How Station Casinos shows its approval

By Liz Benston

Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008 | 3:46 p.m.

What is it about longtime Station Casinos executive and former Hard Rock

Hotel & Casino president Kevin Kelley that makes casino bosses want to pull

out their checkbooks?

Kelley, Station Casinos’ recently-installed Chief Operating Officer, is

getting a one-time bonus of $500,000, Station reported to the Securities and

Exchange Commission today.

But that’s nothing compared with the costly

golden parachute that Station gave former Chief Operating Officer Bill

Warner when he left the company – making room for Kelley’s entrance.

Previously, Kelley was hired from the Hard Rock by Las Vegas Sands, becoming

a senior vice president and relocating his family to Hong Kong to oversee

operations in nearby Macau. When his former employers at Station came

calling, Las Vegas Sands executives made a hefty counter offer. But it

wasn’t enough to keep Kelley from reuniting with the company he spent 10

years with.

If you listen to any of these companies, Kelley, who grew profit at Hard

Rock and Station properties, is worth it. He knows his way around the hip,

table games crowd and the older, slot machine crowd - two critical bases

that he will be covering at his new employer.