El Cortez Las Vegas Expands with $20M in New Gaming Space
Everyone’s favorite downtown casino, El Cortez, continues to grow.
Key Facts:
- The El Cortez opened in 1941.
- It was once owned by Bugsy Siegel and Meyer Lansky.
- Las Vegas Legend Jacky Gaughan lived in the penthouse until his death in 2014.
- The new $20 million expansion breathes new life into iconic old Vegas property.
You can’t tell the story of Las Vegas without the story of Sin City’s oldest continuously operating casino, the El Cortez.
Yes, the Golden Gate opened earlier, but it went decades as just a hotel and without a casino. Since November of 1941, just days before Pearl Harbor, this legendary Las Vegas casino has been open to the public.
Built a block off Fremont in downtown Las Vegas and miles from the location of the Flamingo Hilton and all the soon-to-come Vegas strip properties, many believed that the area was too far from all the Los Angeles traffic that even then was the lifeblood of the small desert town.
History of El Cortez
Built for less than a quarter million dollars, it was still a princely sum before the War. But the war itself changed Las Vegas and the El Cortez almost overnight. The army built its largest gunnery school a few miles from downtown at what would later be named Nellis Air Force Base. The sleepy little town became a spoke in the giant war machine.
With thousands of service men stationed here for the duration and thousands more passing through every month for training before heading off to Europe or the Pacific, Las Vegas saw its first real boom. And the El Cortez was right there in the thick of it.
In 1945, Bugsy Siegel Myer Lansky, Gus Greenbaum, and Moe Sedway bought the now bustling property for more than twice what it had been built for just four short years previously. But they were soon forced to sell as both heat from federal law enforcement and plans for the Flamingo Hilton diverted the mobster’s attention.
While many predicted the imminent death of Las Vegas, especially downtown, as the war came to an end, the US military would continue to build new bases in and around the Las Vegas area for decades to come.
Also, many servicemen who had been billeted there during the war remembered downtown Las Vegas and would return with their families year after year, seeking out those memories of being young and free.
For many, the El Cortez was at the heart of those memories, and even by 1963, when Jackie Gaughan bought it, it was already considered the Grand Dame of old Las Vegas casinos.
Gaughan, who would himself become a legend in Sin City, was actually one of the airmen who first got his taste of Las Vegas while stationed there during the war.
He would come back from Omaha in the 1950s after a stint as a legal bookmaker. He bought an early 3% stake in the Flamingo, and that first taste of owning a casino would see him buy, invest, or build the Golden Nugget, the Gold Spike, the Union Plaza, the Showboat, and many others. He would mentor a young casino owner at the Nugget named Steve Wynn.
Despite owning a large chunk of downtown Las Vegas for several decades, it was the El Cortez that held Gaughan’s heart. He famously lived in the penthouse from the late 50s til his death in 2014, and for most days of those 50+ years, you could find him on the floor watching the action and talking to customers and employees alike.
Remodeling and Making Improvements
El Cortez’s current owner, Kenny Epstein, has spent over a hundred million dollars on renovations since he purchased the casino in 2008. But 80-year-old properties often end up needing a bit more upkeep, and of course, the fading downtown has seen a resurgence of younger, more affluent gamblers in recent years.
This has meant that many downtown properties, the El Cortez included, had to pivot to marketing to a very different demographic than they had previously. No more sawdust on the floors or 99-cent shrimp cocktails at the steak house.
With that in mind, Mr. Epstein, now in his 80s as well, and his management group recently completed their most recent remodel, spending just over $20 million dollars on an extra ten thousand square feet of gambling space, but perhaps most importantly, a raised ceiling.
Many older gambling establishments had lower ceilings, and while this has always been a feature of the El Cortez, it now has much more room to breathe.
They’ve also added a high-limit room, which, more than anything else, speaks to the changing demographics. People would have to spit out their drink with laughter if you had mentioned a high-limit addition in the 1980s.
In that same spirit, they’ve added windows to the place. The new restaurant Hot Noods, a noodle bar, and the new Stage Bar, which will feature live performances, may give long-time customers a bit of a start, however.
One thing is abundantly clear: El Cortez, just like Las Vegas itself, is willing to undergo a radical transformation to continue to appeal to new generations and continue to make memories. Hopefully, this old downtown workhorse still has another eight decades left in her.
