Monarch Casino & Resort history

1976: Ownership is transferred to Farahi's children.

Also in 1986, they remodeled all of the rooms of the Travelodge, another step in transforming a once dilapidated motel into an upscale accommodation.

The use of the newly acquired property, however, would not matter greatly to the company's immediate plans, because in 1987 the Farahi brothers were successful in buying the land on which the Travelodge was situated plus several acres adjoining it.

First Interstate Bank of Nevada finally agreed to fund the project to the tune of $18 million, a syndicate was formed, and the project was launched in mid-1989.

In 1990 the rest of the motel units were relocated and construction began on a 160-room high-rise hotel tower along with another 16,000-square-foot structure that would house 500 slot machines, 21 table games, a restaurant, several bars, an outdoor pool, and a health club.

In April 1991, the property became Clarion Hotel Casino a growth path escalated for the company.

Business was so strong that by the end of 1992, the Farahi brothers began making plans for further expansion.

Then in August 1993, 2.4 million shares in Monarch were sold to the public, raising $17.1 million.

The venture was written off, as was a 1995 attempt to secure a lease on a riverboat casino project in downtown St Louis.

In June 1999 construction was completed, resulting in a second hotel tower, 28 stories high, containing 388 rooms and suites, as well as 1,500 square feet of new meeting space.

In 2001 the company spent $4.5 million to renovate suites in the third tower, acquire new slot machines, and improve the facility's computer information systems.