The NGCB maintains a list of publications. Cumulative data is reported in
fiscal years (FY) (July 1 to June 30) instead of
calendar years. Downtown Las Vegas currently has 16 nonrestricted gaming locations that earn more than $1 million per year in gaming revenue. Since fiscal year 1990 when the Mirage opened on the Las Vegas Strip gaming revenue downtown has been flat. Non-gaming revenue has increased, but income also remains relatively flat. Some of the smaller casinos have since closed, and one major casinos hotel, (The Stratosphere) has opened. On average, the casinos that have less than $12 million per year in gaming revenue have a negative income. • Based on numbers of hotel rooms, slot machines, and table games the three largest operations are (not in order of revenue) the Golden Nugget, the
Stratosphere Las Vegas and
Boyd Gaming downtown division which consists of the
Main Street Casino, the
California Hotel and Casino, and the
Fremont Casino. • In 1990 one of the 11 casinos in the
over $12 million category was the
Golden Gate Hotel and Casino, but revenue is now under $12 million. The
Stratosphere has taken its place. • Of the 5 current license holders in the under $12 million category, 3 of them currently offer slot machines only (no table games, poker, racing or sports), and only 2 of them have small attached hotels (100 rooms apiece). For Downtown Las Vegas, the
total revenue dropped after
September 11 attacks in 2001 as it did in most resort areas including the Strip.
Total revenue includes all sources of revenue for the property (food, drinks, attractions, etc.). Unlike the strip, income remained slightly positive, but revenue did not recover for three years. Profitability was restored during this period solely through cost-cutting measures. An analysis of the data could reveal how much of the cost cutting was payroll, cost of goods (food and beverage), and number of employees. Beginning with December 2001, all of the properties changed ownership, at least once, with the exception of the 3 properties in the Boyd Gaming
downtown division. Most ownership changes are accompanied by attempts to upgrade the properties with new restaurants, clubs, renovations, and games.
Tom Breitling and Tim Poster were the highest profile successful entrepreneurs who profited in the downtown market during the last crisis. As recounted in Tom Breitling's book,
Double or Nothing, the partners agreed to buy the Golden Nugget and had an agreement to sell the property after operating it for only one year. The partners made $113 million in profit called the highest rate of return in such a short time in the gaming industry. By FY2006
total revenue for downtown exceeded that of FY2004 by $106 million. Margins (income over revenue), income, and revenue all reach record highs for downtown. Margins even surpass the Strip according to NGCB Data. Although the sale of the Golden Nugget is completed after six months needed to earn gaming license, no casino purchases are negotiated this fiscal year. Heartened by the improving economic conditions, the Lady Luck is closed for complete renovations. On February 21, 2008 Carl Icahn sold his four Southern Nevada casinos, comprising
American Casino & Entertainment Properties anchored by the
Stratosphere Las Vegas and realized a gain of $1 billion after a decade of investing in the market. The price for the properties was agreed on the previous April, and was based on an appraised value of $718.443 million for the land. Although revenue drop has been comparatively benign in the recession, the interest on the long term notes for this land speculation has made the company unprofitable. == Revenue since July 1, 2006 ==