No Ormsby House general shutdown during remodeling, official says

The ongoing construction at the Ormsby House is requiring temporary shutdowns of some operations, but there will be no general closure planned during its remodeling, general manager Bob Cashell said Tuesday.

Cashell confirmed that the hotel/casino's ballroom is not available for the Nevada Day Grand Ball at the end of October because of the $10 million remodeling project.

"There won't be any shutdown of the Ormsby House but, as we go along, certain areas will have to be shut down for a period during the remodeling. It's called phased construction," he said.

As for concerns the entire property would be shut down for the remodeling, "I've heard that rumor for a long time," Cashell said with a laugh.

He said setting a firm timetable for phases of the project has been difficult, which makes it hard to plan ahead. He said people or businesses interested in making reservations for Christmas parties, conventions, weddings or other events should continue to call the marketing department for details.

"As far as specific timing goes, it all depends on what we find," he said. "We open up a wall and we find things in there that we've got no ideas why they're there. Inside one wall I found a nameplate for Paul Laxalt."

Laxalt, a former Nevada governor and U.S. senator, built the Ormsby House in 1972. The facility has had a number of owners since then, passing into receivership in 1997, when mortgage holder Cerberus Bank took it over and brought in Cashell to run it.

In May 1999, Cerberus failed to receive an adequate auction bid for the property. The Ormsby House was purchased in September 1999 by local businessmen Al Feigehen and Don Lehr, partners in the Cubix Corp. computer manufacturing firm.

In January 2000, the new owners detailed plans to invest millions to remodel and refurbish the casino, restaurants and 200-room hotel. At that time, Lehr predicted the project would be completed by the end of the year. In an interview in July, Lehr said the beginning of summer 2001 is a more likely date.

Cashell acknowledged the phased remodeling will affect various groups of employees as it progresses, but said there is no mass layoff of Ormsby House workers planned.