1. Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevada Entertainment
2. Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevadaa
3. Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevada Casino

Map of Sharkey's Casino - Also see restaurants near Sharkey's Casino and other restaurants in Gardnerville, NV and Gardnerville. In March 2004, when Holder sold KPTL to Genoa resident Jerry Evans, he owned seven casinos including Sharkey’s. According to the Douglas County Recorder’s Office, Holder obtained a loan for up to $2.2 million secured by the property from Northern Nevada Bank recorded on May 18, 2004.

When the “new” Sharkey’s Casino opens its doors for business today, patrons will be greeted by a new look that was blended with the old.

For downtown Gardnerville, it marks the return of business to a landmark building that closed on Nov. 14, 2014, after becoming subject of a Trustee’s sale. Mike Pegram, principal owner of the Carson Valley Inn and Bodines casinos, purchased Sharkey’s at a public auction on Dec. 4.

The lights flashed on Wednesday night to provide a preview of the “new” Sharkey’s for an estimated 200 invited local guests and government officials. The building opened in 1945 as the Golden Bubble Casino and in 1971 was purchased by Sharkey Begovich, who renamed it Sharkey’s Nugget.

“Sharkey was a legend and it’s always good to open up a place that has the reputation that Sharkey had,” Pegram said. “We’re just excited and honored to carry on his legend.”

More than 200 slots, a sports book and the Silver Dollar Bar are now open. The Jackpot Café is scheduled to open soon, according to Carson Valley Inn Marketing Director Bill Henderson.

The Sharkey’s building has gone through a complete remodel, however, some of the old remains.

“That’s what’s so nice about this,” Pegram said. “If you look up at the ceiling, that (material) was Sharkey’s walls when we took over. And the wood floor, that was always here, it just had carpet over it. All the exposed brick in the building was brick that was always here, it was just covered up. So we’re just trying to bring back the old and marry it with the new.”

Shirley Lekumbery-Frazier, who has lived in Carson Valley since 1957, was excited about the look and the atmosphere.

“I’m absolutely thrilled; I have always loved Sharkey’s,” she said. “I like the homey atmosphere here and it’s absolutely beautiful.”

Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bill Chernock expressed his excitement about the reopening and what that means to the community.

“It’s going to bring energy down to this part of 395 at all hours,” he said. “I think a lot of the locals who are down here kind of miss having this place to go to. I think once they come in, it will be like they never left, and they’re going to love it. And once the visitors discover this, it’s going to be hard to find a seat in that restaurant.”

Gardnerville Town Board member Linda Slater echoed those feelings.

“They’ve done a fabulous job,” she said. “I just think it’s a real positive for Gardnerville. This is going to revitalize the downtown area.

“All the old pictures, I’m so glad they were able to get some of those back,” she added.

Henderson noted that the blend of old and new was designed. For example, one of the old Sharkey’s street signs can now be seen overlooking the Silver Dollar Bar at the center of the casino floor. Larry Henry, the architect for the Sharkey’s remodel — and previously architect for the Carson Valley Inn and Bodines — is also doing murals that will eventually be on the outside, honoring Gardnerville as a historic landmark.

Markus Zinke, owner of Mark’s Cabinets and a lifelong Carson Valley resident, was involved with some of the woodworking efforts that took place inside the casino.

“I took pride in getting to work on this stuff; it was real fun, absolutely,” he said. “Obviously, they used a lot of the old signs and a lot of the old memorabilia, which is the flare of Sharkey’s back in the day. That’s what people remember.”

Zinke pointed out, for example, the hardwood floor surrounding the bar area.

“They lifted up the carpet and they found solid 4×4,” he said. “They just sanded it down and worked some of the sawdust back in it to keep the old look.”

Another example can be seen in the Jackpot Café. Some of the small dining tables from the old Sharkey’s restaurant have been returned. And wood was crafted from old tables to create a top for those who eat at the counter.

“Most everything is new, actually,” he added. “The architect had some pretty good ideas of making it look old with the different types of paint and design.”

Pegram noted that even though he didn’t favor taking down the Pyrenees Hotel building — to create parking on the southeast side of Sharkey’s — brick from that old building will be used to construct a decorative wall along Highway 395.

“There was a lot of work, and we were fortunate to have a great contractor, a great designer and a great team that built it,” he said. “They had the vision and I’m just lucky to be part of it.”

Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevada Entertainment

Slater acknowledged that the end product was what she had hoped for, and gave credit to Pegram.

“I was thrilled when I heard Mike was coming in here,” she said. “I knew he was going to do a good job … Mike is such a community oriented man wherever he goes.”

Needless to say, this was not an inexpensive project.

“It wasn’t, but you know what, it’s not very often you get an opportunity to take something that’s an icon,” Pegram said. “We just kind of polished it up a little bit.”

No bids for Gardnerville landmark Sharkey’s was good news for Carson Valley Inn owner Mike Pegram on Thursday afternoon.

An auction at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Building drew a handful of bystanders, but no bids for either the land or contents of the casino, which closed on Nov. 15.

That means Sharkey’s now belongs to Pegram, who said after the auction that while plans are being formulated for the property, it will definitely reopen.

“It will reopen, and it will reopen as Sharkey’s,” he said. Sharkey’s is an icon. We’re just going to put some polish on it.”

Auctioneers Trenton Rowley and Michael Pagni asked if there was anyone interested in bidding on the casino, but no one sought to qualify, and therefore could not enter a bid.

The starting bid for the real property was $500,000 while the starting bid for the contents was $100,000.

On Monday, Nevada State Bank sold its part of Sharkey’s debt to a company managed by Pegram, according to a filing with the Douglas County Recorder’s Office. The company, G Peg I, was listed by the auctioneers as being owed $1.721 million.

Pegram’s company, See Horse I, bought out Umpqua Bank’s portion of the $3.836 million debt. Work has already begun on the property.

Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevadaa

Most of the work inside the casino has been to clear the casinos and kitchen equipment so far.

Up for auction on Thursday were seven separate parcels, including the casino, everything in it, the former Pyranees Hotel south of the casino and Jane Rosenbrock’s home and salon across Gilman from the casino.

Gardnerville Town Manager Tom Dallaire said that plans are in the works for a minor design review for refinishing the casino’s exterior. There are also plans to rework the parking lot across Gilman from the casino and demolishing the Rosenbrock house.

Sharkey’s opened Jan. 1, 1971, after owner Milos ‘Sharkey’ Begovich purchased the former Golden Bubble in 1970. It was the first modern casino in Carson Valley, and hosted events like Cow Pasture boxing and the annual Serbian Christmas.

It also housed a collection of 1,650 items that was estimated by an auctioneer to be worth at least $2.5 million.

Holder said he purchased Sharkey’s from Begovich on a handshake in January 2002 for $5 million.

The purchase of Sharkey’s was the beginning of an expansion of Holder Hospitality in the early part of the century. Holder purchased Carson City’s KPTL radio station in March 2002. In 2003, the company announced plans to build an Indian casino on land belonging to the Washoe Tribe near Sunridge. In March 2004, when Holder sold KPTL to Genoa resident Jerry Evans, he owned seven casinos including Sharkey’s.

According to the Douglas County Recorder’s Office, Holder obtained a loan for up to $2.2 million secured by the property from Northern Nevada Bank recorded on May 18, 2004. The next month, on June 3, the Mineral County Independent News reported the company received approval from gaming regulators to buy four more casinos in northeastern Nevada, including the Stockmen and the Commercial in Elko, the Scoreboard in Spring Creek and the Red Garter in Wendover. Documents filed with the Recorder’s Office show Holder continued to raise the stakes, increasing the limit on the loan to $2.7 million in January 2005, to $3 million in August 2005 and to $4 million in March 2006.

In May 2007, Holder announced he was putting the entire company up for sale for $200 million. Banks started calling in notes in August 2008, and six months later the company closed the Silver Club in Sparks. In July 2009, six Holder casinos sought bankruptcy protection, though Sharkey’s was not among them.

Sharkey's Casino Minden Nevada Casino

Sharkey’s filed for bankruptcy protection in April 2013 to avoid a sale that spring. Holder personally announced the casino had emerged from Chapter 11 after the Federal Bankruptcy Court in December 2013 accepted the company’s plan.