Gaming's Latest Bets

Gaming resorts nationwide continue to build event venues, spruce up gathering spaces and modernize their sleeping rooms. In fact, a glance at many of the latest developments at gaming destinations reveals a particular focus on attracting groups. Here's a roundup of the latest news from key destinations.

LAS VEGAS 
Gaming giant MGM Resorts International's newest venue on the Strip will be The Park -- an actual park area -- set to open April 4 between the Monte Carlo Resort and Casino and the New York-New York Hotel and Casino. The space will offer an oasis of vegetation and sculpture, not to mention F&B, amid the bustling Las Vegas Strip.

The Park will provide a path to the new T-Mobile Arena, the 20,000-seat joint venture between MGM and AEG that also debuts next month. The arena kicks off the party on April 6 with a concert headlined by local rockers The Killers, supported by rising pop star Shamir and the legendary Wayne Newton. Major acts announced for the future include Garth Brooks, the Dixie Chicks and Janet Jackson, not to mention the Professional Bull Riders World Finals.

MGM is constructing the Theater at Monte Carlo, a 5,000-seat venue with flexible seating configurations. It's being built at the former Blue Man Group venue (that group now is setting up shop at The Luxor) and should open for business by the end of 2016.

The Excalibur Hotel & Casino should finish remodeling 1,995 of its 4,022 rooms next month, a major upgrade to the lodging in the newly renamed Royal Tower. The new, more modern rooms will be completely smoke-free, with new carpet, bedding, furnishings and 40-inch flat-screen TVs.

In gaming-specific developments, the 2,716-room Wynn Las Vegas will debut a new poker room at the end of May. The 8,600-square-foot space will include 28 tables with dedicated amenities for poker aficionados. Features include a Sports Book window, 35 65-inch TVs with live sporting events, in-room restrooms and a high-limit area. The current poker room will remain open until the new one debuts.

In downtown Vegas, the 2,419-room Golden Nugget Las Vegas has given a makeover to its spa and salon. The $800,000 renovation has resulted in a 15,000-square-foot haven with an eight-treatment-room spa, couples massage rooms and spa lounges with whirlpool Jacuzzis, dry saunas, herbal steam saunas, refurnished locker rooms and more. The spa also boasts an upgraded fitness center with a view of The Tank pool.

-- MICHAEL J. SHAPIRO

CONNECTICUT
Work continues on the 400-room Earth Hotel, the second property for the Mohegan Sun casino resort in Uncasville. The $130 million hotel, set to open this fall, will join the resort's three casinos; the 22,000-square-foot Elemis Spa; golf course; more than 75 shops, restaurants and bars; three entertainment venues; and about 100,000 square feet of meeting space, including the 38,000-square-foot Uncas Ballroom. The new property is modeled after the existing 1,200-room Sky Hotel.  

Tanger Outlets at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket opened last year. The stores form a corridor connecting the 828-room Fox Tower Hotel to its 850-room Grand Pequot Tower. At the latter property, a brasserie called Vue 24 opened on the 24th floor in January, serving Continental cuisine enhanced by panoramic views and piano music.

In all, the Foxwoods complex includes six casinos; 34 restaurants; eight entertainment venues, including a Hard Rock Cafe; and more than 150,000 square feet of meeting space.

-- SARAH J.F. BRALEY

NEW JERSEY
For 40 years, Atlantic City has been the only place casino gambling has been allowed in the Garden State. However, a prospective plan to build two casinos in the northern part of the state might expand gaming's reach; any measures to that effect would have to be approved by residents.

In addition to potential competition within the state, Atlantic City is facing a fiscal crisis; at press time, a plan put forth by Gov. Chris Christie for the state to take over the city's finances was being mulled over by state lawmakers.

The destination's challenges have not prevented its gaming resorts from upping their offerings to visitors and groups. Harrah's Resort Atlantic City, for example, unveiled its $126 million Waterfront Conference Center last September. The venue gives the 2,590-room gaming resort more than 100,000 square feet of meeting and event space, including two 50,000-square-foot pillar-less ballrooms.

The 942-room Resorts Casino Hotel also expanded its meeting facilities; a new 15,000-square-foot conference space and 12 meeting rooms with state-of-the-art A/V and other technical capabilities opened last year. The new facility brings the hotel's total offerings to 24 function rooms with more than 64,000 square feet of event space, most featuring natural light and ocean views.

The 2,000-room Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in A.C. will undergo a $50 million enhancement this year. The property will add 25,000 square feet of conference space, including a 7,000-square-foot ballroom, to add to its current total of more than 87,000 square feet of meeting space.  

The Tropicana Atlantic City announced it will spend $25 million on upgrades this year, including the renovation of 500 Havana Tower hotel rooms and a refresh of the South Tower casino. In addition, five all-new shows will debut on Tropicana's Multimedia Light and Sound Show on the Boardwalk this summer. The property has 2,078 rooms and suites, 122,000 square feet of meeting space and is home of The Quarter, a 200,000-square-foot entertainment complex.

Future plans for the shuttered 1,400-room Revel Casino Hotel, which was purchased at auction by developer Glenn Straub last year, are still evolving. Plans to reopen the property last summer were shelved due to legal problems. At press time, Straub says he plans to open a smaller casino inside the Revel building, perhaps as soon as this June. The property, which cost $2.4 billion to build and closed in 2014, never turned a profit.  

-- LISA A. GRIMALDI

WASHINGTON
The 12 Tribes Resort & Casino in Omak, in north-central Washington, opened last year. The $40 million property has 52,000 square feet of casino space, more than 500 gaming machines and a 68-room hotel. Also available are two restaurants and the Renew Spa.

The 370-room Tulalip Resort Casino, a Native American property 30 minutes north of Seattle, is working on guest-room renovations, to be completed this spring. Additions will include new furniture and USB power outlets. More user-friendly technology includes Bluetooth-enabled media hubs, 55-inch smart TVs and instant-access high-speed Wi-Fi. The property has 30,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 15,000-square-foot ballroom and a 4,800-square-foot junior ballroom. Also on-site are the T Spa with 16 treatment rooms; an indoor pool, and eight eateries.  

-- SARAH J.F. BRALEY

RENO/TAHOE
Late in 2015, Eldorado Resorts, which already owned the 815-room El Dorado Reno Resort & Casino, officially bought out MGM's share in both the 1,710-room Silver Legacy Resort Casino and the 1,572-room Circus Circus Reno. The company now owns the three biggest hotel-casinos in downtown Reno. Initial plans are to invest in Circus Circus, with the hopes of revitalizing it and the surrounding district.

Also in downtown Reno, the 214-room Siena Hotel has ceased gaming operations as the new owners ready the property for rebranding. In December, renovations will be complete and the hotel will be rechristened as a Renaissance by Marriott. It will remain a nongaming property.

Operator Marnell Gaming is set to acquire the Sparks-based Nugget Casino Resort, a 1,382-room property with eight restaurants and a 110,000-square-foot convention center. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter. When the deal is done, Marnell intends to invest in a complete renovation of the Nugget's 800 West Tower guest rooms, convention area, casino floor, restaurants and showroom.  

The long-awaited debut of the renovated Cal Neva Resort -- along the California-Nevada border in Crystal Bay, Nev. -- will take place in May. The storied property, which first opened in 1926 and was later owned by Frank Sinatra, has been closed for more than two years to undergo a major overhaul. When it reopens, the resort is expected to offer 191 guest rooms, a nonsmoking casino, three restaurants and panoramic views of Lake Tahoe. It is slated to become part of Starwood's Luxury Collection.

-- MICHAEL J. SHAPIRO

 FLORIDA
The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood has unveiled plans to add a new guitar-shaped hotel tower with 800 guest rooms. If the project is approved, the resort's room count will rise to 1,273 and five new restaurants will debut, as well as a buffet and a nightclub. Other improvements as part of a $100 million expansion plan include the addition of a second pool and pool bar. Last year, the Hard Rock opened the new Japanese restaurant, Kuro. The 240-seat eatery features tiered seating, a chef's table and a sushi bar, plus two private dining rooms.

-- LISA A. GRIMALDI

MASSACHUSETTS
Developers of the $950 million MGM Springfield casino resort have begun demolition of the former Zanetti School on the project's site, now that state and city environmental and zoning approvals have come through. While design elements are not final, plans call for 45,000 square feet of meeting space, a spa, a pool and a roof deck. Springfield lies on the western bank of the Connecticut River.

Wynn Resorts has hired the Suffolk Construction Co. of Boston as the general contractor for the $1.7 billion Wynn Resort in Everett, north of the capital city. Preparation of the 33-acre site began last October. The resort, which will open in 2018 and is aiming for LEED Platinum certification, will have a 600-room hotel and a spa; meeting space has yet to be determined.

-- SARAH J.F. BRALEY