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Vegas: Reviewing the Teens and Anticipating the 20s

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by hail2skins, Jan 1, 2020.

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  1. hail2skins

    hail2skins VIP Whale

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    As Vegas historians know, no new resort was built on the Strip for 16 years starting in 1973. That all changed in 1989 with the opening of Steve Wynn's Mirage, which ushered in what amounted to a remaking of the Strip in the 1990s. By the mid-2000s the remaking appeared like it was going to continue in full force, with Wynn opening up his namesake resort at the former Desert Inn and Strip stalwarts like the Frontier and Stardust imploded to make way for shiny new toys.

    Well, the Great Recession starting in 2008 made everything come to a screeching halt. Encore, City Center, and Cosmopolitan made it past the finish line. But since 2010, nothing new. I remember a Vegas design and development blog I was reading at the time had a post entitled "The Bummer Years," an acknowledgement we weren't going to see anything new for quite some time.

    So the teens were pretty much a "meh" period for the Strip. Arguably the most significant development news was the remaking of Monte Carlo into Park MGM, and the Sahara remade into SLS...….and then back into Sahara again, which by accounts looks pretty nice, for those who motivate themselves to trek up to the corner of Sahara and LV Blvd to see it. Oh yeah, a ferris wheel was built behind Flamingo! Meanwhile, gambling wise, things just seemed to worsen, with 3/2 blackjack becoming rarer at sub-$25 levels, triple zero roulette introduced, and, for a time, Steve Wynn deciding that double odds in craps were good enough at his property. Resort fees, which had started at the beginning of the decade, only got higher, touching $50/day at some of the nicer resorts. And then paid parking....."ugh" is pretty much the only word to use here. Pro sports were a big story at the end of the decade, as the Golden Knights captured the city's imagination by getting to the championship round in their first season, and a gleaming new stadium was almost completed across I-15 from Mandalay Bay to welcome the Raiders.

    So what does the next decade hold for Las Vegas?

    Strip: after a decade on hold and a Boyd sale, Resorts World resumed construction and looks primed to open in 18-24 months. The Drew, further up the Strip, may get prepped to open a little later on. An expansion to the main convention center will also open soon. As far as the existing properties, the aforementioned Mirage recently turned 30, and the Bellagio will do the same near the end of the decade. Will there be any existing places that are imploded and redeveloped, or is there really a need to do so? The vexing questions I think developers (of which Steve Wynn isn't one anymore) have to deal with is "how much nicer can they make these places?" What happens to gambling conditions? The question of resort fees might be litigated, but in the meantime, how high do they rise? And do other properties roll back paid parking like Wynn decided to do?

    Downtown: Fremont Street seemed on a roll for a lot of teens, as I think a number of people tired of the Strip rip-off relocated. By the end of the year, Circa will be the story, likely supplanting the Golden Nugget as THE place downtown. DTG has had casino struggles, but is doing well enough as a property to add 500 rooms. And the Fremont ultimately should go ahead with their expansion. Will further development occur downtown and if so, where? I've thought that parcel across from the D could be a possibility.

    Off-Strip/Locals: The first thing to watch will be the reimaging of Hard Rock into Virgin. Elsewhere, Station put a lot of money into Palace Station and Palms. Will another new locals place open for the first time since M Resort in 2009? Also, do any more major pro sports come to the city?

    Elsewhere: After bottoming out with four casinos closing in 2014, Atlantic City stabilized, and two of the properties reopened in 2018 and are doing well. How does the continued expansion of sports betting nationwide impact Vegas?

    Finally, on a personal level, I vacationed in southern Utah in December, but flew into Vegas and spent one night at Encore (overlooking Resorts World) and drove down another night to catch a Golden Knights game. It was cool to park at Encore and walk down the west side of the Strip to the arena, marveling at the Mirage waterfalls, the glorious old school Caesars, and inside the still-beautiful Bellagio. Got to Park MGM, and a property I was decidedly underwhelmed with when I visited in 2018.....actually seemed like it had a good vibe! And it reflected on even how I consume news about the city I've had a relation with for close to 30 years now has changed. At the beginning of the tees, it was blogs. Now, its Twitter. But it also got me to thinking about how I still followed a Vegas message board (one a good number of people here are likely familiar with), but how the board deteriorated as Vegas news slowed and new administration took over. I'm not sure exactly found VMB, but a thank you for the administrators here for a quality place for Vegas discussion that is nice to call home.

    What are your thoughts on what the next decade holds for Vegas?
     
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  2. Rhinoman79

    Rhinoman79 Tourist

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    I enjoy playing plan-the-development with google maps in Vegas. It's all so simple when you don't have to worry about who owns what or what local ordinances/restrictions are in place .... or budget :D.

    The problem with the downtown parcel you mention is that it's only half a block - the north half is taken up by the DTG's parking garage; so not really adequate for a decent sized property. Now if the DTG moved their garage to the north of their own property (that empty lot east of the Mob Museum) it would actually be more convenient for the hotel (especially if you built a bridge). Then you have a ready-made parking agarage and just build a nice property in the south half of the block you mention.

    While we're on that subject; I've also wondered for about 25 years now ... Caesars has two small ground-level parking lots opposite Linq and Flamingo, north of its fountains. Given the location and the fact it's right on the strip, this has to be some of the most valuable real estate on earth. Surely there's a more effective (and cooler) way to use it? What could they do with those two parcels?
     
  3. Rhinoman79

    Rhinoman79 Tourist

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    Also it won't happen any time soon for many reasons, but any way to blow up/demolish the monstrosity that is Neonopolis and build something that is cool/interesting would be my number one wish for Downtown. The way it is designed repels people rather than draws them in and you can't change that - no matter what you do, anything that is not fronted on Fremont will never work.
     
  4. subafrk

    subafrk Longing to be sipping a Scotch at the Cromwell...

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    This was a nice read, thank you.
     
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  5. bshowell

    bshowell VIP Whale

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    I like this post. Great to read through. I like watching to see where development is going to happen (or re-start).
     
  6. Geogran

    Geogran VIP Whale

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    Enjoyed the read, thought provoking.
    I hope Vegas will always thrive and grow and that changes will happen in a good way. :love:
     
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