Hospital waiting in wings for casino outcome

Kris Hill

Friday, March 9, 2001 | 12:09 p.m.

A Philadelphia company is waiting to see how a resident's appeal of a proposed casino plays out before it moves forward with plans to build a hospital in North Las Vegas.

If Station Casinos ends up building a hotel-casino resort near the Craig Ranch Golf Course near Craig Road and Commerce Street, a hospital could be built on the first site the company proposed, at Martin Luther King Boulevard and Coralie Street.

Tom Bender, a vice president with Universal Health Services, said his company is in the process of closing a deal with Station Casinos to purchase that land for a proposed hospital.

But plans for the new hospital could be killed if an appeal by residents who live near the golf course site is upheld by the state Gaming Policy Committee review panel, which meets Monday to hear arguments.

Bill Curran, attorney for Las Vegas Gaming, the development company on contract to build the casino, said that a casino will be built on the first site if it can't be built at the golf course.

If Station ends up building a casino at Martin Luther King and Coralie instead of at the golf course, Universal Health Services would look at the golf course site for a hospital. A hospital proposal for that site would have to go through the city's review process.