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Vegas Company's Tribal Successes Recognized

SACRAMENTO -- Station Casinos Inc.'s gamble on the Thunder Valley Casino in Northern California is paying off, spurring more Indian tribes look to the Las Vegas company for helpin opening casinos, the Sacramento Bee reported.

Tribes interested in gaming are impressed with the speed at which Thunder Valley was built and the strength of the company's balance sheet, the paper said, citing John Mulkey, a gaming and lodging analyst for Bear, Stearns & Co.

Station Casinos advanced the United Auburn Indian Community almost $47 million and guaranteed a $215 million construction loan as part of a seven-year agreement to manage Thunder Valley. The company receives 24 percent of the casino's net revenue, which should amount to at least $70 million in the first year, the paper said.

Even before the casino opened, the company reached a similar agreement with the Federated Indians of the Graton Rancheria for a casino in Sonoma County, Calif. Since then, Station Casinos has reached operating agreements with two other tribes in Northern California and one in Michigan, the paper said.

Copyright © Las Vegas Sun. Inc. Republished with permission.

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