Former Frank Sinatra-Owned Casino Now Bankrupt

Once owned by Frank Sinatra, Lake Tahoe’s Cal Neva Resort has filed for bankruptcy nearly three years after closing for renovations.

The resort was in the middle of a $49 million renovation project, when they became unable to pay the bills. The casino has since sat in limbo, but the developer who filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers said that the project could be finished within a few months.

Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, a national hotel chain, was contracted to operate the Cal Neva. Company spokesman Tom Lotshaw said that construction stopped on the casino resort last fall, and they haven’t heard from the developer, Criswell Radovan LLC, since bankruptcy proceedings began.

The 90-year-old property was once the premier spot on Tahoe’s north shore. Sinatra owned the Cal Neva from 1960 to ’63, when it became a summer vacation spot for his Rat Pack friends. But Sinatra lost his license when the FBI found out that Sam Giancana, a Chicago mobster, was hanging out at the property.

The Miami Herald reports that the Cal Neva has had trouble regaining its prominence ever since Sinatra sold the property. Part of this is because the casino resort has seen more competition with Indian casinos opening in various California locations.

Tahoe has slowly reinvented itself as a luxury vacation market, rather than just a gambling destination. But the Cal Neva, located on the California-Nevada border, has struggled to transition with the changes.

“It hasn’t mattered in 40 years,” said Ken Adams, a Reno-based casino consultant.

Criswell Radovan, a developer from St. Helena, CA, purchased the Cal Neva in April 2013 and closed it for much-needed renovations before the year ended. The goal was to create a Sinatra-era atmosphere in the 10-story hotel tower, then open again in December 2014.

But development project moved slower than planned, pushing the opening date to May 2016. Criswell Radovan defaulted on a $6 million loan last February, and proceedings began for a foreclosure sale.

But the developer entered into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which meant that the foreclosure sale must be stopped for now.

Court papers show that the property is $40 million in debt and requires another $23.8 million to finish renovations. The papers also allege that the company expects to get new financing for the property at some point, helping the “redevelopment to be completed within six months of the closing of the refinancing.”

Criswell Rodavan LLC estimates that the property will be worth over $75 million if they can complete the renovations.