Casino gets OK on sports book

David Strow

Thursday, July 15, 1999 | 10:38 a.m.

The Stratosphere hotel-casino has been approved by the state Gaming Control Board to establish a 5,000-square-foot sports book, which it hopes to open by Aug. 15.

The Stratosphere's only sports betting to date has gone through Leroy's Horse & Sports, which has operated a small betting office in the casino since it opened in 1993. That office will close with the Stratosphere sports book opening.

The book will be located on the south side of the casino, in the old location of the Images Cabaret. The cabaret is being moved to the western side of the casino and is scheduled to reopen Sept. 1.

"We wanted to add some energy to that portion of the casino," Stratosphere Chief Financial Officer Tom Lettero said. "We felt we should have a sports book to help accommodate our guests. This is a much better environment, and should help keep guests on our property longer."

The expansion must still be approved by the Gaming Commission. The book will be managed by Nick Bogdanovich, former sports book manager at Binion's Horseshoe.

Stratosphere is spending "several million dollars" on the sports book and the lounge, Lettero said. The project is separate from the Stratosphere's $80 million hotel-tower expansion, which is still on hold.

Originally, Stratosphere had envisioned combining its new sports book with that of Arizona Charlie's. Both casinos are owned by New York financier Carl Icahn. Stratosphere's book would become a "hub," with Arizona Charlie's becoming a satellite operation.

This plan caused some confusion Wednesday among Control Board members.

"You're projecting you'll be one of the top five (Las Vegas sports books)?" Board Chairman Steve DuCharme asked.

Lettero responded that the Stratosphere had abandoned plans for a combined sports book because the two casinos were owned by different legal entities, making licensure impossible, and cut the projected revenue numbers in half. Those numbers were not released.