Station Casinos, LLC is an American
hotel and
casinocompany based in
Las Vegas suburb of
Summerlin South,
Nevada, and founded by
Frank Fertitta Jr.[4][5] Station Casinos, along with
Affinity Gaming,
Boyd Gaming and
Golden Entertainment, dominate the
locals casino market in Las Vegas. The company purchased several sites that were gaming-entitled, meaning that major casinos can be built at that location without additional approvals. There are only a limited number of such sites available in the Las Vegas area. Station Casinos has also branched out into managing casinos that they do not own. Red Rock Resorts, Inc. (
Nasdaq:
RRR) is a publicly traded
holding company that owns a portion of Station Casinos.
History
The first Station Casinos property,
Palace Station, is located in
Las Vegas and originally opened as The Casino on July 1, 1976,[6][7] which is considered the company's founding date.[8][9] The Casino was renamed the Bingo Palace in 1977.[6]Frank Fertitta Jr., the founder of Station Casinos, bought a 10-percent stake in the casino later that year and became its vice president and director.[10][11][12] He bought out his partners in 1979,[13] then expanded the casino and renamed it Palace Station in 1984.[14]
Nearly a decade later, Fertitta filed to make the Palace Station a
public company known as Station Casinos.[15][16] The stock began trading on May 25, 1993.[17][18] Fertitta held the position of chairman, but retired from the company that year. Control was taken over by family members, including his son
Frank Fertitta III, who took the position of chairman, president, and chief executive officer.[19][20]
The
initial public offering helped finance the company's second Las Vegas property,
Boulder Station,[21] which opened in 1994. It is located along
Boulder Highway in the eastern
Las Vegas Valley.[22][23] In Missouri, the company also opened the
St. Charles riverboat casino in 1994.[24][25][26] Meanwhile, Fertitta had begun construction on his own hotel-casino project, the
Texas, located in
North Las Vegas. Station shareholders objected to Fertitta branching out into the gaming industry on his own, prompting the company to purchase the Texas in 1995, shortly before its opening.[27][28]
Station opened its
Red Rock Resort in 2006. It was built in the Las Vegas community of
Summerlin at a cost of $925 million, making it Station's most expensive property.[23]
On December 4, 2006, Fertitta Colony Partners made a highly leveraged offer to purchase all existing shares at $82 per share and take the company private. The partnership consisted of Fertitta III and his brother
Lorenzo, along with
Colony Capital LLC.[38] The Fertitta brothers, their sister Delise Sartini, and her husband
Blake L. Sartini, with a combined investment of $870.1 million, purchased a 25% stake in Fertitta Colony Partners. Colony Capital contributed $2.6 billion for a 75% share.[39] The buyout was completed on November 7, 2007.[40]
On July 28, 2009, Station Casinos filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Station Casinos' filing listed $5.7 billion in assets against $6.5 billion in debt. The filing said the company had 510 holders of unsecured and subordinate debt totaling $4.4 billion.[41]
Station Casinos exited bankruptcy on June 17, 2011, with $4 billion less in debt and with
creditors putting the company's 18 casinos back in the hands of the Fertitta family and their partners. The Fertitta brothers agreed to put nearly $200 million in the reassembled company and now own 45 percent of its shares. The other new equity owners include the company's main lenders,
Deutsche Bank AG, which holds 25 percent;
JPMorgan Chase with a 15 percent stake; and former bondholders with an additional 15 percent, according to lawyers on the deal.[42]
Station Casinos announced on October 13, 2015, that it would return to the stock market with an
initial public offering.[43] On April 26, 2016, Red Rock Resorts, Inc., a new holding company owning a portion of Station Casinos, went public on the
NASDAQ Stock Exchange.[44]
In 2016, Station Casinos purchased the
Palms Casino Resort for $313 million.[45][46] The company then spent more than $600 million on renovations, which failed to restore the resort to its former prominence.[47][48] The Palms was sold to the
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in 2021, for $650 million.[49][50] That year, the company announced that it would proceed with
Durango, a long-planned resort in the southwest Las Vegas Valley.[51][52] It opened at the end of 2023.[53]
Several casino properties in the Las Vegas Valley –
Texas Station,
Fiesta Rancho, and
Fiesta Henderson – were closed in 2020 amid the
COVID-19 pandemic and never reopened. Station announced in 2022 that it would demolish the properties and sell the land to finance future projects.[54][55] The demolition was viewed by analysts as a defensive move to prevent future competition from gaming rivals.[56][57] Station also announced in 2022 that it would close and demolish its
Wild Wild West Gambling Hall & Hotel, located in the Las Vegas Valley as well. The site will be redeveloped in connection with adjoining acreage.[58][59][60]
Station Casinos has been involved in a long-time feud with the
Culinary Workers Union, which represents the majority of resort workers in Las Vegas. The feud began in 2000, when Station purchased the Santa Fe. Workers there had already voted seven years earlier for representation, although a contract was never finalized under the former ownership. When Station took over, it required that all of the property's employees re-apply for their jobs, to the disagreement of Culinary. The union has since targeted other Station properties over the years in an effort to unionize them.[32]
Wildfire Gaming is a division of Station that operates small casinos around the Las Vegas Valley.[61][62] Wildfire-branded casinos are smaller than Station's other properties and lack hotel rooms.[63] The original property, known simply as Wildfire Casino, opened in 2001.[64][65][66] Station purchased the 20,000 sq ft (1,900 m2) casino in 2003,[67] and opened additional Wildfire casinos starting in 2008.[68][69] A 21,000 sq ft (2,000 m2) Wildfire was opened in downtown Las Vegas in 2023.[70][71] It was built on five acres, occupying a portion of the former
Castaways Hotel and Casino site, which Station had purchased in 2004.[72][73] Compared to previous Wildfire casinos, the new location features a more upscale design which will be integrated into existing and future locations.[74][75]
Acquired by Station in 2005.[81] Part of Wildfire Gaming.
Although not branded fully separately, Green Valley Ranch and Red Rock Resort are in a distinctly different upscale market niche from the other Station Casinos.
Originally opened as The Reserve, and purchased in 2001 by Station, which renamed it that year as Fiesta Henderson. Closed in 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and demolished in 2022.
Originally opened by the
Maloof family as the Fiesta. In 2001, it was purchased by Station and renamed Fiesta Rancho. Closed in 2020 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and demolished in 2022.
Originally opened by the
Maloof family, with Station holding a six-percent ownership stake. Station later bought the resort in 2016, before selling to the
San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in 2021.
Originally opened in 1974, as the King 8. In 1998, it was purchased by Station and renamed the Wild Wild West. It closed in 2022 for future redevelopment.
Sold to a
holding company in 2011, following Station's bankruptcy two years earlier. Station continued operating the resort until 2012, when it was renamed Aliante Casino and Hotel.