A LAS VEGAS LANDMARK COULD BE ON THE BLOCK

Implications: Binion's has been a very large part of the face of Las Vegas for more years than you might expect. It seems that the recent buyers of the once famous property have no clue as to what it needs to survive. The downtown area in which Binion's is located is the most specialized business in gaming - it take special know how and a very special group to make this old stand by successful - It would make a very substantial impact on an already slow business area should they pull up and decided to shut the doors.

Analysis: Mayor Oscar Goodman has been doing all in his power to see that the downtown business area is revitalized. It won't be an easy task, but strides are being made by some of the established properties to clean up their act and put some dollars back into their casinos. It's really about time for many of them. Binions, on the other hand, had a great opportunity to make some waves with their hotel and casino. They were planning to upgrade and make a statement with this old house, but it came to no avail. There are some properties there ( Golden Nugget & Fitzgerald's ) that do a very respectable job. It's really not the area, it's the lack of enthusiasm by the other properties to take the lead and help redevelop an otherwise terrific business area.  The Mayor was able to wrangle the Grand Pre race cars here for a major event on our downtown street and they had a great turnout- they are looking to place an Events Center there that would hopefully attract professional sports teams. There are new High Rise Condos being built and additional apartment complex's on the horizon.

The basics are there for solid investment, however, the knowledge needed to run casinos in the downtown area is essential. The example of the Lady Luck property comes to mind. Here is a hotel/casino that should be doing great things but it seems that the new owners ran out of dollars and were forced to close the place before they even had a chance to make a difference. The thought that you can take over a property in need of a very big face lift and just leave things as they were is just bad decision making.  Without the proper financing, set up front, where did they think the cash was coming from? The closing of the Lady Luck and the possible sale or closing of Binions just puts more emphasis on the need for the correct buyers for these once proud properties. There should never be a closed property along Freemont Street - this is where Las Vegas gaming started - it's where it should continue.