The sharks are in Vegas, and they’re looking for chum. News chum, that is. Let’s give them some:
- Riviera Sign Down. One fascinating this article had to do with the Riveria sign — specifically, the one that was on the big glass wraparound at the southern end of the resort on the strip. The sign was taken down this week to go to a collector in Reno, who plans to restore and make the sign operational. But that wasn’t what I found fascinating. Rather, there was a very interesting comment in the VitalVegas blog about the sign: “Don’t know if anyone noticed, but the Riviera sign here actually was superimposed over the existing outline of the previous Splash sign that was on the side of this building when the show was shut down.” The image to the right should show this:
- Doubling Down, Literally. Speaking of the Riviera, the funding has been approved to take the old dame down. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority approved paying $42 million to the contractor that will bring the Riviera buildings down in June and August. Officials say separate implosions are necessary because of the large size the Riviera, which closed last May after the authority purchased it to expand its convention space. Before the implosions of the Riviera’s Monte Carlo and Monaco hotel towers, crews are expected to tear down other buildings, such as parking garages and the property’s convention center, although it’s not clear when that will happen. Once all of the Riviera buildings have come down and the site is cleaned up, the authority plans for the land to become outdoor exhibit space. That needs to be done by early 2017 so a major trade show can use the land. Outdoor exhibit space. What a waste, and what bad news for the north end of the strip.
- Lagoon on the Strip. Just a bit south of the Riviera, news comes out regarding the old Desert Inn property, now the Wynn and the Encore. This property had a large golf course just off strip — one of its prides. That’s partially going away. Steve Wynn has proposed expanding on to the golf course,with a 1,000-room expansion centered around a 38-acre lagoon that would host water skiing, paddle boarding and parasailing by day and fireworks displays at night. The project, tentatively called Wynn Paradise Park, would cost about $1.5 billion to build and open in 2020 if work begins later this year as planned. Now, what is interesting about this proposal is that it will save water over the golf course. You read that right: The proposed 38-acre lagoon project would actually use less water than the 18-hole golf course that currently sits east of the Strip resort. Uri Man, CEO of Crystal Lagoons US Corp. of Coral Gables, Florida, said that a 7- to 10-acre lagoon would use 30 times less water than a typical golf course and 50 percent less water than a park of the same size. Further, this water isn’t coming from Lake Mead. For Wynn Paradise Park, the company owns the water rights under the golf course, grandfathered in from the Desert Inn Golf Course that once stood on the property, and would use water from wells on the property.
- A Rebirth to the West. I’ll believe this one when I see it: Yet another developer is promising to give the Moulin Rouge a rebirth. For those unfamiliar, the MR was a casino on the west side of Vegas that was best known for driving the other casinos in Vegas to integrate. Opened on May 24, 1955, the Moulin Rouge was the first racially integrated hotel-casino in Las Vegas. It drew customers but, apparently, not enough money to satisfy its creditors. Closed after an October 1955 bankruptcy, the casino opened sporadically under different owners over the next few years, and was best known for being the site where the March 1960 agreement to desegregate the city’s casinos was announced. It operated in a diminished capacity for years, ultimately becoming a short-term residential motel. A series of fires destroyed anything salvageable of the original structure, leading to a more or less empty space—and a blank slate. There have been numerous attempts to revive it over the 50 years of decline. Now, a new investor group wants to resurrect the casino and hotel, provide a resource center and museum to both help and preserve the history of the surrounding Westside neighborhood. In addition, a planned nonprofit, Moulin Rouge Cares, will reach out to the Westside. Groundbreaking is set for May 24, but experience says that the Fountainbleu will be completed before we see a new Moulin Rouge.
