2 former Aliante execs to take reins at SLS Las Vegas

Two former top executives at the Aliante property in North Las Vegas, now operated by Boyd Gaming, will take the reins of the 1,300-room SLS Las Vegas on the Strip, company officials announced Wednesday.

Terry Downey was named president and chief operating officer, replacing Scott Kreeger, who announced last month that he was taking a position with a gaming company out of state.

Stockbridge Capital Partners, the San Francisco investment group that owns SLS Las Vegas, also announced that Robert Schaffhauser, the chief financial officer at Aliante, will take the CFO role at SLS.

“Terry and Bob bring a tremendous amount of experience and insight to SLS Las Vegas,’’ said Terry Fancher, executive managing director at Stockbridge. “They will apply their valuable expertise to maximizing the potential of this rejuvenated and historic property.”

Downey and Schaffhauser left Aliante earlier this year when the property was acquired by Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming.

The SLS opened in August 2014 after the renovation of the former Sahara hotel-casino, which opened in 1952. In 2015, the property announced an agreement with Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide — now Marriott International — to affiliate the hotel with Starwood’s Tribute Portfolio brand and to convert a portion of the hotel to the W Hotel brand. The 289-room W Las Vegas tower opened Dec. 1.

The W Hotel brand conversion and the November opening of the nearby Lucky Dragon hotel-casino are part of resurgence of the north end of the Strip that might include construction of the 3,000-room Resorts World Las Vegas.

Under Kreeger, the SLS opened a live-entertainment venue, The Foundry, and continued its affiliation with chef Jose Andres and Bazaar Meat.

Downey is a 15-year veteran of Station Casinos, where he oversaw multiple properties. Schaffhauser previously worked in finance roles for Colony Resorts LVH Acquisitions (Las Vegas Hilton) and the Trump Hotels & Casinos organization.

“Bob and I are excited about the opportunities at SLS Las Vegas,’’ Downey said in a release announcing the appointments.. “It’s an impressive resort with unrealized potential, and we’re eager to work with Stockbridge to unlock that potential.’’

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.