Gaming News

Santa Fe Project Expected, Station May Move Ice Rink

Santa Fe Station is about to undergo a major expansion, Las Vegas locals casino powerhouse Station Casinos is expected to announce today.

Movie theaters and additional casino space will be the key new additions to the North Rancho Drive hotel-casino, and the Santa Fe Station bowling alley is slated to be renovated, informed industry sources said.

Today's expansion announcement is expected to come with a twist, however.

The Santa Fe Station expansion requires the property's existing ice rink to be demolished, a move that would leave nearby valley residents without a place to skate.

But Station Casinos is expected to announce today that it plans to build a new indoor ice rink at its Fiesta Rancho in North Las Vegas.

Station Casinos spokeswoman Lesley Pittman declined to comment on plans for the Santa Fe Station or Fiesta.

Industry insiders say the company's plans to build a new ice rink would be based on the move's public relations value, since the Santa Fe's ice rink is thought to be a money loser.

The closest existing ice rink is at the Las Vegas Sportspark at 1400 N. Rampart Blvd.; another west side rink is the Crystal Palace Skating Center, at 9295 W. Flamingo Road.

The cost of the planned Santa Fe expansion wasn't known; when Station bought the Santa Fe in 2000 for $205 million it immediately plowed $100 million into the property to renovate the hotel and its casino floor, and build a parking garage, a couple of restaurants and a fast-food court.

The new expansion will not include a buffet, leaving Santa Fe Station as the only Station or Fiesta-branded property without the locals casino staple.

Santa Fe Station is the northernmost of Station's Rancho Road strip of properties, a collection of casinos that includes the Fiesta Rancho, Texas Station, the Wildfire and Palace Station.

The new rink would be about four miles southeast of the Santa Fe, and would cost an estimated $5 million to $10 million to build.

Station Casinos acquired the Fiesta, now called the Fiesta Rancho, for $185 million from the Maloof family early in 2001, and used its brand for the former Reserve, now Fiesta Henderson.

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