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Luke Brugnara, the Gen-Xer who wants to build a megaresort on the Strip themed after his native San Francisco, sees himself as a new generation Strip mogul. If given the chance, he says he'd redevelop much of the underdeveloped northern end of the Strip.
But first, the 35-year-old Brugnara will have to be admitted into what he describes as "a private club" of much-older Strip operators. For that, he'll have to pass muster with the State Gaming Control Board and Nevada Gaming Commission. He says he expects his gaming license application to be on the board's agenda in 60 to 90 days.
To Brugnara, the exclusive club includes the likes of MGM Mirage Chairman Kirk Kerkorian, Venetian owner Sheldon Adelson and Park Place Entertainment chief Arthur Goldberg, people he describes as "these guys who are in their 70s and 80s."
"There's really no young blood on
the Strip right now," says Brugnara, whose wealth includes sole ownership of office buildings in downtown San Francisco. "There are no owners on the Strip who are below Social Security age. The only way to keep the Strip competitive is you need players and an opendoor policy for people who want to invest on the Strip. You can't rest on [former Mirage Resorts Chairman] Steve Wynn's laurels as he approaches Social Security age. Steve Wynn is 61. You need the next generation of owner who is as energetic as a 30-year-old. Younger players need to be allowed into the loop.
"It's like a private club. You always need new members, or else you'll always have these casino owners passing away. Even for Steve Wynn's [proposed casino] project at the Desert Inn, I would think, he would have to bring institutional investors to contribute to it because of his age. [Finance institutions] don't want to deal with someone passing on. It's absolutely critical that people like myself...