The former owner of the now defunct New Frontier Hotel, has purchased Treasure Island Hotel and Casino from MGM/Mirage for $775 million. Flush with $1.2 billion from the May 2007 sale of the Frontier to the New York based Elad group, Ruffin is back in the Vegas game once more.

 

Treasure Island opened in the mid 1990′s by Steve Wynn. TI as it is now known, is the family themed extension Hotel to the Mirage, also developed by Steve Wynn. Recently TI has shed it’s family themes and is now a busy mid-priced Hotel catering to Adults.

Wynn Resorts, the former owner of Treasure Island was forced to sell to Kirk Kerkorian’s  MGM company in the late 1990′s after Wynn ran into suspicious difficulties with financing and licensing for projects in Louisiana and New Jersey. It is this author’s opinion Wynn was intentionally sacked to force the sale of his Hotels and the Mirage Resorts Corporation to Kerkorian.

MGM/Mirage of late has seen it’s stock price drop over 90% partly as a result of Kirk Kerkorian selling shares to cover margin calls connected to his attempt to control the automaker Ford. The infusion of $775 had a positive impact initially on MGM/Mirage with shares rising over 7% in early trading Monday.

Phil Ruffin also owns the seven acres of land that houses the $1.2 billion Trump International Hotel & Tower. He is considered a part owner in the 1,282-unit hotel and condominium tower with New York billionaire Donald Trump. Sadly this project has been a huge failure and sits likely 90% vacant and unsold. Trump stock has fallen 95% in 2008, ouch!