Commission approves Showboat sale

Friday, March 24, 2000 | 10:59 a.m.

The Nevada Gaming Commission approved the $23.5 million sale of the Showboat hotel-casino Thursday, clearing the way for the conclusion of the deal next week.

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. is selling the Boulder Strip property to Las Vegas investors Michael Villamor, Gregg Schatzman and Danny Shaw.

Commission members noted that the group was getting a particularly good deal -- over the past few years, $25 million has been spent on renovations alone. But commissioners were still concerned about the long-term prospects of the casino, which has lost money for the last five years.

Shaw assured commissioners that they intended to change the property's management style, and would be able to focus all of their efforts on just one property. He said he believed the property could be made profitable within six months, but promised to continue investing in the property personally if necessary.

"It's only a good deal if they can turn it around," Commissioner Augie Gurrola said.

Separately, the commission voted to approve the placement of seven slot machines at a 7-Eleven store in Las Vegas, ending a battle the owners had been fighting for more than 15 years. The store was unsuccessful in past licensing bids because of its location -- just one block west of Clark High School.

But the Gaming Control Board, in a split vote, decided it was unfair to single out the store. They noted that the store was the only one in Nevada that wasn't given a gaming license solely because of its proximity to a school, even though other approved stores in the state were located within similar distances of schools.

The commission agreed and voted unanimously to award the store a license. However, the store will be required to shut down and cover the machines from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. each school day.

The commission also voted unanimously to allow E-T-T Inc. to place seven machines in a Terrible's convenience store on East Sahara Road -- despite the fact that the building also contained a McDonald's restaurant.

The presence of the McDonald's had prompted board member Bobby Siller to speak out against the application earlier in the month. But the commission voted unanimously for the license, feeling they had no choice but to approve it because of new regulations passed in July.

This regulation declared that four types of locations -- convenience stores, bars, grocery stores and drug stores -- were considered suitable for gaming.

"This is one of the reasons I voted against that regulation in the first place ... it takes away our discretion," said Commission Chairman Brian Sandoval. "I feel constrained to vote for this."