Bankrupt Twin River names new directors

Twin River announced Monday the appointment of a new three-member board of directors that, if approved by state regulators, will oversee the Lincoln, R.I., slots parlor when it emerges from bankruptcy later this year.

Named to the board were Glenn Carlin, senior managing director of Americas Investment Banking for CBRE Capital Advisors, Inc.; John McLaughlin, an independent gaming industry consultant who would serve as a consultant at Twin River; and John E. Taylor Jr., president and CEO of GameLogic, Inc., a Boston-based company focused on Internet-based games and marketing platforms for the regulated gaming industry.

Taylor spent nearly a decade at GTECH Corp., a leading provider of lottery services to governments around the world. Before that, he was a special assistant to the Rhode Island governor, a senior staff position.

Once approved by the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation, the new board will assume responsibility for Twin River's "overall strategic management, financial performance and supervision of operations," Patti Doyle, a Twin River spokeswoman, said in a statement.

"It is important to underscore that the new board will assume leadership of Twin River at a time when the preservation of the $300 million in state revenue generated from operations at the facility is more critical than ever," Doyle said. "The timing is also critical because neighboring Massachusetts is poised to authorize full casino gaming. By selecting Board members who have realized unqualified success in their chosen and related careers, we believe that we have taken the necessary steps to protect Rhode Island's third largest source of funding."

Twin River filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors last June, citing a debt of some $590 million. It filed a reorganization plan in December that calls for the elimination of $290 million worth of obligations and for the Rhode Island legislature to repeal a requirement that Twin River offer 125 greyhound racing dates a year. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Arthur Votolato is expected to consider the plan at a hearing today in Providence.

Twin River is owned by UTGR Inc., a subsidiary of BLB Investors, a joint venture of Starwood Capital Group, Kerzner International Holdings and Waterford Group LLC. Sol Kerzner, chairman and chief executive officer of Kerzner International, and Len Wolman, chairman and chief executive officer of the Waterford Group, partnered with the Mohegan Tribe in developing and managing Mohegan Sun.

The new board will replace the existing BLB board, Doyle said.