In the Game

Opulence continues to define the landscape of the nation’s gaming destinations, from the majestic marble of the Palazzo and gold glass of Trump International in Las Vegas, to the proposed skyscraping towers of MGM and Revel in Atlantic City, to the increasingly upscale properties opening in California.

A few construction delays and scrapped mega projects appear to indicate that these destinations aren’t quite immune to the effects of an economic slump. On the other hand, some would argue that the glitz, pampering and escapism offered by casino-resort destinations just might be the perfect antidote to financial stress.

Developers certainly are counting on that. A roundup of news from meetings-friendly gaming destinations follows, as prepared by M&C’s editors.

LAS VEGAS

Despite opening the year with at least two consecutive months of lower gambling revenues than in the same period the previous year, the city of sin and conventions sees building continue at a feverish pace. In a place where projects increasingly are measured in the billions rather than millions of dollars, two behemoth endeavors stand out above all others.

The first is the $8 billion CityCenter, a mixed-use development and a joint venture between MGM Mirage and Dubai World. Stretching across 76 acres on the Strip, between the Monte Carlo and Bellagio resorts, the sprawling project will feature as its focal point a 61-story, 4,000-room hotel tower with an integrated casino and convention center. That property alone promises 300,000 square feet of meeting space, including four ballrooms that will accommodate anywhere from 10 to 5,000 attendees. The venue already is accepting reservations for 2010.

CityCenter also will be home to a 400-room Mandarin Oriental (the first in the city), as well as the 1,543-unit Vdara Condo Hotel, which will offer space for executive meetings and banquet events for 10 to 400 people. And yet more swanky living space will be offered by the 207-unit Harmon Hotel, Spa & Residences and 337-condo Veer Towers. A 500,000-square-foot complex called The Crystals will be home to plenty of dining, retail and entertainment establishments. What’s more, MGM Mirage is attempting to secure LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council for the whole project, which will make use of reclaimed water and on-site power generation, among other sustainable practices. CityCenter venues are expected to begin opening in late 2009.

Work also progresses on the city’s other gigantic development, Boyd Gaming Corp.’s Echelon. This $4.8 billion complex covers 87 acres on the north Strip and will be home to five hotel and residence properties. The 2,500-room Hotel Echelon and 650-room Suites at Echelon will share the Spa at Echelon. The 550-room Delano promises the South Beach ambience of its namesake; the 860-room Mondrian Las Vegas lays claim to the Hollywood chic of its forebear. These two properties will be joined by the Agua Spa. Finally, the 350-room Shangri-La Las Vegas will offer the luxury associated with the Asian hotel group, featuring the CHI Spa. The Echelon properties will share a 140,000-square-foot casino, one of the largest in Vegas, as well as theaters seating 4,000 and 1,500, respectively, and 300,000 square feet of retail space.

Of special interest to planners will be the 650,000-square-foot Meeting Center at Echelon, which will offer more than 110 meeting rooms and a 180,000-square-foot exhibit hall. The Shangri-La, Delano and Mondrian also will offer meeting space, for a grand total of 750,000 square feet in the complex. Boyd hopes to open Echelon in the third quarter of 2010.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is doing some home improvement of its own and this spring stepped up work on the $890 million renovation scheduled for the Las Vegas Convention Center. When the facelift is complete in 2012, the venue will increase its total area by nearly 20 percent, to 3.8 million square feet. Among the improvements will be a new lobby that connects all three halls of the convention center; a South Hall expansion; wireless connectivity and video signage throughout the venue; revamped taxi and shuttle facilities, and additional food options.

Officials from Las Vegas Sands Corp., which owns the Venetian and Palazzo hotel-casinos, announced to investors in February plans to replace the Sands Expo and Convention Center. The new $680 million convention center would be built across the street. Plans call for 1.2 million square feet of exhibit space and 1,800 parking spaces, as well as moving sidewalks connecting the new venue to the Venetian and Palazzo hotels. An official opening date hasn’t been set.

Sands opened the 50-story, 3,000-suite Palazzo Hotel-Resort-Casino in January, next to the Venetian and current Sands Expo. The property, which this spring received LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, offers 450,000 square feet of meeting space for a total of 2.25 million square feet in the Palazzo-Venetian-Sands complex. The Palazzo also opened a 1,800-seat theater, as well as 450,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment space known as The Shoppes at the Palazzo.

THEMATIC SHIFT

Last fall’s implosion of the New Frontier, the first themed hotel to open in Las Vegas, was a harbinger of the decline of quirky themes at Strip resorts.

Other casino resorts, including several in the MGM Mirage portfolio and Caesars Palace, have toned down themes in recent rounds of renovation. Without jettisoning the original concepts altogether, New York-New York Hotel & Casino, Excalibur and Luxor are moving away from kitschy references to the Big Apple, medieval castles or ancient Egypt, respectively, in favor of decor that’s in line with urban-cool trends.

“As Las Vegas continues to diversify its market base and make meetings and conventions a top priority, themes not only became unnecessary, but almost a detriment,” explains Chuck Bowling, executive vice president for Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino.

John Unwin, right, general manager of Caesars Palace, says a greater sense of balance is required. “We want to stick with the Roman language, but in a more relevant, current manner,” he notes. -- T.I.

Inspired, in part, by Sands’ convention center project, Steve Wynn announced big plans to expand his presence in Vegas. His company reportedly will build two hotel towers, with about 2,600 rooms each, in the area now occupied by the Wynn golf course. The hotels will share up to 1.8 million square feet of exhibit space. A free underground tram will link to the Las Vegas Convention Center and the Sands.

Meanwhile, Wynn’s $2.2 billion Encore is being built next to Wynn Las Vegas. The 2,034-suite hotel tower and casino are slated for a December opening and will feature a 50,000-square-foot spa and a 7,000-square-foot casino.

Also near the convention center is the site of the $2.9 billion Fontainebleau Las Vegas, slated to bring the Miami cool of the original to town when it opens in late fall 2009. The 3,889-room hotel-casino-resort is planning a 63-story hotel tower, almost 400,000 square feet of meeting space, a 20,000-square-foot nightclub, a spa, a theater and sufficient retail space to absorb the rest of one’s money.

The Las Vegas County Commission approved site development and permit requests in April for The Plaza on the Strip. The developers can move forward with the multibillion-dollar project, slated to include seven towers comprising a hotel, private residences, retail outlets, a convention center, a casino, restaurants and an entertainment venue. Groundbreaking should occur late this year.

The 599-suite Palms Place hotel, condo and spa opened at the end of February this year. The chic, casinoless property offers skyline and mountain views, as well as a 50,000-square-foot coed hammam, modeled on the traditional Turkish steam bath.

Also casinoless, the Trump International Hotel & Towers opened in April. The 64-story, 1,282-unit condo-hotel is wrapped in 24-karat gold glass but promises “understated luxury.” Offerings include 2,400 square feet of meeting space and gourmet dining at DJT restaurant. Future plans call for a second, identical tower. -- MICHAEL J. SHAPIRO

ATLANTIC CITY

Like Vegas, Atlantic City was experi-encing lower gambling revenues at this year’s outset -- a 6.4 percent drop during the first three months over the same period last year. But that still translated to $1.13 billion in revenue and, as with Vegas, development is still booming.

Mega-resort developments include the $4.5-to-$5 billion MGM Grand Atlantic City, a project covering 72 acres at Renaissance Pointe, next to the Borgata. Plans call for three hotel towers with a total of more than 3,000 rooms, as well as Atlantic City’s largest casino floor, with 5,000 slots, 200 table games and a large poker room. Throw in a convention center, a spa and a 500,000-square-foot retail venue for good measure. A late-2008 groundbreaking is planned, with an opening date of 2012.

Revel Entertainment Group, meanwhile, has received the necessary state environmental permits for its proposed boardwalk development. Slated for the casino resort are two 1,900-room hotel towers, 150,000 square feet of casino space and a 500,000-square-foot retail and entertainment complex.

Pinnacle Entertainment is moving ahead with its $2 billion resort on the site where the Sands once stood, though in a late-February conference call, CEO Dan Lee said the project could be delayed if credit markets don’t improve. A late-2011 or 2012 opening is still tentatively planned for the complex, which should offer about 2,000 hotel rooms and 120,000 square feet of gaming space.

The Donald attended a “topping off” ceremony for a new Trump Taj Mahal tower at the end of March, when the final beam of the structure was hoisted. When complete, the new tower will add 782 guest rooms (and three 1,200-square-foot meeting rooms) to the 1,250-room property. About 400 rooms are slated to open in September, and about 100 additional rooms will open each month until completion, by year’s end.

Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City has opened the first 12 of 47 stories at the new 960-room Waterfront Tower, which should be complete by next month -- at which point Harrah’s will offer a total of 2,590 guest rooms. The tower marks the final phase of a $550 million facelift, which also has included the opening of an Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spa.

When the 2,002-room Borgata Casino Hotel & Spa opened in 2003, it was the first new casino to open in Atlantic City in more than 10 years. Its success has helped pave the way for the current spate of development, which includes a $400 million “boutique” sister property opening next door. The 800-room, chic and casino-free Water Club opens this month, featuring a two-story spa and 18,000 square feet of meeting space.

Also opening this summer is the $93 million Chelsea, the first casinoless hotel to open on the Boardwalk since the 1960s. The 332-room property will feature a retro-hip design, a spa, a pool and a 4,400-square-foot banquet room.

The long-anticipated Atlantic City Express Service (ACES), a joint project of New Jersey Transit, the Borgata, Harrah’s Entertainment and the New Jersey Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, will debut this fall and provide express weekend rail service to and from New York City’s Penn Station. -- M.J.S.

RENO/TAHOE

The number of estimated visitors to the Reno/
Tahoe area held steady in 2007 (at about 5.1 million), but construction continues to expand “The Biggest Little City in the World.” About $2 billion is being poured into hotel renovations and new-builds, according to the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority.

Olympia Gaming is investing a large chunk of that to build a hotel-casino in Sparks, part of an entertainment/retail development called Legends at Sparks Marina. The total site covers 145 acres and will consist of a huge shopping complex, among other possibilities. While the retail portion is due to open before the end of the year, Olympia’s $800 million Legends Marina Casino-Resort-Spa is due to begin construction this summer, with a projected first-phase opening of 2009 or 2010. At that time, 400 to 500 of the hotel’s 1,000 rooms are scheduled to debut, as well as a casino, a spa, a lakefront amphitheater, a private beach, and 50,000 square feet of event space.

Las Vegas-based Station Casinos has two projects in the works for Reno, each set to break ground within the next four years. One is a development in the southern part of the city that reportedly will include a hotel, a casino, a convention space and more. The other project, slated for a lot across the street from the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, involves a hotel with 200 to 500 rooms, meeting and convention space, dining and entertainment, and a 60,000-square-foot casino.

A $15 million Hyatt Place also is in development. The 127-suite, casinoless new-build will be constructed next to the Reno-Tahoe International Airport and is scheduled for a 2009 opening.

In Tahoe, owners of the 92-room Tahoe Biltmore intend to build a village of shops and restaurants on and around the hotel, with construction set to begin in 2009.

Properties undergoing significant renovations include the 1,635-room Peppermill Resort Casino, which is in the midst of a $400 million expansion. At the end of 2007, the resort debuted both the 62,000-square-foot Tuscany Events Center and 600-suite Tuscany Tower, and later this year the Peppermill will unveil new pools and an outdoor events facility, a spa and a new nightclub.

The 1,000-room Atlantis Casino Resort Spa will double its on-site meeting space, to nearly 60,000 square feet, with the completion of a $50 million expansion later this summer. The 1,995-room Grand Sierra Resort, meanwhile, has finished a $90 million redesign and plans to spend another $3.5 million to update its 200,000 square feet of meeting space.

A new event venue debuted in February in downtown Reno, managed by a joint venture of the Eldorado Hotel Casino, Circus Circus Reno and the Silver Legacy Resort Casino. The $25 million Reno Ballroom is 28,000 square feet of divisible, multiuse space. Up to 2,900 attendees can be accommodated theater-style, and an on-site commercial kitchen can handle banquets for up to 1,900. Planners can rent the facility in conjunction with neighboring sites, such as the Reno Events Center and the National Bowling Stadium. -- M.J.S.

WAYS TO LEND A HAND

The Mississippi Gulf Coast has made great strides toward a full recovery from Hurricane Katrina, but opportunities for voluntourism still abound. One of the best-known organizations offering such work is the Mississippi Gulf Coast chapter of Habitat for Humanity (www.hfhmgc.org), which hopes to build 800 to 1,100 homes in the area over the next five years.

A smaller, newer group is Hands On Gulf Coast (www.handsongulfcoast.org), established soon after the storm. Hands On rebuilds homes (12 so far), removes dangerous mold from existing structures and works with organizations including the Humane Society and the Boys & Girls Club of the Gulf Coast. The charitable outfit also can design custom projects for groups, from creating murals to landscaping and “greenspace” projects.

For more ways groups can help out, visit the Volunteer Opportunities link at www.gulfcoast.org. -- H.R.S.

CALIFORNIA

Casinos in California are beginning to look more like opulent Las Vegas destina-tions. Case in point: A 340-room upscale hotel opened in April at the Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage, owned by the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. The hotel has 13,000 square feet of meeting space, plus an event lawn. Amenities include a 10,500-square-foot spa. A 2,000-seat entertainment venue, designed for concerts and boxing matches, will open next year.

In March, the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians hired a design firm to plan an $800 million Viejas Hotel & Casino Resort to open in 2012, adjacent to the tribe’s existing casino east of San Diego.

Construction begins this summer on a new 160-room hotel at the Valley View Casino, just north of Escondido, which is fresh from a $114 million expansion. The new hotel will offer about 4,600 square feet of meeting space, a spa and a fitness center. No opening date has been set. -- TOM ISLER

CONNECTICUT

Last year at this time, the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket had just 55,000 square feet of meeting space. Now, after last month’s opening of the new 825-room MGM Grand at Foxwoods, the resort has a total of 170,000 square feet for meetings, including a 50,000-square-foot, column-free ballroom, firmly establishing Foxwoods as a serious meetings competitor of Uncasville-based Mohegan Sun.

The MGM Grand at Foxwoods features a 4,000-seat theater, a 21,000-square-foot spa and a casino. Among the hotel’s new restaurants: Alta Strada from chef Michael Schlow; Craftsteak; and Shrine, a 225-seat Asian restaurant, lounge and nightclub.

Mohegan Sun’s expansion, expected to cost close to $1 billion, is still in its early stages. The resort plans to have a soft opening for its new 42,000-square-foot casino at the end of August. Current plans call for the addition of a new 39-story hotel tower with 922 rooms, including 261 designed with a House of Blues theme, in 2010. About 10,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space will be added to the resort’s current 100,000 square feet. -- T.I.

DETROIT

Two of the Motor City’s three casinos have opened 400-room hotels, and the third is expected to open its 400-room hotel this fall. These projects, along with two other new hotels that will bring 650 additional rooms by the end of the year, are giving planners plenty of new options for meetings and events in downtown Detroit.

The $800 million MGM Grand Detroit, about a mile from the Cobo Center, has 30,000 square feet of meeting space, restaurants from Wolfgang Puck and Michael Mina, five lounges and nightclubs, and a 20,000-square-foot spa, salon and fitness center. To attract business travelers, the hotel offers free parking and wireless Internet access. The MGM Grand also has a seasonal Grand Garden display, an artistic outdoor landscape installation from the creators of the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Garden in Las Vegas and a local landscaping firm.

The MotorCity Casino-Hotel, about a mile and a half from the Cobo Center, has 67,000 square feet of meeting space, several dining options, a bar and lounge, a live music venue and a spa. The hotel also offers free Internet access.

The Greektown Casino, less than half a mile from the Renaissance Center, expects to open its hotel on Nov. 15, but the Michigan Gaming Control Board has threatened to put the casino up for sale if the owners don’t satisfy its concerns about finances and other matters. (At press time, owners of the casino were finalizing a deal to sell a stake in the property.) The hotel proper will have 10,000 square feet of meeting space, while the casino will have about 20,000 square feet. Other amenities include a new bistro, a lounge and a nightclub. -- T.I.

MISSOURI

Lumiere Place, a $500 million Pinnacle Entertainment casino, opened last December near the America’s Center convention complex in downtown St. Louis, followed in February by the 200-room Four Seasons St. Louis and the connected 295-room, all-suite HoteLumiere, formerly an Embassy Suites hotel. The casino has 8,300 square feet of meeting space, while the Four Seasons has an additional 20,000 square feet. Lumiere Place features a 75,000-square-foot casino, seven restaurants and a spa. A pedestrian tunnel linking the hotel to a plaza next to America’s Center opened in April.

Pinnacle is building a second property, River City Casino & Hotel, along the Mississippi River in Lemay, scheduled to open next year. The project includes a 90,000-square-foot casino, three restaurants and a multiuse community center and sports complex. A hotel, with at least 100 rooms, is part of a second phase of construction and likely is four years or more away from opening.

A 400-room all-suite hotel and a 7,000-square-foot spa have been added to the Ameristar Casino St. Charles, part of a $250 million expansion at the casino. The property has a 130,000-square-foot casino and a conference center, which opened in autumn 2006 with 19,000 square feet of meeting space. -- T.I.

MISSISSIPPI GULF COAST

Mississippi Gulf Coast casinos enjoyed a banner year in 2007, with total gaming revenues exceeding, for the first time since Hurricane Katrina struck, pre-storm sums.

This trend is likely to continue, as the Biloxi-Gulfport area welcomes new casino resorts like the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Biloxi, which opened in July 2007. Hard Rock has a 12-story hotel with 318 rooms and a casino floor with 1,400 slot machines, 50 table games and a poker room. Other amenities include the top-floor Rise lounge, five restaurants including a Ruth’s Chris Steak House, and an Aveda Concept Spa called The Rock Spa.

The resort’s flashy entertainment venue, Hard Rock Live, can fit 1,400 guests. When not hosting concerts from the likes of Kid Rock, Stevie Nicks and Avril Lavigne, the venue doubles as the property’s meeting space.

Construction on the coast’s next big newcomer, Harrah’s $1 billion Margaritaville Casino & Resort, began last August. When the Jimmy Buffett-themed property is finished sometime in 2010, it will have a total of 800 hotel rooms, a 100,000-square-foot casino and approximately 66,000 square feet of meeting space. Amenities will include a spa, a tropical pool deck area and the Margaritaville Restaurant.

The first two (of three) development phases for the Island View Casino Resort were completed last year. The property now has 562 guest rooms and 80,000 square feet of gaming space, with 2,100 slots and 46 table games. At the moment, Island View has a negligible amount of meeting space, though this will be remedied with the third development phase, currently in the planning stages.

Also in 2007, the Treasure Bay Casino and Hotel completed renovations to its 24,560-square-foot casino and 159-room hotel tower. Treasure Bay has 3,600 square feet of space for meetings.

Additional area casino resort properties now open for business include the 1,740-room Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, 1,087-room IP Casino Resort Spa, 700-room Isle of Capri Casino Resort, 291-room Hollywood Casino Bay St. Louis and 234-room Palace Casino Resort.

A host of other casino projects on the Mississippi Gulf Coast are in the preconstruction planning phase. These include the 459-room, all-suite Bacaran Bay Casino Resort and Condominiums, with a 67,000-square-foot casino and 60,000 square feet of event space; the Bayview Resort & Casino, with about 500 hotel rooms, 70,000 square feet of casino floor and 25,000 square feet of meeting space; the gargantuan, 1,900-room Broadwater, a $1 billion affair featuring more than 100,000 square feet of meeting space and 125,000 square feet of gaming space spread out over two casinos; and the 400-room Royal D’Iberville Casino & Hotel, which will have a 60,000-square-foot casino. -- HUNTER R. SLATON