Buffalo Bill’s to close this week, South LA's third casino shutdown since 2020

1. Buffalo Bill’s to close this week, South LA's third casino shutdown since 2020

Buffalo Bill’s, one of the three properties owned and operated by Affinity Gaming in Primm, Nevada, is set to shut down on July 7. The company also owns the Primm Valley Resort and the now-closed Whiskey Pete’s casino. This marks the third casino closure in the south of Los Angeles since 2020, including Terrible’s in Jean, once known as Goldstrike.

Buffalo Bill's casino to close next week(Representational Image)

Las Vegas Locally broke the news on its social media page by writing, “The legendary Buffalo Bill's Resort & Casino in Primm is closing next week, per @Vegas_Advantage. Everything is ruined.”

Why is Buffalo Bill’s closing?

Raids by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) targeted towards Hispanic communities living in southern Los Angeles have been rocking the neighborhood in recent times. This has prompted members of the community to reduce leaving their homes for non-necessary activities, a change that has significantly impacted casinos such as Buffalo Bill’s, which relied on these people as their major clientele.

Although no official statement has been provided by the company for the closure, business being affected by immigration raids and the COVID-19 pandemic is largely suspected to be the reason.

July 6 will be the official last date for members to book rooms at Buffalo Bill’s. Following that, all other dates have been blacked out on the calendar by the company and the system promptly displays a message for the customer to try booking a room at the Primm Valley Resort instead.

The next available bookings at Buffalo Bill’s are available for a four-day weekend in November. The hotel and casino may be reopened at that time to handle the overflow of guests coming into the city for a festival in nearby Goodsprings, Nevada. The casino floor may momentarily reopen on concert nights at Primm. Post closure, the nearest concert is scheduled for August 30.

The Primm Valley Resort will continue to offer only slots and video poker, since all table games, electronic table games, restaurants, and the hotel shut down in December 2022. The Bonnie & Clyde cars currently on display in Buffalo Bill’s food court will be moved to the Primm Valley Resort post closure. Recently, Affinity Gaming invested in a major remodeling of the Primm Valley Resort to boost business and made several game improvements as well.

Following this closure, Primm Valley Resort will be the only operational casino near the California state line along Interstate 15.