Maxim hotel to reopen Friday, sans casino

Thursday, Dec. 9, 1999 | 4:14 a.m.

The Maxim hotel will reopen its doors Friday, but not the casino.

The hotel, closed for more than two weeks because of a dispute between the hotel's owner and its operator, will reopen 400 rooms on Friday. The 22,000-square-foot casino, however, will remain closed.

The Maxim's owner, Premier Interval Resorts, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Dallas last week for the off-Strip property.

Company officials said about 150 of the resort's 690 employees will staff the reopened hotel.

"My instructions (from mortgage holder Meralex) were to open the hotel," said court-appointed receiver Larry Bertsch, who represents the Georgia-based mortgage company. "Gaming is not a consideration at this time. They have to decide if they're going to sell or what they are going to do with it."

Neither Premier nor Meralex have gaming licenses to operate a casino.

The Maxim closed Nov. 21, the victim of a financial battle between its owner, Premier, and Ed Nigro, who was running the resort for the company.

Nigro complained that Premier failed to respond to numerous written requests for money to keep the hotel operating.

Nigro claimed his contract with Premier allowed him to tap into a $2 million credit line for the Maxim's operating expenses. The Maxim, which targets budget conscious travelers, was hurt by competitive Strip conditions.