Mad scramble underway near Vegas to save casino resort ghost town from total collapse

Cory Clemetson, president of Primm's landowner group and grandson of town city founder Ernie Primm, strongly criticized the decision.

"If the Primm properties go dark, so does the welcome they have provided over the decades," Clemetson said in a statement shared with Fox News Digital.

"It is contrary to our values to let that happen without exploring all options," he said.

Clemetson added that he and his family are working "tirelessly" to explore ways to revive the Primm properties.

"Be assured that we're working toward a revitalized Primm and a return to better days," Clemetson said.

He also lamented the loss of jobs for "hard-working employees" and argued the operators "could have done more to make these properties successful."

"The news is especially distressing to the hundreds of hard-working employees and residents who live and work in Primm," the statement read.

The closures were announced by casino operator Affinity Interactive and its principal owner, New York-based private equity firm Z Capital, which has leased and operated the Primm properties for nearly 15 years.

Fox News Digital reached out to Affinity Interactive for comment.

"In Nevada, we have a lot of old mining towns where, when the boom ended, or they had used up whatever precious metal they were looking for, everybody cleared out," he said.

Primm has seen "a slow decline" in the past 15 to 20 years, said Amanda Belarmino, an associate professor of hospitality at UNLV.

She added, "A lot of people used to stop there just because they were so excited to … gamble once they got over the border. But since casinos are more readily accessible, Primm lost some of that appeal."

Teresa Mull of Fox News Digital contributed reporting.