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Leila Navidi
Joe Magliarditi, the president of the Palms, stands in front of the temporary sports book area inside the Palms on Friday, March 30, 2012.
Tuesday, April 3, 2012 | 3:58 p.m.
Changes are unfolding fast and furiously at the Palms, and we’re not just referring to the hotel’s preferred clientele.
There is a departure to report, of one of the hotel’s more dynamic and recognizable officials, and an upgrade to one of its busiest amenities.
First, in news that came to light over the weekend, N9Ne Group Senior Vice President and General Manager Jon Gray confirmed that he has resigned his post for an undisclosed opportunity. He sent a direct message in Twitter, saying, “I love the Palms and the Maloof family, but this is an incredible opportunity.”
Meanwhile, far more visible evidence of change at the Palms is reflected as you walk through the entrance facing the west parking lot. There, you meet a 20-foot-tall temporary wall where the hotel's sports book and adjoining bar once stood.
In a partnership forged by new hotel President Joe Magliarditi and officials at Cantor Gaming, a new race and sports book is being built into the space formerly occupied by the original book and is to be taking bets in about a month. The target date for a soft opening is May 3 or 4, with the official unveiling May 5, in time to take bets for the Kentucky Derby, which is a very big horse race favored by sports bettors.
It is the first change enacted largely by Magliarditi and will spearhead a series of upgrades to the hotel -- as many as five by New Year’s Eve -- planned at the 10-year-old resort.
“First and foremost, it’s going to be improved aesthetically,” Magliarditi said during an interview at the Palms executive offices last week. “It will look like a complete new book. … It’s the first big step where we say, ‘Here are the beginnings of the changes at the Palms.’ Let’s face it, the sports book was pretty beat up. It was hard to even see the TV screens. Now we’ll see state-of-the-art video technology, what you see every time Cantor does a book. “
Also in store is a new bar linked to that sports book called Tonic. The nomadic poker room, currently located off a corridor leading to the restrooms between the sports book and the Lounge, also will be moved into the new space. Handheld betting devices, for in-running betting, which are a hallmark of all Cantor-operated sports books, will be made available at the new gambling haunt.
The relationship between Magliarditi and Cantor Gaming President and Chief Executive Officer Lee Amaitis dates to 2007, when Magliarditi was an exec with the then under-construction M Resort. Cantor partnered with M in that hotel’s sports book, and the two negotiated the upgraded sports book at the Hard Rock Hotel when Magliarditi was an official there.
Expect the look of the new Palms book to mirror the ambiance of those Cantor operations, as well as the company’s newest operation at the Venetian, which opened in November. Expect the signature bright-red betting carrels and a vast LED display with variable screen sizes and a capacity to show every NFL game on a given Sunday or a single game -- very largely -- on Monday night. The poker room will be significantly improved, too, set off by glass panels and open to the big-wallet players.
“We’ll have 30-foot-high ceilings, new tables, rich wood and stone in there. The room should be a lot more appealing,” Magliarditi said. “We wanted the poker room integrated with the sports book because we think there is a lot of crossover play between sports players and poker players. ... We strongly believe we’ll get a lot of business from the Strip. If you can’t make a big bet at Mirage, you can come across the bridge (or the I-15 overpass on Flamingo Road) and make that bet at the Palms.”
As one would expect, Amaitis is fired up about the renovations.
“If the Hard Rock is ‘Wow,” and the Venetian, ‘Holy (cow), the Palms will be on the same par as either of those, with the improved technology,” Amaitis said. “It’s no longer marking boards and chalk pens.”
For the time being, bettors can wager at the new sports book kiosk set up just across the walkway from Guarduno’s at the entrance of Fantasy Tower. That was a late-in-the-process idea, and that satellite station will stay in place even after the new sports book is opened.
“It's getting a lot of traffic, and aesthetically it has brightened up the area,” Magliarditi said. “Employees love it because they see positive change happening.”
And at the ever-morphing Palms, change is the order of the day.
Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at Twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow “Kats With the Dish” at Twitter.com/KatsWithTheDish.
Joe Mags is a joke! The only reason he keeps getting a job from The M = Bankrupt, The Hard Rock = Bankrupt, and now The Palms = Bankrupt is because he has a state gaming license, and no one wants to spend the cash to buy one for him. Ask his old buddy AM if he is to be trusted????
More coverage of this joker? Your article should be titled "Joe Mags lines his pockets again." How can you be so enamored by this guy John? You can't tell he's a self centered, moronic ego maniac when you interview him? Joe's track record speaks volumes.
As far as Cantor goes, good luck with that Palms. They'll put those stupid edecks on the bartop that no one will ever play. The only way to get a comp drink from those guys is by betting thousands of dollars, or being friends with the book manager. It's gonna be a long 5 years for sports bettors at the Palms.
The Palms is just generally in a bad location for the average tourist to get to. You can't walk to it from the strip and as far as I know there is no free shuttle service like the Rio has. If I was manager of the Palms that would be my first priority -- getting more foot traffic from the strip into the Palms via a free shuttle bus of some sort.
The bottom line is why would the average tourist pay for a taxi to go there when there are identical (or better) offerings within walking distance on the strip?
I would not go the Palms if they sent a limo,it is a marginal property in a terrible location. The Maloofs never got it with the Fiesta or the Palms, of which they were never big players in the gaming market. Just how much lip stick can they put on this pig? By the way the Maloofs are really not the majority owners any more.
Ohhhhh... the haters are out on this one.
Good Luck Palms!
You do better, you hire more people, we all do better! The arm-chair quarterbacks with a computer are always happy to point out what they don't like, which is seemingly EVERYTHING!
It's been a rough few years for us all here in Nevada. Let's hope 2012 is on the way back up! And since "hope" alone isn't good enough, I'm glad to see the investment(s) into the property and the hard-work that goes along with it.
Best Wishes!
Cantor ruined the sports book at the M with those little carrels that you see in high school. It was much better with the open seating and wide areas that existed before Cantor gaming came in. Actually Cantor gaming should learn something about setting up a sports book. The real big hitters go to the Mandalay bay or Mirage where the seating is far better. Whoever from Cantor who designed the M sports book should go back to design school.
Art, lots of people check out unfamiliar restaurants by doing exactly what you propose. It will tell you a lot about the committment to cleanliness at the establishment.
Sadly you have to clean up the mess the Magoof's left behind.
Sadly, once George Maloof lost financial control of the Palms, customer service went down at the resort. Building the condo tower right before the Great Recession started doomed The Palms. Now that duel private equity companies own the resort's debts, the perks enjoyed by the locals so much are starting to go away. I have already seen many subtle changes to The Palms. The payout on the slots are certainly lower than before.
I sent numerous suggestions to Mr. Magliarditi about remodeling the ceiling and interior on the casino floor, adding new restaurants to the food court and re-launching Rain as a newly named club. There will be a new restaurant in the food court called Earl of Sandwich but they have not acted on my other suggestions. The interior still looks the same as it did in 2001. The main marquee needs to be replaced with digital signage too!
I have yet to hear if Club Palms will be integrated into Harrah's Total Rewards since these private equity companies, TPG/Leonard Green own Harrahs.
I have been a loyal Palms customer since the beginning in November 2001. However, I am all about change and modernization in Las Vegas. Lets all hope the Palms gets the much needed remodeling and modernizing required to be competitive once again.
As for the other off Strip property on Flamingo, The Rio needs a serious makeover and a new vibe. That place has become very rundown over the years.
this joint always sucked--the maloafs are lousy operators and just want drunk kids who don't gamble well--they can treat like garbage and beat them out of their $100--terrible casino right from the get go--and still sucks