State regulators approved Las Vegas-based Terrible's Gaming Thursday as the new operator for the Primm resort community, saving the town on the border of Nevada and California along Interstate 15 from going dark on July 4.

At a special hearing in Las Vegas, Gaming Control Board members took less than 45 minutes to sign off on the transfer of the operations, which are being abandoned by Affinity Gaming. The Nevada Gaming Commission approved the licensing following a separate hearing Thursday afternoon.

"We just felt it was our obligation to call the Primm family and see if there's anything we could do to help keep those employees employed," Terrible's President Tim Herbst told the control board. 

"We're relearning about the facilities and relearning about everything out there," Herbst said. "We have a great relationship with the Primm family. We think what they have out there could be something special."

Because regulators had less than a month to investigate the application, the board recommended a one-year license that would allow Primm to remain open while giving Terrible's time to consider plans for the town 40 miles south of Las Vegas. 

Control Board Chairman Mike Dreitzer told Herbst the agency appreciated Terrible's stepping in to take over.

"I appreciate that in this day, where it always seems that everybody's chasing dollars, you are concerned with the community and the human side first," Drietizer said. "It's rare and it's commendable, and I appreciate that."

Just one casino, Primm Valley Resort, has been operating since Las Vegas-based Affinity announced in early May that the property and the related businesses would permanently close. Buffalo Bill's closed in 2025 while Whiskey Pete's has been closed since 2024.

Herbst said plans were being drawn up to open Buffalo Bill's for "special events" and portions of Whiskey Pete's, but any plans are considered preliminary. However, he told the gaming commission "life safety" is the key issue to determine if the Desparado Rollercoaster could be reopened. 

"It's a short-term vision at first and a long-term vision second," Herbst said, adding the company had "on boarded" some 300 workers in order to take over the operations ahead of July 4.

"It's really about keeping [the businesses] open, keeping employees employed, relearning about the facilities and relearning about everything out there," Herbst said. 

Terrible's, which was previously known as Herbst Gaming, operated the Primm casinos for three years, starting in 2007 after spending $400 million to acquire the operations from MGM Resorts International.

The company lost the business in a 2010 bankruptcy reorganization to Z Capital Partners, a New York-based asset management firm, which renamed the operations Affinity Gaming. 

"Obviously, the economy took a deep dive," Herbst said. "We had bright plans and a bright future for Primm, but obviously that didn't occur. This transaction really is about Nevadans helping Nevadans."

The Primm family announced an agreement with Terrible's on June 9, which preserved more than 300 jobs. Terrible's is also keeping open the Oasis Apartments, which sits in the shadow of the Buffalo Bill's roller coaster, where most of the Primm workforce resides.

Affinity CEO Scott Butera told the control board last month that Primm was "just not viable as a casino operation."  

Cory Clemetson, the grandson of town founder Ernie Primm and CEO of Primm South Real Estate Co. Casino Resort, who negotiated the agreement with Terrible's, attended the hearing but did not speak. The Primm family owns nearly 570 acres on both sides of I-15.

"We went through a very diligent process," Clemetson said after the hearing. "We had other great groups we talked with. Ultimately, the Herbsts were the best fit for us. It was certainly not a slight on anyone else." 

Terrible's Gaming is a side venture of the Las Vegas-based Terrible Herbst Oil Co. The business owns a slot machine route that services bars and taverns, as well as its chain of Terrible's convenience stores and gasoline stations. The company owns a large travel center in Jean, 13 miles east of Primm along I-15, that includes 96 fuel pumps, several dining options and a 50,000-square-foot convenience store. 

The Herbst family also owned the now-closed Terrible's Hotel & Casino in Jean, which was formerly the Gold Strike Hotel and Gambling Hall. The Primm family owns nearly 570 acres on both sides of I-15 and will lease the businesses to Terrible's. 

Meanwhile, the Flying J travel center will remain open and operated by Pilot Co. Operators of several fast food outlets in Primm had already committed to remain, as did the operators of Sanithrift, a secondhand store that is the only operating tenant in the 380,000-square-foot Primm Mall.

Herbst said he's been in contact with California State Lottery officials to keep the Primm Valley Lotto Store, just across the state line, open. The state has touted the store as one of its top-producing lottery sales locations. 

We have five or six California lottery stores as we speak. That happens to be California's number one lottery store," Herbst said. "They want it open. Things will move quickly."

In August 2024, Terrible's opened a new lottery business 6 miles south of Primm in a  convenience store with three lottery kiosk machines.

Updated at 12:50 p.m. on 6/25/2026 to reflect the Nevada Gaming Commission approval.