Hundreds of Station Casinos employees and executives gathered on Friday for a special ceremonial groundbreaking for the company’s newest locals resort, the Durango Casino & Resort.
Chairman and CEO Frank J. Fertitta III of Red Rock Resorts Inc., Vice Chairman Lorenzo J. Fertitta of Red Rock Resorts Inc., and an estimated 300 Station employees attended the celebration near the 215 Beltway at Durango Drive, the location of the 200-room, $750 million project set to open in late 2023.
The celebration was also anticipated to be attended by Red Rock Resorts President Scott Kreeger, Chief Operating Officer Bob Finch, and Bill Richardson, head of W.A. Richardson Builder LLC, the project’s contractors.
The project’s construction manager was chosen as Richardson Builders. Friedmutter Group of Las Vegas is the official architect, and both firms will be overseen by Station Casinos’ in-house design and construction teams.
The company will also collaborate with a number of interior design firms, including Looney & Associates and Avenue ID, who designed the hotel lobby and bar, which was unveiled on Friday.
What Will the Casino Entail?
Station Casinos’ parent company, Red Rock Resorts, also gave a sneak peek at the latest renderings of the resort, which will include an 83,000-square-foot casino with a cutting-edge race and sportsbook, four signature food and beverage outlets, a nine-tenant food hall, a pool with private cabanas, an environmentally friendly event lawn, and 20,000 square feet of meeting and convention space.
The parking garage at the resort will contain 40 charging outlets for electric vehicles. In addition, there will be various bike lanes leading to the site, which will have plenty of bike parking.
Several design features from the company’s trademark Red Rock Resort in Summerlin, which Kreeger launched as general manager, will be used by Durango, according to Kreeger. He anticipates the demography of Durango to be comparable to that of Red Rock.
Durango will succeed, according to Kreeger, since the firm will draw on its years of expertise in the Southern Nevada resort market.
“We’ve been the go-to in the market for entertainment and gaming for 45 years, and each time we build a new property — we’re a bricks-and-mortar company — we’ve taken what we’ve learned along the way and created something new that’s relevant for the time and the customer preference, and we’ve pushed the envelope of creativity and offering from one property to the next,” he said.
Previous Success Will Help
Kreeger highlighted a common refrain from Red Rock’s prior earnings calls: that the company’s prosperity will be aided by expansion in the Las Vegas Valley.
“If you look at the growth in the valley, that’s probably the most visible thing,” Kreeger said. “We’ve bought strategically situated properties across the valley over time, and a lot of those assets are right in the heart of these economic development zones.”
What is Kreeger’s Background?
On Feb. 28, Kreeger was chosen president of Red Rock, his second term with the corporation. Since 2018, Kreeger has served as the Galaxy’s director of operations development and future resorts.
He joined Station Casinos in 2000 and held various significant leadership positions in operations, property management, marketing, technology, and Native American gaming until departing in July 2013 to become president and chief operating officer of Revel Resort & Casino in Atlantic City. Kreeger continued at Revel until the resort was sold, after which he joined SLS Las Vegas Resort & Casino as president and CEO from October 2014 until December 2017.
Durango will initially lack two Station Casino staples: movie theaters and bowling alleys. But, according to Kreeger, those, as well as an entertainment facility, might come in subsequent phases of the property’s development.
Durango will become part of the Station Casinos Southern Nevada empire, which also includes Red Rock Resort, Green Valley Ranch, Palace Station, Boulder Station, Sunset Station, Santa Fe Station, and a number of smaller Wildfire-branded properties.
Station also owns Texas Station, Fiesta Rancho, and Fiesta Henderson, which have been shuttered due to the COVID-19 epidemic since March 2020.
Last Updated on by Ryan
