River Palms in Laughlin sold to M1 Gaming of Reno

2 May 2013

By Howard Stutz

Tropicana Entertainment LLC announced Wednesday it sold the River Palms Resort Casino in Laughlin to Reno-based M1 Gaming for $7 million.

M1, which is headed by former Station Casinos gaming executive Dean DiLullo, owns the Boomtown Casino in Reno and the Reserve Casino in Central City, Colo. M1 acquired Boomtown for $12.9 million from Pinnacle Entertainment last June.

The transaction is subject to approval of Nevada gaming regulators.

“We plan to make a significant investment in the property and in the Laughlin market,” DiLullo said of the 1,001-room hotel-casino. “We look forward to building a strong team and developing the River Palms to its fullest potential.”

Tropicana, which operates eight casinos, including the Tropicana Atlantic City and the Tropicana Laughlin, will continue to run River Palms until the transaction is final, possibly the end of September.

“We are pleased to announce this agreement today,” Tropicana CEO Tony Rodio said in a statement. “When complete, this transaction will enable Tropicana to focus our Laughlin efforts exclusively on Tropicana Laughlin.”

River Palms in Laughlin sold to M1 Gaming of Reno is republished from Online.CasinoCity.com.