Station Casinos wants out of lease for office space

By Steve Green

Wednesday, July 29, 2009 | 10:28 a.m.

Now that it's operating under bankruptcy protection, Station Casinos Inc. is seeking approval to get out of a lease for unneeded office space in Las Vegas.

In what's likely to be the first of many such financial motions, Station is asking the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for permission to reject a lease it entered into for 25,530 square feet of space on the third floor of the Pavilion building in Summerlin at Charleston Boulevard and Pavilion Center Drive.

In court papers, Station said the lease was supposed to run from October 2007 to September 2012, at a monthly cost initially of $70,207 to $76,717.

Station said it used the space through May 2008 for development of "Project V," an unspecified "gaming enterprise" in Las Vegas, and then indefinitely halted development of the project with the U.S. economic downturn.

Station said it had vacated the premises and subleased the space. The sublease tenant vacated the building in March, and now Station wants out of the lease with landlord Charleston Pavilion LLC.

"The Project V Office Lease has no operational value to Station Casinos Inc. (SCI) and is not necessary to its reorganization," Station attorneys wrote in a court filing. "Accordingly, preservation of the Project V Office Lease could result in an administrative expense with no commensurate benefit to SCI's estate."

The motion to reject the lease and other so-called first day matters are scheduled to be heard during a hearing Thursday in Reno.

The first day matters include motions for use of cash, cash management provisions and the payment of wages, benefits and taxes.

Las Vegas-based Station and certain subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday in hopes of reorganizing their debt.