Fireworks as usual, even in bankruptcy

Station Casinos will celebrate Independence Day tonight with a nine-minute fireworks display across five of its properties at various parts of the Las Vegas Valley.

Some will question how a company mired in a multibillion-dollar bankruptcy reorganization would still be able to afford an extravagant Fourth of July presentation.

Station Casinos Chief Operating Officer Kevin Kelley said the annual fireworks show, along with other promotions and casino marketing efforts, won't halt because of the bankruptcy filing.

Company executives are still trying to drive both new and loyal customers to their 18 casinos throughout Las Vegas, Henderson and North Las Vegas.

It's part a "business as usual" mantra Station Casinos undertook despite its Chapter 11 filing last July with the bankruptcy court in Reno, which listed nearly
$6 billion in corporate debt.

"We have marketing money that we spend every month toward events to bring people to our properties," Kelley said. "Just because we have a lousy corporate capital structure doesn't mean we stop running our properties."

Not all of the Station Casinos' entities are in bankruptcy, and Kelley said the businesses are operating and creating cash flow.

Kelley is proud of the fireworks show, which he started in 1997 when he was general manager of Texas Station. At the time, George Maloof owned the Fiesta Rancho, and the competing casino operators wanted to do something together to draw customers to their North Las Vegas properties on the Fourth of July.

Eventually, Station Casinos expanded the fireworks display to cover nine casinos throughout the valley.

This year's show is scaled down. It will start around 9 p.m., and fireworks will displayed at just five casinos: Aliante Station, Green Valley Ranch Resort, Fiesta Rancho, Texas Station and Red Rock Resort. A musical score will accompany the show on four radio stations.

Fireworks by Grucci of New York will produce the show.

Kelley wouldn't say what the show costs, but he said it wasn't a frivolous expense.

"To us, it's a good business decision, but more importantly, it's a good community thing to do," he said. "There used to be a lot more fireworks shows and this is one our customers and the community seem to count on."

Meanwhile, the company's reorganization plan is being debated in court but appears headed toward a conclusion.

Eleven Station Casinos properties are scheduled to be auctioned by the bankruptcy judge on Aug. 6, while five casinos are expected to be taken over by lenders and will be co-owned and managed by the new Fertitta Gaming.

Howard Stutz's Inside Gaming column appears Sundays. He can be reached at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871. He blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/stutz.