Warner: “Forget Horizon”
Warner Gaming, which manages the Hard Rock Las Vegas and the Hard Rock hotel-casino in Sioux City, may soon add a third Hard Rock-branded property to its portfolio. The Nevada Gaming Control Board has approved the company’s request to rebrand the shuttered Horizon in Lake Tahoe into a Hard Rock.
“We want everyone to forget the name Horizon,” company CEO Bill Warner told regulators at a hearing in Carson City.
The renovation of the Horizon will cost $60 million. Warner expects the resort to reopen under its new name in January, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Warner told the Gaming Control Board the company will rehab the entire property, including more than 530 hotel rooms and the 25,000-square-foot casino. Warner will also add new restaurants and bars, as well as a Hard Rock-branded retail store.
“Everyone loves the Hard Rock T-shirts,” Warner said.
“I would call this an extreme makeover,” Control Board Chairman A.G. Burnett said at the hearing.
Warner said the plan is to lure younger customers and sports enthusiasts attracted by the region’s world-class skiing and other winter sports. The resort will heavily promote its nongaming amenities, such as dining and entertainment, he added.
The state gaming commission must also approve the change. Commissioners are set to review the request at a meeting on October 23.
