Derek Stevens ’ Circa brings a new elegance and excitement to Las Vegas
By Roger Gros
Derek Stevens was a player long before he became a casino owner . He was a manufacturer from Michigan who would make several pilgrimages to Vegas every year , mostly around sporting events , to bet on them . “ I started coming to Las Vegas a long time ago , in the ’ 80s ” he says . “ I came for pleasure . I ’ m a sports fan , so I came to a lot of fights and for football weekends . Forget about owning a casino ; I never envisioned working at a casino .”
In 2006 , though , Stevens and his brother Greg bought the Golden Gate in Downtown Las Vegas — the oldest casino in Las Vegas — and transformed it after a renovation . Five years later , Stevens bought the old Fitzgeralds casino , a few blocks up from the Golden Gate , creating the D . A few years later , he bought land behind the D and created the Downtown Events Center , an outdoor events space .
Along with Stevens , other parts of Downtown were improving . Tony Hsieh brought his Zappos headquarters to the neighborhood . Sophisticated housing was added . The Fremont Street Experience was upgraded .
“ It became a really cool entrepreneurial vibe around here ,” says Stevens . “ Everybody had something going on . It really developed into a community of people that got to know each other and were all really aligned in a manner where everyone was rooting for the growth of Downtown Vegas .”
Soon after Stevens arrived in Downtown , the nation was hit with a deep recession . But that worked out to be in Stevens ’ favor .
“ Ironically , it was probably the most fortunate thing that ever happened to us ,” he explains , “ because , a lot of real-estate values in Down-
“ I love operating casinos . I love building teams . I like being around our people .”
— Derek Stevens
28 CASINO STYLE 2020