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Keynote address speaker has golden touchBILOXI — When Tilman Fertitta gives

the keynote address at the 21st annual Southern Gaming Summit, he will no doubt be feeling golden. CEO and sole owner of Landry’s Inc., parent company of Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino Biloxi, Fertitta will speak on Wednesday, May 7, just days after celebrating the completion of the resort’s $100 million transformation here.

Grand-opening events take place May 1-3, showcasing Golden Nugget’s

completely redesigned and renovated property. “We’ve been looking to expand the Golden Nugget footprint into Biloxi for years and we’re excited about all the changes we’ve made to the property

— including the all-new casino floor; the addition of Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.; Morton’s the Steakhouse; H2O, our amazing outdoor pool — as well as to the area as a whole. The Golden Nugget transformation is going to rejuvenate Biloxi in the same way that we have helped revive Downtown Las Vegas and the Marina District in Atlantic City,” Fertitta said, who will deliver his speech on the first full day of conference sessions.

The CEO had input in every aspect of the renovation, which began shortly after Landry’s purchased the Isle Casino Hotel in March 2012. With work done in phases, the final portion included an expanded gaming area boasting a modern design, the popular Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., the H2O pool and bar and more than 22,000 square feet of meeting and convention space.

“Tilman Fertitta and Landry’s have brought unique expertise and fresh investment capital to key gaming markets across the country, including Biloxi and Lake Charles,” said Larry Gregory, executive director of the Mississippi Gaming and Hospitality Association, which co-produces the

By Lori Beth Susman

Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino Biloxi has completed its $100 million renovation. With work done in phases, every area of the property has been remodeled, including the poker room, restaurants, pool, hotel,

casino and meeting space.

annual Southern Gaming Summit with BNP Media Gaming Group.

Fertitta, winner of Casino Journal’s 2013 Executive of the Year Award, is the founder and architect of Landry’s, which operates nearly 425 full-service restaurants under 30 different brand names such as Chart House, McCormick & Schmick’s, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. and Morton’s; non-gaming luxury hotels; four casinos (with a fifth set to open in Lake Charles next year); and luxury destinations such as the

Kemah Boardwalk near Houston and the Galveston Pleasure Pier. All told, Landry’s was projected to generate more than $2.7 billion in 2013.

The company entered the gaming industry in 2005 when it purchased two Nevada-based Golden Nugget properties, in downtown Las Vegas and Laughlin. Since 2011 it has planted the Nugget flag in Atlantic City, Biloxi and Lake Charles, acquiring properties in each market in 2011, 2012 and 2013 respectively.

Tilman Fertitta