A Full House Resorts board member, who helped lead a 2014 proxy fight against the regional casino operator’s former management, resigned from the panel last week.
In a brief filing the Securities and Exchange Commission, Las Vegas-based Full House said Bradley Tirpak resigned from the board last Thursday. A replacement has not been named.
Tirpak, who was replaced as chairman last June by Carl Braunlich, wrote in a one-sentence letter to the company, “I hereby tender my resignation to the Board of Directors of Full House Resorts, Inc. effective immediately.”
According to filings with SEC last year, Tirpak sold 37.5% of his ownership stake in Full House. He still retained 421,865 Full House shares.
In December, Full House appointed former investment banking executive Michael Hartmeier to its board as an independent member.
Braunlich was a member of the Full House board when Tirpak, along with now-Full House CEO Dan Lee, led the proxy fight against the company’s former leadership. Braunlich took part in the discussions that settled the dispute and remained on the board.
Braunlich is an associate professor at the William F. Harrah College of Hotel Administration at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has also been a full-time member of the hotel management faculties of Cornell University and Purdue University.
Full House, which operates five casinos in four states, plans to spend $180 million to expand and redevelop Bronco Billy’s Casino and Hotel in Cripple Creek, Colorado.
Full House is raising $300 million in new debt to help cover the costs of the expansion, which the Las Vegas-based company increased in size and scope by 67%, including a 300-room luxury hotel tower. The company also plans to pay off $106.8 million of debt due in 2024.
Shares of Full House, traded on the Nasdaq, closed last week at $7.65.
(Disclosure: Ken Adams, CDC Gaming’ senior analyst, is a member of the Full House board of directors)
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
