The president of the company that owns the casinos and ancillary development in Primm said the plan is to appear before Nevada regulators by the end of June to get the go-ahead for Terrible’s to take over the properties in Primm. Terrible’s needs to assume control from Affinity Gaming by July 4 to prevent any closures and retain jobs.
Cory Clemetson, grandson of Primm founder Ernie Primm and president of the Primm South Real Estate Company, criticized the outgoing tenant of the last 15 years and gave an overview of what’s to come during a 30-minute interview with CDC Gaming.
“By making the decision we did, hopefully everybody knows that we won’t go dark on the Fourth of July and that Primm will remain open and restart the building process as soon as possible,” Clemetson said. “That’s our hope. We’re going to get things turned around (from where they’ve been the last 15 years). It might take a little while, but we’re excited about the possibilities. We feel like today is a monumental day, with a new partnership and new beginning.”
The unincorporated community with fewer than 1,000 people on I-15 40 miles south of the Las Vegas Strip has been in turmoil since Affinity Gaming announced on May 5 that it was closing the last of the properties it had leased from the Primm family in 2010, eliminating more than 300 jobs and a place to live for many.
“It’s been a rollercoaster,” Clemetson said. “For many years, we’ve watched the deterioration of Primm under Affinity and Z Capital and couldn’t do anything about it. Our family knew we were getting these hotels back in some shape and form. We said if we can get through this and find the right group, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. That’s where we are at today. We feel like we have an opportunity now. Obviously, there are no guarantees and things can go wrong, but it’s a huge sense of relief and we’re optimistic about the future.”
Affinity shuttered Whiskey Pete’s casino in December 2024 and Buffalo Bill’s has been open sporadically when concerts are held on the weekends since July 2025. Primm Valley Casino Resort was to close July 4, along with a truck stop and service stations on either side of the freeway, a Tesla charging station, and a lotto store popularized by Nevada residents since the state has no lottery. The mall component connected to the Primm Valley hotel property has fast-food restaurants that were under the oversight of the Primm valley and were always scheduled to remain open.
“Nothing is going to close with our announcement today,” Clemetson said. “We believe we’re in a really good position to keep the employees and also keep everything open that’s currently operating. (Affinity) wanted to close everything — the gas stations, lotto store, Primm Valley hotel-casino — and lay off everyone on the Fourth of July, which we found remarkable.”
Terrible’s is owned by the Herbst family, former owners of Herbst Gaming that was taken over following a bankruptcy filing in 2009 after the Great Recession and later became Affinity Gaming in 2011. The Herbst family previously operated the three Primm casinos that it acquired from MGM Mirage in 2007 for $400 million.
“Their plan is keeping open everything that was threatened to close,” Clemetson said. “And I think you’ll see some capital improvements relatively quickly. I think they’re going to look at ways to attract guests with a much better hospitality plan than what’s been there for 15 years. Our fuel partners (that lease from Affinity) are really happy with the change. Together, we’re going to develop a pretty good game plan.”
As for the future of Buffalo Bill’s and Whiskey Pete’s reopening in the future, Clemetson said Terrible’s needs time for their larger plans, but they’re excited about the conversations they’ve had with the Herbst family. “They’ve been very impressive throughout the last two weeks on what they presented to us,”
At a Nevada Gaming Control Board in May, Affinity talked about Las Vegas-based LV Petroleum as a potential suitor for the properties and touted its interest in media interviews.
The Primm family, however, said no deal was imminent and that it was negotiating with several potential partners. Clemetson said they met with LV Petroleum early on, along with others he called “legitimate groups that were very interested in Primm and had the same vision that we do as a family that remains very bullish on Primm in the long run.” Those groups are “very well thought of” and offered a lot, Clemetson said. He called it a difficult decision, but Terrible’s provided the “best overall solution” both short term and potentially long term for the family.
“Ultimately Tim and Troy (Herbst) and their company made the most sense to the Primm family,” Clemetson said. “They were talking to us from the very beginning. We didn’t publicize the discussions of other groups, trying to keep them quiet as we worked our way through the process. There’s a lot of enthusiasm for what could lie ahead for Primm and would be great long term for southern Nevada.”
Clemetson wouldn’t discuss the business arrangement with Terrible’s or any lease terms, but said, “We believe they’re very good business people and share a lot of the same beliefs we do about Primm. They’ve been highly successful in Nevada. They have been here and care about Nevada. That weighed heavily on our decision. The groups we were considering all have tremendous ties and care deeply about our state. That meant a lot to the Primm family.”
The Herbst family traces its gaming roots to 1987 when it was formed to service the slot machines at the Terrible Herbst gas stations. The Herbsts opened their first casino, Terrible Town’s Casino, in Pahrump in 1996, followed by Terrible’s Town Casino and Bowl in Henderson, expanding from there in Nevada and outside the state. In 2007 ahead of the financial collapse, it acquired the operations of the three Primm casinos from MGM Mirage for $400 million in what some suggested was an overpayment. Herbst Gaming’s financial woes ensued with the economic collapse and competition from California’s tribal casinos. It had operated 16 casinos in northern and southern Nevada in 2008.
Affinity, which operates Silver Sevens east of the Strip and casinos in Iowa and Missouri in addition to publishing the Daily Racing Form, told Nevada regulators last month that it terminated its lease at Primm because it was losing money. Clemetson believes the Herbst family will be successful, because they will care about the property.
“The company that runs Affinity, Z Capital, in our opinion has had a poor track record on just about every business they’ve ever run. There are people who know how to run companies and there are not. Actions speak louder than words and any company that decides to lay off 340 Nevadans on the Fourth of July, who are mostly paycheck to paycheck in excessive heat, tells you everything you need to know about the company and leadership. I don’t need to say much more than that. We like our chances better with the Herbst family.”
Clemetson hopes all 340 employees can keep their jobs. The Herbst family has said their plan is to keep everyone employed. “They’ll have to go through some interviews and process their team.”
Before the Herbst family can take over operations in Primm, they’ll appear before the Nevada Control Board and Gaming Commission. “We’re told that will happen toward the end of June. Hopefully, it will be a smooth transition.”
Clemetson said he has heard the excuses for years that tribal gaming in southern California has harmed the Primm resorts and doesn’t doubt it’s had a “negative impact to some degree, not only on Primm, but parts of Las Vegas.” Despite that, a lot of traffic has gone by for the last 10 years. The Nevada Department of Transportation reports more than 45,000 vehicles passed by daily at the Nevada and California border.
“More could have been done to lure people off the highway,” Clemetson said. “The Primm family is getting these properties back at zero debt. I think the last time there was zero debt was when my grandfather owned the properties in the late 1970s and early 1980s. That’s a rarity in the landscape and will allow us to work with the Herbst family to figure out if we need to put some money into the properties, freshen them up and modernize them. We will probably be able to do that, and that’s great.”
When the planned Ivanpah Airport to service Las Vegas begins construction, possibly in 2029, and operates flights as early as 2035, Clemetson said that “will give Primm an advantage that it has never had before.” The airport will attract drive-by traffic with people flying in and out, whether passenger or cargo flights, so there will be a lot of activity.
“We don’t know exactly what will happen, but Primm will have a competitive advantage that many Las Vegas casinos may not,” Clemetson said. “How many hotel-casinos are within three miles of Reid International? It’s probably 20 to 30 or maybe more. In Primm, it will be us and that gives us a unique advantage in the long term. In the short term, we might have to work ourselves out of a situation none of us created, but over time, we think we can really improve the properties and set them up for long-term success when the airport happens.”
The Primm family owns 700 acres, including 150 leased acres. The Bureau of Land Management is likely to free up land near the airport as well, Clemetson said.
“You’ll probably see some housing that will come out there over time,” Clemetson said. “Construction (workers) will need places to stay — people who won’t want to commute back and forth. I think our hotel rooms will start to fill up.”
In its heyday, Primm had thousands of workers and didn’t have much housing until MGM built apartments.
“We will be in position to address that when appropriate,” Clemetson said. “We have plenty of water. Having a group like Terrible’s working with us, we think we can create a lot of value out at Primm again.”
Clemetson addressed the retail component at Primm Valley. With the existing lease going away, it allows the family to potentially “do some things” in the future with the mall working with a new partner like the Herbsts.
Terrible’s executives released a statement to CDC Gaming. “Primm occupies a unique place in Nevada’s history and in the minds of millions of travelers who have passed through this gateway community over the decades. We see tremendous opportunity to help restore energy, excitement, and momentum to these properties through our operational partnership with the Primm family.
“Our immediate priority is ensuring continuity for the current employees, residents, guests, and business partners, while establishing a solid foundation for future growth,” the statement said. “From day one, our team will be focused on improving operations, enhancing the customer experience, and identifying opportunities to invest in the properties and surrounding amenities.
“We believe Primm can once again become one of the most vibrant travel destinations on Interstate 15, and we are excited to begin that journey,” the statement said. “Our goal is simple: when travelers cross the state border, we want Primm to be the first stop where the Nevada experience begins and the final stop on the way home, leaving lasting memories and a strong desire to return.”
Clemetson, who doesn’t have a gaming background, but his company is known for its Class A office buildings in northern Nevada in addition to the Wolf Creek Golf Club, an award-winning public course located in Mesquite, said the support behind the scenes from gaming executives has been heart-warming. Even if they weren’t interested in Primm, they offered to do whatever they could, because of the importance of the community to the gaming landscape.
“It is amazing to see how incredible and how much gaming has come together to help the Primm family,” Clemetson said. “We’re incredibly grateful for that. It has meant a lot.”
