Former Reynolds site to have Greek theme

Thursday, July 12, 2001 | 10:37 a.m.

The company that acquired the Debbie Reynolds hotel-casino near the Las Vegas Strip is dropping the Reynolds name and theme in favor of a new orientation based on Greece.

The newly themed 192-room Greek Isles hotel-casino will open its casino July 20 with United Coin Co., a slot route subsidiary of Alliance Gaming Corp., managing its 100 slot machines.

The hotel, which also will have a Greek theme, will open on an undetermined date later this year.

Jere Walker, who serves as general manager of casino operations for the Bourbon Street Casino, which also is maintained by United Coin, will manage the Greek Isles.

Walker said a bar and a 24-hour Greek restaurant named Yanni's would open at the same time as the casino.

The state Gaming Control Board said the property currently has an unrestricted slot license, meaning it is allowed to have more than 15 slot machines. It is not licensed for table games, but Walker said applying for a license for tables as well as a sports book is under consideration.

The casino will operate some of Alliance Gaming's most popular slot offerings, including a big-jackpot wide-area progressive game. The Greek Isles also will offer Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, Betty Boop, Blondie and On the Money games that have been popular attractions in other casinos.

Walker said Yanni's would have an authentic Greek menu and the restaurant can hold about 200 diners.

A marketing blitz with fliers offering two-for-one specials is planned for the opening and Walker said the property would target locals as well as conventioneers and spillover traffic off the Strip.

Mark IV Realty Group Inc., Chicago, owns the property, which was acquired from World Wrestling Federation Entertainment Inc. for $11.2 million in December.

Following the acquisition, John Marks, chief executive officer of Mark IV, said his company planned to "remodel, redesign and readdress" the property. He described his company as one that specializes in acquiring and rehabilitating troubled properties.

Winona Smith, a manager at the Greek Isles hotel, said it's still undetermined when rooms would be available for customers. She said more than $1 million was spent to refurbish the hotel, which includes the placement of modern Greek decor and the installation of a new swimming pool.

The hotel's show room also is being refurbished, but Smith said it hasn't been determined what type of entertainment will be booked there.

The building that will operate as the Greek Isles has had famous owners in its past.

A company run by Reynolds, the Academy Award-nominated actress and a popular Las Vegas entertainer, owned the property, but filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 1997.

The World Wrestling Federation acquired the bankrupt hotel for $10.8 million in 1998, hoping to turn it into a wrestling-themed Las Vegas home for the WWF.

The Stamford, Conn.-based WWF even considered promotional tie-ins with the ill-fated XFL, a professional football league developed by the WWF that included a franchise in Las Vegas known as the Outlaws. About two months before the league kicked off its inaugural season, the WWF sold the hotel, saying it wasn't big enough for its plans.

Mark IV, through a subsidiary known as Convention Center Drive Hotel LLC, bought the hotel from the WWF, which folded the XFL after a single season.

About 1,100 people have owned timeshare units in the building since it was operated by Reynolds. Smith had no comment on whether the timeshare owners would be bought out under the Greek Isles operation. Those units occupy the top three floors of the 12-story building.

Most of Mark IV's other projects are in Chicago and its suburbs. It owns the 40-story Carbide & Carbon Building and is transforming it into the 386-room St. George Hotel. It also owns the Lowes' House of Blues Hotel, a 367-room property operated by the Lowes' Corp. in partnership with the House of Blues entertainment chain.

Mark IV also has several commercial properties, including the Six Corners Plaza, the Riverfront Plaza and Marina City, all in Chicago.