On May 26, 2020, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Las Vegas casinos would be allowed to reopen days later, on June 4, after they’d shut down in mid-March. When a couple dozen resorts around the Valley opened their doors that summer day—still in the early stages of the pandemic—it became the first big step in the recovery of Las Vegas.
More casinos followed throughout summer and fall, a gradual reopening of the Strip dependent upon a much smaller number of Vegas visitors. In December 2020, the Rio reopened, leaving only one major resort in the Strip corridor still closed.
The Palms finally came back to life last week, on April 27, under new ownership. The San Manuel Gaming and Hospitality Authority acquired it for $650 million last year from Red Rock Resorts, parent company of Station Casinos. The opening makes San Manuel the first tribal gaming group to own and operate a casino resort in Las Vegas, an element that added significant excitement to an already special event.
Officials cut a ribbon at a William Hill sportsbook during the Palms’ April 27 reopening.
The opening included a special welcoming ceremony with members of the San Manuel and Southern Paiute tribes, big-time charitable contributions from the new casino owners to a handful of local nonprofits and lots of food, drinks, music, fireworks and fun.
Even with all that revelry leading up to the public reopening at 9 p.m., the Palms’ comeback was the most casual casino opening the city has seen, probably in decades. Make no mistake, it was a great party, but one without the decadence that typically marks such Vegas events. And it felt right.
Station famously invested roughly 1 billion dollars to turn the Palms into its current self, finishing renovations in 2019. Many of the restaurants added in that revamp have been brought back to life by San Manuel, including the fantastic steakhouse Scotch 80 Prime and celebrity chef Michael Symon’s barbecue joint, Mabel’s.
The refreshed casino floor from the Station project is intact and bright as ever, and we can assume the same of the 766 hotel rooms. Brenden Theatres has returned, and so will the Pearl concert hall, with new concerts expected to begin there this summer.
The massive KAOS nightclub and dayclub complex that burned out spectacularly in seven months is still there, but the outdoor portion will be used as the resort pool facility instead of hosting raging parties with expensive headlining DJs.
Perhaps because of its just-off-the-Strip location or maybe despite it, the Palms has always been a significant property in Las Vegas. In its celebrity-splashed heyday under original owner George Maloof, it somehow found a way to split the difference between being locals casino and hip boutique property that could attract tourists. Station bought it in 2016, and it’s entirely possible the company’s upscaling approach to the property could have resulted in a similar sort of success. But the pandemic chopped off the new Palms’ ability to connect with guests, no matter where they were coming from.
At its Yaamavá casino resort in Highland, California, San Manuel is known for delivering luxurious, well-rounded gaming and entertainment experiences. Earlier this month it christened its new theater with a Red Hot Chili Peppers concert, and the Palms came complete with more restaurants than Yaamavá can hold. The Las Vegas site seems like the perfect opportunity for this company.
As it was with Station, connecting with locals will be the key. So many Las Vegans have a history with the Palms, and they’ll be curious at the least, if not enthusiastically delighted, to give it a fresh look.
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