Property and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

7.Property and Equipment

Property and equipment, net, consists of the following:


	December 31,		December 31,
	2016		2015
	(in thousands)

Property and equipment - non-master lease
Land and improvements	$	294,590	$	288,910
Building and improvements		404,158		396,497
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		1,355,615		1,303,153
Leasehold improvements		118,940		129,012
Construction in progress		16,375		9,175
		2,189,678		2,126,747
Less Accumulated depreciation		(1,224,596)		(1,093,115)
		965,082		1,033,632
Property and equipment - master lease
Land and improvements		382,246		382,246
Building and improvements		2,219,018		2,219,018
		2,601,264		2,601,264
Less accumulated depreciation		(745,963)		(654,828)
		1,855,301		1,946,436
Property and equipment, net	$	2,820,383	$	2,980,068

Property and equipment, net decreased by $159.7 million primarily due to depreciation expense partially offset by maintenance capital expenditures and improvements at Tropicana Las Vegas during the twelve months ended December 31, 2016.

Depreciation expense, for property and equipment as well as capital leases, totaled $261.9 million, $258.9 million, and $255.4 million in 2016, 2015 and 2014. Depreciation expense on the Master Lease assets was $91.1 million, $92.4 million and $89.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015, and 2014 respectively. Interest capitalized in connection with major construction projects was $0.1 million, $1.8 million, and $0.9 million in 2016, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

During the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, the Company recorded no long-lived asset impairment charges. During the second quarter of 2014, the Company recorded a long-lived asset impairment charge of $4.6 million to write-down certain idle assets to their estimated salvage value.