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June 9, 2006
Pahrump casinos have new owners
By MARK WAITE
The Saddle West Casino, which just celebrated its 34th anniversary, was acquired by Aces High Management effective June 1. Anthony Marnell III, who owns a 60 percent share in Saddle West Investors, owns 60 percent of the property. Sher Gaming owns the other 40 percent, of which chairman Edward Frankllin Sher owns 80 percent of that interest, according to records on file with the state Gaming Control Board. Marnell is a member of the same family that formerly owned the Rio Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Also this week officials with Golden Gaming Inc., Nevada's largest tavern operator and owner of casinos in Black Hawk, Colo., announced an agreement to acquire the Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Gambling Hall. Golden Gaming has yet to file an application for a gaming license to operate the Nugget. Saddle West was shut down for about 24 hours, from 6 p.m. May 31 until 6 p.m. June 1, for bookkeeping purposes during the transition, Marnell said. Dennis and Steve Duesing each previously owned a third of the business, the Shinehouse Family Trust owned the other third, with Barry and Teresa Shinehouse listed as trustees by the Gaming Control Board. Marnell said the Saddle West is the only casino that Aces High operates at this time. A lot of the partners in the company are former executives at the Rio, he said. But patrons who imagine it's going to be like the Rio, with a dancing masquerade procession and a section with girls dealing cards wearing bikinis, will be disappointed. "It's going to be more of a Pahrump look. We are not trying to bring Las Vegas to Pahrump. We're trying to keep the Saddle West, which is a long-time Pahrump casino, give it more of Pahrump but give it a nice Pahrump look," Marnell said. Marnell said company officials liked the Old West rustic look of the Saddle West, which is why they bought it. "We're going to make it a nicer, more appealing western property," he said. The Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Gambling Hall marked the first entry by a major Las Vegas casino firm in the Pahrump market when it opened in March 2001. Generation 2000 consisted of William and David Ensign, Melissa and William Richardson. The Ensign family was formerly associated with the Mandalay Bay Resort Group and includes U.S. Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev. Marnell is bullish about the casino business in Pahrump and the Saddle West, an institution in town. "I think it's a property that's got a lot of potential. I think Pahrump's a growing market. We're excited about that and we're excited about a lot of what Saddle West offers," he said. "There will be a lot of things people in Pahrump will see us do with the property starting a couple weeks from now, as far as renovation and remodeling, cleaning up so to speak. We're excited about that, putting some of our new product on line probably by Labor Day," Marnell said. Marnell said the company will be looking at fixing up the 155 hotel rooms as well. "We haven't put any specific plans in place for the hotel but we'll be definitely looking at it," he said. "There's a lot of things inside and out of the building that are going to be done to change it, to bring it up to a competitive product set for what's going on in 2006, a lot of things that weren't done." The goal is to start remodeling the Saddle West casino in July, Marnell said. The existing staff of about 250 employees has been retained, he said. The new general manager is John Lipkowitz, 20 percent owner in Saddle West Investors LLC. Former Saddle West General Manager Ryley Young, who is now head of the front desk, said the employees are pleased with the new management. "Everything is in good shape and we're all happy about the future of Saddle West," he said. Marnell suggested contacting the former owners, like Dennis Duesing, about their reasons for selling the property. But Marnell said, "The night we finalized the deal he seemed happy and sad at the same time. I think he was happy at being able to spend some more time with his family but sad the casino he spent so much time in was sold." Duesing, however, was not reached for comment. There wasn't any pomp or ceremony during the changeover. "We just wanted to make the transition process the correct way. After we get all of our plans finalized for the remodel we will be doing a reopening sometime in the next three or four months where we will be having a grand opening party," Marnell said. "There might be some different table game offerings in our remodel and there will be quite a few new slot machines we'll put on the floor. We'll be converting the entire floor to ticket-in, ticket-out. It seems to make it a lot easier for the slot customer," Marnell said He wouldn't be specific about any new slot machine games. Though he wouldn't comment on specific plans on live entertainment, Marnell did say, "We certainly want to get that part of the business going on. It faded out over time." The Saddle West has been more popular for hosting community events. As one example, the Ms. Senior Golden Years Pageant is scheduled there at 7 p.m. Saturday. Marnell said the officials with his company had to be re-licensed with gaming authorities to operate the Saddle West. While gaming applications can take three months to up to a year and a half to approve, Marnell said the new owners of the resort down the street, Golden Gaming, shouldn't have any trouble being approved. Golden Gaming Inc. issued a written statement Tuesday about their acquisition. The Nugget is located on 38 acres on the corner of Highway 372 and Highway 160 in the center of the Pahrump Valley business district. It features 70 hotel rooms, 550 gaming machines, 10 table games, a sports book and poker room. Additional amenities listed in the news release include the Nugget Steakhouse, Golden Harvest Café, the Nugget Buffet and a food court which includes McDonald's, Dairy Queen and Orange Julius. The Pahrump Nugget is one of the biggest employers in Nye County with approximately 300 employees. "We are pleased to announce the addition of Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Gambling Hall to our gaming portfolio," said Rod Atamian, Golden Gaming Inc. executive vice-president and chief financial officer, in a prepared statement. "We are excited about the potential growth and development opportunities within this market and look forward to utilizing our gaming knowledge and expertise to service the Pahrump gaming market." Atamian and other executives with Golden Gaming were unavailable for further comment by press time. The Pahrump Nugget Hotel and Gambling Hall will be the fourth casino addition to the Golden Casino Group. The company also operates the Golden Mardi Gras Casino, Golden Gates Casino and Golden Gulch Casino located in Black Hawk, Colo. |
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