Thank you!

Very nice analysis

Sadly so.

Sadly so.

Yeah… Stardust being demolished was a sad thing, because its replacement was a bad idea in retrospect. Right when they were beginning construction, the housing bubble burst and the money wells went dry.

Not fair comparison, IMO. Stardust was doing quite well for Boyd, but they decided to build a mega resort during an unprecedented boom time. I don’t fault their judgment at the time, but as even Mr. Boyd has said; knowing what they know now, they would not have removed Stardust.
Stardust being removed is part of what harmed the Riviera. Eight hotels and casinos have been removed within a mile of the Riv in the last 10-12 years, with nothing being built to replace them. The Riv wound up with only one neighbor, Circus-Circus. A major hindrance to foot traffic.
Sahara and Riviera were both harmed by dying owners during the last 20 years. Bill Bennett bought Sahara in 1995, when he was quite ill, held on for 7 years, and his family was limited in what they could do until it sold in 2007. 12 hard years for a property that needed help in 1995. The Riviera was stifled by the slow death of chairman William Westerman until he did die in 2010. Apparently, a quite well respected man, nobody wanted to make any moves for the last three years of his life.
My point being these weren’t two properties that were in impossible locations, and removal is the only solution. Rather, they are two properties that can function quite well when they get ANY neighbors.