Empty café worth more than casino? Add it up

Is the Harley-Davidson Café worth more than the New Frontier?

Yes, Deutsche Bank gaming analyst Bill Lerner says.

FX Luxury Realty is acquiring the remaining 50 percent interest on 18 acres at the southeast corner of Harmon Avenue and the Strip for $180 million.

The land, now occupied by the Harley-Davidson Café, Travelodge, and other retail near the MGM Grand, could be converted to a mixed-use gaming project involving the estate of Elvis Presley.

Lerner said that when debt is included in the deal, the land is selling for almost $37 million per acre.

That figure would eclipse the $35 million per acre deal involving the New Frontier and its 34.5 acres. New York-based Elad Properties announced in May it was acquiring the New Frontier for more than $1.2 billion and will raze the hotel-casino in favor of a $5 billion development.

Reporters aren’t the only ones looking for Andrew Donner, the main man behind the proposed renovation of the Lady Luck.

A Reno-area venue promoter is suing Donner in small claims court. Jeff Cotton claims Donner didn’t pay for consulting services related to a makeover of the Celebrity Theater at the intersection of Third Street and Ogden Avenue.

Cotton recently had to reset the claim because, he said, a process server couldn’t find Donner.

Inside Gaming also called Donner seeking an update on the Lady Luck project. The call wasn’t returned.

Station Casinos opened Sunset Station in Henderson 10 years ago today against a backdrop of uncertainty about the company’s future.

At the time, management was battling Missouri regulators and the company’s stock price was fluctuating between $8 and $9 per share.

Today, Station Casinos is building its 16th property and is being taken private for $90 a share.

With “The Sopranos” heading to television history after tonight’s series finale (9 p.m. on Home Box Office), we wondered if any online sports books were posting odds on the outcome.

Sure enough, Bodog.com gave fans five different choices for wagering on the outcome of the hit series, which tells the adventures of a fictional New Jersey crime family.

Inside Gaming does not advocate that readers race out and place wagers. This note is for entertainment purposes only.

Bodog bookmakers believe mafia don Tony Soprano and capo Peter Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri are heavy favorites to survive tonight’s episode. Rival crime boss Phil Leotardo is the odds-on favorite to get whacked.

The Inside Gaming column is compiled by Review-Journal gaming and tourism writers Howard Stutz, Benjamin Spillman and Arnold M. Knightly. Send your tips about the gaming and tourism industry to insidegaming@ reviewjournal.com.