this is an excerpt from Pinnacle's news release on the appointment of Terri Porcaro to Vice President and General Manager of Lumiere Place.
Terri Porcaro brings extensive casino resort, hotel and riverboat gaming management experience to the Company's Lumiere Place in downtown St. Louis. A native of Las Vegas, she began her hospitality career as a hotel information clerk while still in high school. She began her gaming career in 1984 as a casino floor supervisor at the MGM Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and progressed through a series of operating jobs at the Las Vegas Hilton and the Gold Strike Hotel and Gambling Hall in Jean, Nevada. From 1994 to 1998, Ms. Porcaro rose through the management ranks at the Grand Victoria Riverboat Casino in Elgin, Illinois and was named General Manager in 1997. In 1998, she joined the luxurious Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip, which includes an expansive casino, 4,760 guestrooms, Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas and several restaurants run by celebrity chefs. She served as Vice President and General Manager of Mandalay Bay from 2001 to 2005. Most recently, Ms. Porcaro has worked as a consultant with W.A. Richardson Builders, a Las Vegas gaming and construction consulting company.
In her new role, Ms. Porcaro will report to Todd George, who has been named Regional Vice President-St. Louis in addition to his current role as General Manager of River City Casino. A native of upstate New York, Mr. George began his gaming career as an auditor with the New York State Gaming and Wagering Board. From 1995 to 2000, Mr. George worked in the finance department at the Turning Stone Casino near Syracuse, New York. In 2000, Mr. George joined Pinnacle in the accounting department of Belterra Casino Resort in Vevay, Indiana, and was an integral part of the management team that significantly improved the resort's operating results. From 2003 to 2006, Mr. George served as General Manager of Pinnacle's Boomtown Bossier City property in Bossier City, Louisiana, which performed well in a challenging operating market during his tenure. Mr. George moved to St. Louis in 2006 to head the opening team for Lumiere Place. With his experience in the St. Louis market and his success in launching the Lumiere Place complex, Mr. George will be integral to the development of Pinnacle's regional Missouri properties.
