David Ross, CEO of Las Vegas-based Affinity Gaming, will leave the company he helped to establish in July.
Ross has been at the helm since Affinity was founded in December 2010, after the bankruptcy reorganization of Herbst Gaming. He presided over the company restructuring, sold several casinos, and also sold the company’s slot machine routes to Golden Gaming. As part of the latter deal, Affinity acquired three casinos in Colorado.
Ross, who had previously worked for Coast Casinos and Boyd Gaming Corp., has also resigned from Affinity’s board of directors.
“There wasn’t any disagreement with the company or management,” Ross told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “My management agreement was expiring and it seemed like a natural inflection.”
Ross first joined the company in mid-2009, shortly after Herbst filed for bankruptcy reorganization. He became CEO when the reorganization was completed. He said Affinity is now well-positioned for growth.
“During my time at Affinity, we restructured our balance sheet, sold off non-core properties and have diversified our asset base from a largely Nevada-based casino and slot route operator into a well-capitalized and solidly positioned regional casino operator,” Ross said.
Six weeks ago, Affinity board member Don Kornstein also resigned from the company. Kornstein had been chairman since the bankruptcy reorganization was finalized. He was replaced last July by Richard Parisi, an investor with Connecticut hedge fund Silver Point Capital.
In a statement, Parisi applauded Ross for “stabilizing operations and getting the company back on track as it emerged from bankruptcy.”
Affinity has a total of 11 casinos in Nevada, Iowa, Colorado and Missouri. In Nevada, Affinity owns the three Primm resorts, the Strip Silver Sevens and the Rail City Casino in Sparks.
