Conditional use permit renewed for three years
The former MonteLago Casino at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nevada, which was expected to reopen October 1, will remain closed for the time being after state gaming regulators denied a casino license to its primary owner.
Last week, Newage Lake Las Vegas, owner of Hilton Lake Las Vegas Hotel and Spa, received a three-year extension on its conditional-use permit for nonrestricted gaming from the Henderson City Council, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Now it must find a new operator for the casino, formerly known as Casino MonteLago. Newage is owned by California-based Kam Sang Co., which is majority-controlled by a real estate investor named Man Ho Lam.
In May, the Nevada Gaming Control Board denied Lam’s application for a gaming license, saying he “failed to satisfy their burden of proving their qualification to be licensed” under state law. The state Gaming Commission upheld that finding later that month.
Phil Wolfgramm, a senior vice president at Kam Sang, says the company is actively seeking a casino operator and expects that the casino will open before the three-year deadline, and hopefully long before that.
“We’re going to look for an operator that can come in and has some experience with (gaming regulators) and gaming,” Wolfgramm said. “We’ve already taken bids and are in discussion with many potential operators. I doubt seriously that will take three years.”
Lam could reapply again in a year, but he’s not interested, said Wolfgramm. “It’s not our core business,” he said. “It was an effort to consolidate the ownership with the hotel and the casino.”
The plan was to open the casino in October to coincide with the planned reopening of the renovated Reflection Bay Golf Course and Galleria Parkway.
