Anzhe Zhang

“That’s kind of the idea, to drop something in that’s fresh, new, exciting, invigorating and looks beautiful,” to go by the words of Court Cardinal, an executive at Olympia Gaming, the company opening the first casino in the Reno-Sparks area in decades.

Legends Bay, as it’s called, has been in development since 2005. After some understandable setbacks, namely the 2008 recession and the pandemic, the luxury gaming playground is finally set to open soon.

Cardinal hopes that beyond the games, the property’s steakhouse, restaurants, and food trucks will attract both Nevadans and out-of-state tourists looking to get lucky.

“We’ve got that whole entire area of Sparks, the industrial park out there,” Cardinal said, confident that the luxury space will attract local customers.

Legends Bay will also feature a Circa sportsbook, bringing the property to Northern Nevada.

“With the location and the ground-up component, we just thought, ‘okay, this is just perfect. This is the place we want to have our first Circa sports in Northern Nevada,’” Derek Stevens, the owner of the property, said.

Circa is unique among sportsbooks for accepting bets from pros, which Stevens says creates centralized, seemingly solid betting lines that encourage others to make larger bets in the process.

“Legends Bay may be coming in at the right time because the Northern Nevada economy has changed,” Howard Stutz, a reporter and expert on the Southern Nevada gaming industry, said. 

“They may find their niche in that market,” Stutz continued.