Arizona Charlie's Boulder is a hotel and

locals casino A locals casino is a casino designed primarily to attract residents of the area in which it was built rather than Tourism, tourists or vacationers. The term is most commonly associated with casinos in Nevada, United States, to distinguish them fro ...

Paradise, Nevada Paradise is an Unincorporated towns in Nevada, unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the ...

, part of the

Las Vegas Valley The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area in the Southern Nevada, southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the second largest in the Southwestern United States. The state's largest urban agglomeration, the Las Vegas Metropolitan St ...

. The hotel-casino is located on Boulder Highway, also known as the Boulder Strip. It includes a casino, 300 rooms, and an RV park. It is a sister property to the older Arizona Charlie's Decatur, located to the west in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

. Both are named after Arizona Charlie, a distant relative of the Becker family, who developed the original property. Arizona Charlie's Boulder opened as a non-gaming hotel in 1991, known then as Sunrise Fountain Suites. The RV park was added five years later. The casino was built in 1998, but did not open as scheduled, due to problems acquiring a

gaming license A gaming control board (GCB), also called by various names including gambling control board, casino control board, gambling board, and gaming commission, is a government agency charged with regulating casino and other types of gaming in a defined ...

. Businessman

Carl Icahn Carl Celian Icahn (; born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman and investor. He is the founder and controlling shareholder of Icahn Enterprises, a public company and diversified conglomerate holding company based in Sunny Isles Beach, ...

, who owned the original Arizona Charlie's at the time, purchased Sunrise Suites and renamed it Arizona Charlie's East, opening the casino on May 23, 2000. The hotel-casino was renamed Arizona Charlie's Boulder in 2003, and was sold to Golden Entertainment in 2017.

History

The property began as a non-gaming hotel known as Sunrise Fountain Suites, opened in 1991. It was owned by Michael Mona Jr. and his wife Rhonda. In 1996, they added a 239-space RV park just north of the hotel. Two years later, they added a new structure with gaming space and various restaurants, A four-level parking garage was also built. The expansion was funded with a $30 million loan. The Sunrise Suites casino featured a Mediterranean theme, and was scheduled to debut on December 27, 1998. However, the Monas withdrew their

application two weeks before the opening, following scrutiny from the

Nevada Gaming Control Board The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB or SGCB), also known as the State Gaming Control Board, is a Nevada state governmental agency involved in the regulation of gaming and law enforcement of Nevada gaming laws throughout the state, along with th ...

. Michael Mona had previously been associated with men who had links to organized crime, and the board was also concerned about Mona's accounting practices. In March 1999, Sunrise Suites filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

bankruptcy. While the casino had never opened, the hotel and RV park continued operations throughout the bankruptcy proceedings. In January 2000, Sunrise Suites was auctioned to businessman

, who owned the original Arizona Charlie's hotel-casino in Las Vegas, west of Boulder Highway. Icahn planned to rename Sunrise Suites as Arizona Charlie's East, a sister property to the original location, which became Arizona Charlie's West. Icahn's $43 million bid included the RV park, and he spent another $12 million on improvements and equipment. Most of the original design elements were left in place, including chandeliers and ornate columns, making it among the higher-end properties on the Boulder Strip. This was also in contrast to the original, lower-end Arizona Charlie's. Like the original location, the new property would appeal to locals with cheap food and entertainment, as well as favorable gaming odds. Both featured a western theme. The casino opened on May 23, 2000, shortly after 9:00 p.m., with a fireworks show to mark the event. It included an entertainment venue, two restaurants, a buffet, and a food court with two outlets. Profits improved under Icahn's ownership. An expansion, adding a bingo hall and other casino space, began construction in 2001. The property was renamed Arizona Charlie's Boulder on January 1, 2003, while the original location became Arizona Charlie's Decatur. By 2004, ownership had been transferred to Icahn's new company,

American Casino & Entertainment Properties American Casino & Entertainment Properties (ACEP) owned and operated 4 casinos. It was purchased by Golden Entertainment in October 2017 for $850 million. ACEP was a casino holding company headquartered at the Stratosphere Las Vegas. ACEP was a ...

(ACEP). An $8.3 million expansion took place in 2006, enlarging the front area to add more gaming space. In 2008, Icahn sold ACEP and its properties to Whitehall Street Real Estate Funds, an affiliate of

Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many internationa ...

. In October 2017, Golden Entertainment acquired Arizona Charlie's Boulder as part of its $850 million purchase of ACEP. Arizona Charlie's Boulder occupies , including the RV park. It has a casino, and the hotel includes 300 rooms.

References

External links

Official website
{{Golden Entertainment 2000 establishments in Nevada Casinos in the Las Vegas Valley Golden Entertainment Hotel buildings completed in 1991 Hotels in Paradise, Nevada Casino hotels in the Las Vegas Valley