Senator opposes Boyd Gaming's neighborhood casino bill

A key state senator says he opposes a bill allowing Boyd Gaming Corp. to build two Las Vegas-area hotel-casinos in areas where casinos are restricted.

Sen. Mark James, R-Las Vegas, said Friday his Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on AB522 on Tuesday. James on Thursday planned to kill the bill by not holding a hearing, but said Friday he changed his mind when committee members complained it was unfair for the legislation to die without a hearing.

James added he was adamantly opposed to the legislation.

The bill unanimously passed the Assembly, but has raised the ire of other locals gaming companies, most notably Station Casinos Inc.

Two years ago, the Legislature approved a bill authored by James to limit casinos in residential neighborhoods. Under SB208, which went into effect Dec. 31, 1998, companies have to meet strict new requirements to gain approval for casino projects in residential areas.

Boyd owns property near Texas Station in North Las Vegas and across the street from Boulder Station on Boulder Highway. Helen Foley, a lobbyist for Boyd, said there was an oversight in 1997 and Boyd thought its property had been grandfathered into the law.

But Boyd later discovered it was subject to the strict new requirements.

Foley said both properties are in well-established gaming areas. The bill to permit Boyd to build is narrowly defined so it includes only those two properties, which were owned before the 1997 law.

She said the Legislature should correct the error.

But James said, "To come back the next session and start making exceptions like that ... it will open the floodgates and there will be innumerable exceptions and the effect of the law will fall."

To start granting the exceptions, he said would "make swiss cheese" of the law.

Two years ago, he said there were a number of exceptions made to the initial law that "give people the right to develop property that they already had and had acquired under the old law."

Representatives of Boyd said Scott Nielson, executive vice president and general counsel of Station Casinos, gained an amendment to the 1997 bill for Station. The amendment gave Station the right to build on property near Sam's Town, a Boyd property.

Nielson denied that the issue is a fight between Station and Boyd.

"It's kind of been cast by some folks as Station vs. Boyd and that really isn't true," said Nielson.

The reason is simple, he said. Companies had an entire year after the passage of SB208 to get projects approved. Letting companies change the rules now would undercut SB208 entirely, he said.

"If they're allowed to do that, then we have three or four properties we want to line up," said Nielson.

And then, other companies will do the same thing, he said.

"At that point, you've just gutted SB208," said Nielson. "SB208 was a compromise that everybody participated in. ... I think this is just an erosion of that compromise."

"They're saying 'SB208 applies to everyone but us,"' said Nielson.

"I don't know if they are having a turf battle ... it has nothing to do with my decision," James said.

"My constituents strongly wanted limitations on neighborhood casinos. We enacted those.

"To come back and make additional exceptions would open the floodgates and it would eviscerate the protections afforded by SB208 (the bill passed in 1997," James said.

Asked if there was an oversight in not including the Boyd property in the area where casinos were allowed, James replied, "Other people told me they had oversights as well. Others said they were not well represented and missed being grandfathered in.

"At some point, you have to draw the line and say this is the policy. I know that causes some consternation for some people. But that's the policy," James said.

AB522 was approved by the Assembly without dissent. At the time Assemblyman Mark Manendo, D-Las Vegas, who gave the statement on the floor, said there was no opposition and both the cities of Henderson and Las Vegas had no objections.

But other casino companies and developers are also opposed to the bill, Nielson said.

Executives at other casino developers said to be opposed to the bill either declined comment or could not be reached for comment.

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