Neighborhood casino bill dies

Monday, May 17, 1999 | 1:59 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- As expected, a bill to allow Boyd Gaming Corp. to build two casinos in off-limits neighborhoods in Clark County died quietly in the Senate Judiciary Committee Friday.

A Boyd Gaming spokesman said today the company doesn't plan to contest the action in the Legislature, but is considering other steps to protect its interests.

Committee Chairman Mark James, R-Las Vegas, did not schedule a vote on AB522, saying there was no support for the measure. The deadline for passing Assembly bills out of Senate committees was midnight Friday.

At the request of James, the 1977 Legislature had established limits on where casinos could be built in Clark County, and set the end of 1998 as the deadline for requesting exemptions to the law.

Boyd Gaming Chairman William Boyd told the Senate committee last week he thought the company had permission to build casinos on 22 acres near Texas Station on Rancho Road and 8 acres opposite Boulder Station. He said he was shocked to find out the locations weren't included in the 1997 bill.

The bill ran into opposition from Station Casinos and representatives of the various neighborhoods that might be affected.

"We're not going to fight it in the legislature, but we're looking at other options," Boyd spokesman Rob Stillwell said today.

Boyd could ask the Las Vegas City Council and Clark County Commission for permission to build outside established gaming-enterprise zones, though such requests are likely to generate fierce opposition from neighborhood residents, as well as competing casino operators.

Investors apparently aren't concerned about what Boyd executives view as a setback. Boyd stock was up 25 cents, or 3.9 percent, to $6.75 in midday trading on heavier-than-normal volume today. At the same time, the Dow was off 1.3 percent.