Property and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and equipment consists of the following (amounts in thousands):



	Estimated useful life (years)	Successor			Predecessors
		Station Casinos LLC			Station Casinos, Inc.			Green Valley Ranch Gaming, LLC
		December 31, 2011			December 31, 2010
Land	—	$	205,241		$	413,933		$	27,179
Buildings and improvements	10-45	1,884,742			2,161,028			450,089
Furniture, fixtures and equipment	3-7	207,765			574,030			135,514
Construction in progress	—	7,963			20,273			584
		2,305,711			3,169,264			613,366
Accumulated depreciation and amortization		(59,646		)	(663,501		)	(186,568		)
Property and equipment, net		$	2,246,065		$	2,505,763		$	426,798

Depreciation expense was as follows (amounts in thousands):



Successor		Predecessors
Station Casinos LLC		Station Casinos, Inc.		Green Valley Ranch Gaming, LLC		Station Casinos, Inc.		Green Valley Ranch Gaming, LLC		Station Casinos, Inc.		Green Valley Ranch Gaming, LLC
Period June 17, 2011 Through December 31, 2011		Period January 1, 2011 Through June 16, 2011				Year Ended December 31, 2010				Year Ended December 31, 2009
$	59,775	$	59,564	$	9,512	$	137,086	$	21,613	$	153,282	$	23,077

At December 31, 2011 and 2010, substantially all of the Company's property and equipment is pledged as collateral for its long-term debt.

Impairment Losses

During the three months ended September 30, 2010, it was determined that a triggering event, as described in the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets Subsections of ASC 360-10, had occurred due to developments in STN Predecessor's bankruptcy proceedings. STN Predecessor therefore tested the carrying values of its property and equipment for recoverability by comparing the sum of the undiscounted estimated future cash flows of each asset group to its carrying value. For those asset groups where the sum of the undiscounted estimated cash flows did not exceed the carrying value, impairment was measured based on the excess of carrying value over fair value. Buildings, land, furniture, fixtures and equipment with carrying amounts totaling $88.1 million were written down to their fair values totaling $21.4 million, resulting in an impairment charge of $66.6 million, which is included in STN Predecessor's consolidated statement of operations. This impairment charge included $65.9 million for property and equipment of Fiesta Rancho and $0.7 million for property and equipment of other operating properties.

During the year ended December 31, 2009, STN Predecessor reviewed the carrying values of its property and equipment for impairment because STN's restructuring activities and the continuation of the economic downturn constituted indicators of impairment. As a result, STN Predecessor recorded impairment charges totaling $179.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2009, related to property and equipment at certain operating subsidiaries, primarily Texas Station.

The Company estimates the fair value of property and equipment using a combination of valuation methods including discounted cash flows and estimated prices for similar assets. These methods typically utilize inputs that are classified as Level 3 under ASC Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures ("ASC Topic 820").

- Definition

The entire disclosure for long-lived, physical assets that are used in the normal conduct of business to produce goods and services and not intended for resale. Examples include land, buildings, machinery and equipment, and other types of furniture and equipment including, but not limited to, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment and software. This disclosure may include property plant and equipment accounting policies and methodology, a schedule of property, plant and equipment gross, additions, deletions, transfers and other changes, depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, net, accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization expense and useful lives, income statement disclosures, assets held for sale and public utility disclosures.

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