The Primms said they are working toward a “return to better days” after the main operator of their namesake outpost south of Las Vegas revealed plans to fold.
Cory Clemetson, president of Primm’s landowner group, wrote in an open letter published Tuesday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal that casino operator Affinity Gaming’s recent disclosure that it will end its operations in Primm “has implications beyond the simple closure of casino resorts — it affects the lives of hundreds of people and closes the decades-long State Line.”
Primm Letter by the Las Vegas Review-Journal
Clemetson, the grandson of the area’s namesake, the late Ernie Primm, added that hundreds of employees and residents who live and work in Primm “are now facing the prospect of losing their jobs and in many cases being displaced from their homes.”
“A company is nothing without its people,” Clemetson wrote, adding that the Primm family is “exploring all options to help employees and their families during this difficult time.”
He also wrote that the family is “working tirelessly to find potential solutions” for the properties to go dark.
“Rest assured we are working towards a revived Primm and a return to better days,” he wrote.
“Significant cash flow and management distraction”
Primm, an unincorporated area along Interstate 15 about 40 miles south of the Las Vegas Strip, has struggled for years and is about to get even quieter.
Las Vegas-based Affinity told state officials in a letter dated May 5 that it will permanently close its operations at Primm’s three hotel-casino properties — Whiskey Pete’s, Buffalo Bill’s and Primm Valley Resort — and at the Primm Center gas station and Flying J truck fuel stop in Primm.
An apartment complex in Primm that was built for the local workforce is also closing, and the nearby Lotto store just over the border in California is also closing.
All told, Primm has been a “significant cash drain and management distraction for Affinity for many years,” company spokeswoman Melissa Krantz said in a recent statement to the Review-Journal.
Affinity “engaged in an exhaustive analysis, an extensive evaluation of alternatives and a robust sales process that yielded no potential buyers,” and the company “determined that the closure of Primm is a prudent business decision,” she said.
In the latest letter to the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, Affinity Chief People Officer Chantelle Mark did not provide a reason for the mass layoff.
But she said 344 employees will lose their jobs and the businesses will close on July 4.
Clark County Communications and Strategy Director Jennifer Cooper released a statement May 6, saying the county is “very focused on the impact these closures will have” and is working on options “related to continuity of service” for gas stations, to ensure they can remain accessible to travelers.
She also said Clark County Social Services is committed to providing resources to people who live and work in Primm.
“No One Goes There”
Primm has faced ever-growing competition up the highway in America’s casino capital, which offers a seemingly endless supply of shows, nightclubs, shops, restaurants and other places to spend time and money off the casino floor.
Meanwhile, California now has tribal casino resorts throughout the state, offering more — and often more convenient — options for customers who might otherwise have considered going to a place like Primm.
It used to be a lucrative roadside destination on the Nevada-California border. The trio of hotel-casinos once sold for a combined $400 million, and the sprawling outlet mall in Primm was reportedly among the top 10 outlet malls nationally by sales.
But the outlet mall, which is not run by Affinity, is now almost completely deserted, with just one store remaining this month after years of declining fortunes.
Two of the hotels have also closed their doors in recent years, with the closures previously labeled as temporary, and patrons now facing barricades along the perimeter of their parking lots.
Las Vegas realtor Rick Hildreth recently said he doesn’t like to see anything shut down or people lose their jobs. But he felt the whole concept of a place like Primm is outdated.
“Of course it has to be, because nobody’s going there,” he said.
Contact Eli Segall at esegall@ theplayerlounge.com or 702-383-0342.
