Aztar signed its merger agreement with Wimar Tahoe Corp. (dba Columbia Entertainment) in May 2006. Aztar's sale to Columbia for $54-per-share is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2006.

Columbia outbid Las Vegas-based Pinnacle Entertainment for Aztar. Aztar had agreed to be acquired by Pinnacle for $51 per share. To get out of the deal, it had to pay Pinnacle $78 million, including a $52.2-million break-up fee and another $25.8 million for legal expenses.

Aztar's most sought after possession is the 34-acre Tropicana resort in Las Vegas, which is viewed as one of the last big redevelopment opportunities on the Strip. The property is located at Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue. The aging resort is surrounded by the MGM Grand, Excalibur, Luxor, Monte Carlo and New York-New York mega-resorts.

In its most recent annual report, Aztar said it planned to raze the Tropicana, develop a billion-dollar resort on the north half of the site and sell the remainder into a joint venture. As tentatively envisioned, the north site would hold 2,725 hotel rooms and suites; 200,000 sf of dining, entertainment and retail facilities; a 100,000-sf casino; a 3,800-car parking garage; and a four-acre rooftop pool recreation deck overlooking the Strip.

Columbia Sussex president William Yung has said the company has no intentions of tearing down the Tropicana any time soon, in part because it fills a key mid-market niche that is being eaten away by redevelopment. The more likely near-term will be an addition to the property that could require partial demolition of one or two existing structures.