Station Casinos doubles down on Las Vegas expansion with six projects in the pipeline

Station Casinos is going all-in on its ambitions for the Nevada gaming market, with plans to double its footprint in the Las Vegas Valley by 2030 and six projects in the works. The company has begun executing on its new roadmap, shortly after Frank Fertitta III of Red Rock Resorts –Station Casinos’ parent company- told investors at a second-quarter earnings call they expect to “basically double the size” of the firm’s portfolio by the end of the decade.

The move also comes as Station works on demolishing a number of properties that have remained shuttered since the pandemic: Fiesta Henderson, Fiesta Rancho, and Texas Station. The locals-focused company intends to sell the land beneath them, a move unveiled in July, which was shortly after followed by another announcement: the $172.4 million purchase of 126 acres at the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Cactus Avenue.

Another announcement followed with the plan to demolish a fourth property, Wild Wild West on Tropicana Avenue, with the intention to redevelop the 260-room hotel-casino west of Interstate 15. Concurrently, eight miles away, construction continues on Station’s $750 million Durango casino resort. The property, located on Durango Drive near the 215 Beltway, will see construction crews top off the hotel tower this Friday, while an opening is expected for fall 2023.

Demolition at Texas Station

“There’s no one more bullish on Las Vegas than Station Casinos,” Red Rock Resorts President Scott Kreeger told Las Vegas Review-Journal in an interview in which he noted the company has six projects in the development pipeline. “It’s the core of our business model, and the growth over the last few years has been tremendous, as well as over time.”

The executive further told Review-Journal that when the company looks at the demographics and profile of the people moving into the city, and the opportunity to continue to develop projects in areas where it feels are underserved, Red Rock thinks between now and the next eight years, it’s “an absolutely optimal time to execute on the roadmap.”

The company has long followed a strategy that consists of holding onto large swaths of gaming-zoned land, identifying high-growth areas in which it buys acres, waiting for the time to act. Three of these holdings are now set to see action, as Station executives complete the entitlement process for 47 acres in the northwest valley’s Skye Canyon community, 45 acres in the southern valley’s Inspirada community and 126 acres on Las Vegas Boulevard South.

The intention is for all three to be a viable project option once Durango is complete, the company told Review-Journal. “If I read the tea leaves into the next 12 to 16 months, we’re very excited about our Inspirada project,” Kreeger said. “We also like the Skye Canyon location – there’s a tremendous amount of growth going on in that area and not a lot of supply.”

Durango's ongoing construction

However, plans for Cactus Avenue have changed. While Station initially considered developing about 57 acres on the northwest side of the intersection, it then purchased a parcel across the street in July that was more than double in size, which Kreeger says will give the company “a lot more flexibility” in master planning. The smaller parcel will be unloaded, along with the demolished sites, to fund the company’s expansion plans.

While it is still unsure when those sites will be sold, what is certain is that the next owners will not build a casino since it will be part of the terms of the sale. “We’re actively listing the project so the quicker we can sell, the better for us,” Kreeger said, as reported by the cited source. “Part of our strategic goal is to take the funds from the sale of those properties and reinvest it.”

Also identified for development are holdings in Summerlin, 58 acres at Flamingo Road and the 215 Beltway; 96 acres at the Wild Wild West site, though some may be held for sale; and about 66 acres at Losee Road in North Las Vegas, a purchase that has yet to close. However, it has yet to be determined which site will break ground first, and what each project will look like.

That will be determined once Durango launches, which will allow Station to look at the economic conditions and the demographics at that time, and make an informed decision on the projects. The company doesn’t rule out pursuing more than one project simultaneously, as it sees itself as flexible enough to execute its vision that way.