Durango Casino & Resort ‘a smash’ with customers, Fertitta says

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Lorenzo Fertitta knows a smash when he sees one. And that’s how he described customers’ reactions to the new Durango Casino & Resort on Wednesday.

Fertitta, chairman of Station Casinos and director of Red Rock Resorts, Inc., — and a billionaire after he and older brother Frank Fertitta III sold Ultimate Fighting Championship in 2016 — talked about the successful opening and what might happen next at Durango.

In a Wednesday earnings call with investors, Red Rock reported a 3.6% increase in revenue over 2023 and a total of $1.72 billion for the year. That was on the strength of a fourth quarter that brought an 8.8% increase in revenue — $462.7 million.

The new $615 million Durango resort opened Dec. 5 in the southwest Las Vegas valley. But Lorenzo Fertitta said the company is already “pretty far along” with plans to add more hotel rooms, entertainment and restaurants — referred to as Phase 2 of the Durango resort.

He said customers especially like Durango’s new restaurants, including the design connecting the sportsbook to The George restaurant. The new property is putting into action ideas that the Fertittas have for future properties, including a new resort in Inspirada. The company owns 441 acres in the Las Vegas area, and it’s trying to prove its methods with every move.

That’s partly why Durango’s opening was delayed from late November to Dec. 5. They wanted to get it right.

“It’s one of the best openings that I’ve seen in terms of guest experience, Frank Fertitta, CEO and chairman of Red Rock, told investors.

Visitation was off the charts, he said, and it’s hard to make it a good experience for everyone under those conditions. “After that initial wave of the opening, you’re going to find where your natural market settles into,” he said.

They’re pleased with the outcome, and they’re seeing more players at table games than they expected.

Stephen L. Cootey, executive vice president and CFO, presented figures for what he called the best fourth quarter in company history. Cootey cited record profitability in gaming segments, the highest hotel revenue in history, higher spending in the food and beverage segment and growth in the company’s catering business.

The company saw its costs for electricity go by about $1 million as Durango opened and had about $20 million in extra costs as the opening was delayed. Employees were given more onsite training to ensure things would go smoothly.

Frank Fertitta said Durango’s success is partly because of where it is, on a busy curve on the 215 Beltway. “That’s one of the best things about our portfolio is location, location, location,” he said.

The company also completed its $58 million sale of the former Texas Station/Fiesta Rancho sites in North Las Vegas in the fourth quarter. Those casinos closed when the pandemic hit, and never reopened. The Henderson Fiesta site was also sold.

At other Station Casinos properties in the valley, the company is extremely happy with its new high-limit table room at Green Valley Ranch. At Santa Fe Station, a partial casino remodel is in the works, as well as the addition of a new Yardhouse restaurant.

Road work around Palace Station will cause some problems for the oldest of Stations’ major resorts in the valley, with a project that is expected to last until May.

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