“He really did believe in the idea of Reno and Sparks being together and helped make that happen,” Szony said. Szony, who used to be Sands Regency CEO and was also an executive for the former Reno Hilton, believed Ascuaga was one of the key people who put Sparks in Reno-Sparks. The fact that Ascuaga was able to build a successful gaming operation in Sparks outside the more established downtown Reno corridor was an outstanding feat, said Truckee Gaming CEO Ferenc Szony. “He was doing what he always did and was walking around and talking to everyone,” Martini said. The last time Martini saw him was shortly before the Ascuaga family sold the Sparks property in 2013.

“He was well-respected and knew how to grow and grow,” said Martini, who learned of Ascuaga’s death Monday morning. Martini said Ascuaga shaped Sparks and had an impact on gaming in the state. He said he spent many hours and days up in Ascuaga’s office talking business. “To me, he was larger than life,” said Martini, who went on to work closely with Ascuaga when he served as the Sparks mayor. 28 after a lengthy illness, according to the family.įormer Sparks Mayor Geno Martini first met Ascuaga when he was about 10 and was eating an Awful Awful burger at the Nugget. He and his family owned a ranch in Gardnerville next to the Ascuaga family and went to the Nugget in Sparks for lunch or dinner occasionally.Īscuaga, in true fashion, was running around checking on everything as Martini watched. He would turn the Nugget into a major hotel-casino in the coming decades along with his wife Rose Louis, who Ascuaga met at the Nugget’s steakhouse. Ascuaga would eventually take over the Nugget after Graves retired in 1960.

Golden nugget reno