and prescient of constructing a brand new on line casino in Sparks fulfilled.

Now, the wait is almost over — and so they say it was price each minute.

The Nevada Gaming Management Board on Wednesday unanimously really useful approval of licensing Legends Bay On line casino, close to Sparks Marina Park Lake alongside Interstate 80, east of Reno.

Garry Goett, whose Southern Highlands-based Olympia Gaming opened On line casino Fandango in Carson Metropolis in 2003, is on the verge of opening the $120 million Legends Bay in August as soon as the Nevada Gaming Fee provides its closing approval, scheduled June 23.

It’ll be the primary from-the-ground-up on line casino property to be constructed within the Reno-Sparks space in additional than 20 years.

The property — small by Las Vegas requirements — can have a 40,000-square-foot on line casino with 660 slot machines and 10 desk video games in addition to 300 workers.

It’ll even have a sportsbook operated by Derek Stevens’ Circa Sports activities, his first operation in Northern Nevada. Licensing for the sportsbook was unanimously authorised in a separate vote.

Goett plans to convey the favored Duke’s Steak Home idea from On line casino Fandango to Legends. “Duke” is Goett’s nickname.

High managers at On line casino Fandango will oversee each the Carson Metropolis property and Legends.

‘Meals Truck Corridor’

Legends additionally can have a “Meals Truck Corridor” that can embody road eats served from meals vans akin to Pizza Genius (pizza, Italian meals and submarine sandwiches), Loco Bueno (Mexican meals) and Purple 88 (Asian delicacies).

The property additionally will embody the 24-hour LB Grill that Goett described as greater than a restaurant with a full-meal menu, and Craft 55, pouring 55 of the highest native and regional craft brews.

A Galaxy Theatres complicated with an IMAX display shares a typical wall with the on line casino property.

The on line casino might be adjoining to 2 inns Olympia already owns — a 104-room Residence Inn by Marriott and a 102-room Hampton Inn & Suites — and a retail middle referred to as the Shops at Legends. The purchasing middle’s anchor tenant is sporting items chain Scheels.

In an interview after the 75-minute listening to, Goett stated Olympia took benefit of ready for the appropriate time to go ahead with the venture. The corporate had bought the land in 2007 and ready the property’s design in 2008. The Legends Bay On line casino and Scheels have been going to be the anchor tenants for the 120-acre Shops at Legends venture.

However when the Nice Recession took maintain, Goett’s workforce delayed breaking floor on the on line casino.

Over the following decade, Olympia opted to downsize the on line casino from a $500 million property to a $350 million property, ultimately arriving on the measurement it’s at the moment. Olympia reset the financing of the venture to greater than half fairness and 40 p.c debt. It broke floor in March 2021.

Affected person with financing

“We needed to be very affected person in getting good financing and an excellent fairness place,” Goett stated. “We’re very snug with our venture and I believe we’re bringing quite a lot of new and thrilling issues to Northern Nevada gaming.”

With the inns and retail already in place, Goett believes his firm has completely timed the on line casino’s opening.

“This truly has been an excellent factor for us as a result of we have been imagined to be the anchors with Scheels,” Goett stated. “As a substitute, everyone else has constructed. The purchasing middle is stuffed up, and the inns are constructed and are massively profitable, and now we’re going to drop within the doughnut gap.”

Goett stated the Shops at Legends expects 12 million guests a 12 months and rents are up for the retail piece.

“Now, that complete factor is full, Scheels is booming and we stroll in and say, ‘Thanks for getting this all stuffed up,’” he stated.

Goett and Stevens have been mutually complementary of one another and look ahead to their partnership.

“DC (Chief Working Officer Decourcy Graham) discovered Circa,” Goett stated. “He introduced Circa to me and we began speaking about it. Then I went down and checked it out and met Derek and we talked and I like the man. He’s obtained nice enthusiasm for his operation. He’s an incredible, thrilling and dynamic particular person. I like his operation down at Circa and I stated, ‘For us to have him in Northern Nevada and be in our new on line casino, what an ideal match.’ It’s a dramatic addition for us.”

Stevens stated the enlargement of Circa Sports activities from its 5 Southern Nevada places and its Iowa and Colorado digital operations into Northern Nevada was a matter of “the celebrities lastly aligning.”

He stated he took a workforce to tour the Legends web site and instantly knew he needed to be there.

“No empire goes to be full with out a location in Northern Nevada,” Stevens advised board members in his 10-minute listening to.

He expects 12 Southern Nevada workers will transfer to Northern Nevada to function the brand new e-book.

Hashish snag

Whereas the board vote for Legends was unanimous, there was one snag within the listening to that by no means reached the extent of derailing licensing.

Man Inzalaco, a member-manager of Olympia with a 39.6 p.c funding in Legends, was requested about his previous funding in a hashish firm.

Nevada insurance policies ban gaming firms and their executives from investing in marijuana operations.

Inzalaco, beforehand licensed along with different Olympia gaming tasks, stated he “foolishly” invested within the marijuana firm.

“I ought to know the foundations and laws,” he advised board members. “I cannot make a mistake like this once more.”

Inzalaco self-reported the matter and rapidly divested from the hashish firm. Board member Phil Katsaros stated the matter was totally investigated and he drafted a letter signing off on the problem being resolved.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Observe @RickVelotta on Twitter.