The Rio and Circus Circus Sold in Two Blockbuster Deals

RIO — Caesars Entertainment confirms that the resort on the westside was sold for $516.3 million to a New York-based real estate group, Imperial Cos. Caesars plans to continue to run the resort for two years, paying $45 million in rent annually. The resort includes restaurants such as Voodoo Steakhouse on the 50th floor, Guy Fieri’s El Burro Borracho, KJ Dim Sum & Seafood, and Wine Cellar & Tasting Room with its collection of 3,000 bottles of wine, valued at more than $3 million. [LVRJ]

CIRCUS CIRCUS — MGM Resorts apparently reached a handshake agreement with TI owner Phil Ruffin to buy the family-friendly resort at the north end of the strip, along with the Las Vegas Festival Grounds across from the Sahara Las Vegas on Sept. 12, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. Ruffin bought Treasure Island from MGM Resorts in December 2008 for $775 million and owns half of Trump International in Las Vegas. Circus Circus features the must-visit The Steak House, a fixture at the resort for more than 30 years. [LVRJ]

DOWNTOWN — Terry Caudill, the owner of the Four Queens and Binion’s Gambling Hall, bought the land and building at 601 Fremont St., home of Backstage Bar & Billiards. A partnership between Caudill and Carlos “Big Daddy Carlos” Adley was leasing the site from the City of Las Vegas. The site of the former Sears building, which includes a three-story, 50,000-square-foot building and almost an acre of surface parking across from El Cortez, might become a mixed-use tower with hotel and residential units, retail space, entertainment, restaurant facilities, bar facilities, and more, according to News 3 LV. [News3LV]

• All AM Intel [ELV]