Station options land, may move against Coast

Thursday, Aug. 1, 2002 | 11:01 a.m.

Station Casinos Inc. has an option to buy property large enough to accommodate a hotel-casino at the far southern end of Las Vegas Boulevard, setting the stage for another battle between Station and Coast Hotels -- the dominant players in the locals' gambling market.

Station, Las Vegas' largest locals casino company with nine properties, has an option to buy either a 60-acre parcel south of Cactus Avenue, between Las Vegas Boulevard South and Interstate 15, or a 55-acre parcel north of Starr Avenue, between Las Vegas Boulevard South and I-15.

Both land parcels are valued at $26.25 million apiece and are within about a mile of 55 acres already owned by Coast Hotels and Casinos Inc., owner of four properties in Las Vegas like the Suncoast and the Orleans and Station's biggest rival. All three land sites are within an existing gaming district zone.

The potential sellers in the deal are Land Investors LLC, Southern Highlands Development Corp. and the Canarelli Family Trust, public records show.

A spokeswoman for Station acknowledged the company's interest in acquiring the land, but said that doesn't mean the company intends to develop it.

"It would be a great gaming property, but we have no signed agreement and nothing binding on the property," said Lesley Pittman. "We're always looking and checking out land all the time."

Station rival Coast concurs that the neighborhood may be right for a locals' casino some day. That's why it already has acquired land north of the property on which Station has its option agreement.

"We don't have plans developed yet, but we expect to be working on that shortly," said Harlan Braaten, president and chief operating officer of Coast.

Braaten said when the company initially acquired the land, it was considering a timetable that would have led to a 2005 opening. But now, the company has no specific date in mind.

"We expect it would be pretty typical of a locals casino, something similar to what we have now at the Suncoast, probably with more rooms and more convention space than the Suncoast," Braaten said.

The Suncoast hotel-casino at Alta Drive near Rampart Boulevard in Summerlin is one of Coast's most successful properties. The property opened in 2000 with a 419-room hotel, an 80,000-square-foot casino with 2,300 slot machines, 50 table games and a 600-seat bingo hall and 150-seat race and sports book. Amenities include a 64-lane bowling center, a 16-screen theater complex and seven restaurants.

Real estate experts say Coast may be hoping a new resort on the southern end of town would be accepted by residents of Southern Highlands the same way the Suncoast has been embraced by residents of Summerlin.

Southern Highlands, a 2,300-acre master-planned community, is under development south of the prospective casino sites on the west side of I-15. Hundreds of luxury home sites line an 18-hole golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones and his son, Robert Trent Jones Jr.

David Atwell, president of hotel-casino brokerage Resort Properties of America, said area demographics suggest favorable traffic patterns if both companies are positioning themselves in the area.

While it's unclear whether Station has plans to develop either of the sites it has under option, the company has been aggressive in acquiring prime land for casinos or investment purposes around the Las Vegas Valley.

Station locked up several sites on the west side of Las Vegas before announcing last month that it intends to build a hotel-casino in Summerlin Centre at Charleston Boulevard and the Beltway.

Construction on that property, which would compete against the Suncoast, is expected to begin there in late 2003 or early 2004.