Las Vegas Metro Development News

[desertpunk]

LV R_J

Engineering company finds Harmon tower construction defects 'pervasive'
By Howard Stutz
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

Posted: Jul. 11, 2011 | 4:43 p.m.




The unfinished Harmon tower at CityCenter is virtually unrepairable and could collapse in a "code-level" earthquake, according to a structural engineer hired by MGM Resorts International who examined the 27-story building.

In the report, members of Weidlinger Associates of Marina Del Rey, Calif., said they ran several tests on the building and found missing or misplaced reinforcing steel in columns, beams, shear walls and transfer walls throughout the tower below the 21st floor.

"The construction defects in the tower observed to date are so pervasive and varied in character that it is not possible to quickly implement a temporary or permanent repair to remediate the defects, or even determine whether such repairs can be performed," Chuckwuma Ekwueme, an associate principal with Weidlinger told CityCenter Vice President of Facility Operations William Ham in a letter dated Monday.

A "code-level earthquake" is based on the probability of an earthquake strong enough to damage structures occurring once every 500 years. The rating varies by region, depending on several factors including fault lines and soil conditions.

In the letter, Ekwueme said that if a code-level earthquake were to take place, "it is likely that critical structural members in the tower will fail and become incapable of supporting gravity loads, leading to a partial or complete collapse of the tower."

The Harmon, part of the $8.5 billion CityCenter, was originally designed by the firm of famed British architect Lord Norman Foster as a 47-story hotel and condominium tower.

In 2008, building inspectors found structural work on the Harmon did not match plans submitted to Clark County. The construction issues involved improperly placed steel reinforcing bar, commonly known as rebar.

In January 2009, MGM Resorts scrapped the planned 200 condominium units for the upper floors and stopped the tower at 27 stories, focusing on the Harmon having just 400 hotel rooms. Company officials said at the time they would delay finishing the tower and wait until 2010 to decide what to do next.

CityCenter, which includes the Aria hotel-casino, the nongaming Vdara and Mandarin Oriental hotels, the all-residential Veer Towers, and the Crystals retail, dining and entertainment mall, opened in December 2009.

The Harmon's construction defect issues became the focal point of a lawsuit between MGM Resorts and Perini Building Co. that was filed last year in Clark County District Court. Clark County Building officials halted any construction to be done to the Harmon.

In April, the building division asked CityCenter, which is jointly owned by MGM Resorts and Dubai World, to analyze the Harmon tower and podium after its own consultant, Walter P. Moore Structural Engineers, concluded "the structure suffered from certain vulnerabilities."

In a letter to Ham, Clark County Building Official Ron Lynn said the Harmon needed to be further analyzed, "to minimize further risks to life safety, Las Vegas Boulevard, and adjacent habitable structures."

Members of Weidlinger said it would take at least "12 to 14 months" to conduct a study that would determine "how to remediate the tower or whether repairs are possible, even in its current unoccupied condition."

MGM Resorts spokesman Gordon Absher said CityCenter officials forwarded the report by Weidlinger to Clark County and will await direction from the county as to what the next steps are with the Harmon.

[...]

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Las Vegas Sun

Developers cleared to start DesertXpress engineering
By Richard N. Velotta (contact)
Las Vegas Sun
Tuesday
12 July 2011
7:43 p.m.

The U.S. Transportation Department has issued a record of decision on the controversial $5 billion DesertXpress high-speed rail project that would link Las Vegas with Victorville, Calif.

A record of decision is the final step in the arduous process of preparing an environmental impact statement. Approval of the document clears the private developers of the project, DesertXpress Enterprises LLC, to begin preliminary engineering for the 186-mile rail line.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s office issued a news release Tuesday announcing the record of decision.

This “announcement is about one thing: creating good-paying jobs right here in Nevada,” the Nevada Democrat said in the release. “This major step forward for the privately sponsored DesertXpress project will create more than 32,000 jobs in Southern Nevada and boost our economy by providing another way for tourists to visit and enjoy this great state.”

The announcement comes days before an anticipated House vote in which Republicans have vowed to divert $1.5 billion earmarked for high-speed rail projects to Midwest flood relief.

Such a move could deliver a financial blow to the California High Speed Rail Authority, which is counting on federal funding to help develop a rail line between Los Angeles and San Francisco and Sacramento.

DesertXpress officials are counting on extending their line from Victorville to the California system with a 50-mile link west to Palmdale. Currently, that’s the only plan in place for passengers to travel between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Critics have ripped Victorville as a terminus of the DesertXpress route, saying Southern Californians wouldn’t park their cars there to ride the train and Las Vegans wanting to go to Southern California would have to rent cars to continue their journey.

The Federal Railroad Administration has overseen the environmental review process, which began in 2006. The process was complicated because the route crossed land administered by the Federal Highway Administration, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service and Surface Transportation Board, and each agency had to sign off on the plan.

The twin-track route would run primarily within the Interstate 15 right-of-way, with trains reaching speeds of about 150 mph. Company officials have estimated ticket prices to average $50 each way. An estimated 26 percent of Las Vegas visitors come from Southern California.

A UNLV report says the DesertXpress project would produce an estimated 17,469 primary jobs and 16,432 secondary jobs in Clark County by 2013.

Read More: http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/ju...s-engineering/

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Las Vegas Sun

Board OKs permits for Strip entertainment plaza
Construction could still be 18 months away, Caesars Entertainment representative says
By Conor Shine (contact)
Las Vegas Sun
Tuesday, July 12, 2011 | 10:52 p.m.

Plans for a $400 million dining, retail and entertainment plaza on the Strip dubbed Project Linq resurfaced Tuesday night at a Paradise Town Advisory Board meeting.

The proposal for a 325,000-square-foot outdoor corridor of bars, restaurants and shops between the Flamingo and O’Sheas was first envisioned by Caesars Entertainment in 2006, but the project was slow to get started because of the economic downturn.

The project would also give the facades of the Imperial Palace and O’Sheas a facelift and would be anchored by a 550-foot Ferris wheel.

“Relatively speaking to the projects we’ve seen on the Strip over the past couple years, this is quite simple,” Caesars representative Tabitha Fiddyment said. “It will take underutilized real estate...and turn it into something totally different from what you see today.”

The board approved a bevy of use permits, and members were enthusiastic about the project.

The advisory board’s approval is a necessary first step for the project to continue, but several more planning and permitting approvals are still needed, Fiddyment said. Although Caesars has committed to funding the project, she estimated it could be 18 months before construction starts.

Plans for a competing 500-foot Ferris wheel two miles away near Mandalay Bay concerned board member Morton Friedlander.

“We’d be the only major city in the world with two big wheels a mile apart. It would be insanity. It would be destructive competition,” he said.

Member Robert Orgill said the projects should be allowed to go head to head “and may the best man win.”

Read More: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2011...ment-district/

[desertpunk]

30-40 million tourists a year and there aren't enough customers for two giant Ferris wheels? Balderdash!!

[Jim856796]

How about instead of concentrating on repairs, let's just dismantle the Harmon Hotel and start over? Don't want to make Norman Foster disappointed.

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by DESERT DISPATCH

VV to Vegas high-speed train is full steam ahead
Karen Jonas
DESERT DISPATCH
2011-07-13 15:27:54

Updated 7/13 with information from DesertXpress spokeswoman.

A proposed high-speed train that would connect Victorville to Las Vegas — without stopping in Barstow — received final approval on its environmental impact statement from the Federal Railroad Administration Tuesday.

The record of decision from the Federal Railroad Administration brings the project one step closer to beginning construction.

The report shows that the train will start in Victorville and will run along the west side of the Interstate 15 corridor to Lenwood, at which point it would run either on the side or in the median of Interstate 15 through Barstow. The train will then continue about one mile north of Interstate 15 to Yermo and will run on the west side of Interstate 15 most of the way to Mountain Pass. Because of the steep terrain at Mountain Pass, the train will then detour for 1.55 miles through the Mojave National Preserve before continuing along the Interstate 15 corridor through Primm to Las Vegas.

The City of Barstow previously opposed the DesertXpress project because an economic study commissioned by the city estimated it will decrease traffic traveling through the city to Las Vegas by up to 33 percent and the project could result in a combined loss of 2,295 jobs within the city. The city has spent more than $100,000 fighting the train so far by hiring a public relations firm and a law firm.

Some city officials contacted Wednesday seemed to have changed their tune about the train’s effect on Barstow and appeared willing to work with the train’s developer.

City Manager Curt Mitchell, Mayor Joe Gomez, Councilman Willie Hailey and Councilman Tim Saenz all said that the city would attempt to work with DesertXpress to bring jobs to Barstow residents by offering vocational training through Barstow Community College. The training will help Barstow residents get some of the 750 permanent jobs working at DesertXpress in Victorville.

Saenz said there had been talks with DesertXpress to have preferred hiring for residents who go through the program.

Hailey also said the vocational training would be a benefit to residents.

“I think the City of Barstow needs to get on board with DesertXpress,” said Hailey. “We need to take that negative and turn it to a positive.”

Mitchell said the focus for the city now that the project has been approved is minimizing any impact on residents.

“At this point, we’ll see what we can do to minimize those impacts and hopefully create some positive opportunities,” said Mitchell.

Councilman Tim Silva said that he was still concerned about the project after sitting down with the company.

“I’m concerned for the residents in this area,” said Silva. “I just don’t support how it’s going to impact the economy of Barstow.”

The DesertXpress project still needs to get approval for a $4.9 billion federal loan for the project before beginning construction — which it estimates could create up to 50,000 jobs in San Bernardino County. Officials had previously stated that the project could begin construction as early as one year from the time of the approval of the final environmental impact statement.

DesertXpress spokeswoman Lee Haney said in a statement that the record of decision will allow the Federal Railroad Administration to move forward with the loan application for the project.

Read More: http://www.desertdispatch.com/news/s...ain-vegas.html

[desertpunk]

LVR-J

TopShop, other retailers enter Las Vegas market despite sour economy

By Jennifer Robison
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

Posted: Jul. 19, 2011 | 2:00 a.m.
Updated: Jul. 19, 2011 | 9:24 a.m.

image hosted on flickr


The Las Vegas economy hasn't yet recovered from the beating it took during the nation's recession.

Sure, visitor volumes have been climbing back to their pre-recession levels for more than a year, but tourism numbers were still down 1.2 percent through May when compared with the first five months of 2007, according to numbers from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Tourist spending remains below peak levels as well.

And then there's all that bad press, with national magazines from Time to Newsweek to Forbes writing about Las Vegas' especially sour economy. Even The New York Times wrote as recently as October that Las Vegas was "staggering under a confluence of factors" that left the city out of any national recovery.

But don't tell that to TopShop.

The British clothing retailer announced Thursday that it plans to open a flagship store in Las Vegas at Fashion Show mall on the Strip. The 20,000-square-foot store will house TopShop for women and TopMan for, well, men. It's scheduled to open in March with 170 employees.

TopShop isn't the only retailer taking a big chance on Las Vegas despite the city's uninspiring economic recovery. Watch retailer TAG Heuer and women's clothing designer Stella McCartney opened flagship stores at CityCenter's Crystals in the winter. Other companies rolling out flagship stores in Las Vegas during the downturn include leather and accessories retailer Hermes, jeweler Tiffany & Co. and clothing retailers Forever 21 and H&M.

So why is a slumping Las Vegas still a top destination for some of the world's best-known retailers?

TopShop didn't return a call by press time seeking comment, but local experts say the tourism base's size, retail's long-term prospects here and falling lease rates make the Strip as attractive a retail market as ever.

"Despite the fact that the Las Vegas tourism industry faced significant challenges over the last three years, the market still welcomed nearly 40 million visitors in each of those years," said Brian Gordon, a principal in local research firm Applied Analysis. "That exposure is significant."

That exposure is also international, said Laurie Paquette, vice president of asset management for Fashion Show's owner, General Growth Properties. Tourists from around the world come to Las Vegas, giving retailers here a "good cross-section that allows them to introduce their brand to a tremendous number of people," Paquette said.

Plus, even if Strip retail sales aren't what they were, a store with midlevel price points, such as TopShop, can still do enough business to turn a profit, Paquette said.

What's more, store owners think beyond today's sales potential, said John Knott, executive vice president of commercial real estate brokerage CB Richard Ellis in Las Vegas.

"Retailers don't plan on a one-year cycle. They plan for the long term," Knott said. "Most of them had expansion plans on hold for a couple of years, given the economy. As we come out of the recession, for companies not here yet, this market is a good place to be."

Gordon and Knott agreed that falling lease rates have probably helped draw new business, as well. Some mall owners cut rents as sales slowed and property values declined, and those discounts have improved the math for retailers, though Paquette said Fashion Show hasn't reduced its lease rates during the recession.

Expect the parade of flagships and new concepts to continue, Knott said. Outside of New York, Chicago and Beverly Hills' Rodeo Drive, there's not a better flagship market in America, based on sheer numbers of potential shoppers and opportunities to build an unusual store, as the World of Coca-Cola did with its giant Coke bottle at Showcase.

Knott doesn't forecast much new retail space on the Strip in the near future, but he said turnover in existing centers will make additional flagships possible.

That's the case at Fashion Show. Clothing retailer J. Crew left the mall in April, and two adjoining stores, Levi's and Gap, relocated to other spaces in the mall. Those three spaces will house TopShop and TopMan.

There will be many more opportunities to bring first-time and flagship retailers to Fashion Show in 2012, Paquette noted. A number of 10-year leases will expire in the mall's 2002 expansion area, making way for a fresh lineup. Leasing officials are focusing on deals with retailers who aren't yet in the market, Paquette said.

"There's absolutely always room for new stores. We continue to update our tenant mix," Paquette said. "Even though we (the Strip) get 37 million visitors a year, some of them are repeat visitors. We want to add new concepts for them."

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[desertpunk]

Inspirada Owner OK'd to Tap Loan From Builders

A bankruptcy judged approved a financing pact for the stalled Las Vegas-area real-estate project dubbed "Inspirada" that puts a group of home builders behind the troubled development back in the driver's seat.



Judge Bruce A. Markell of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Las Vegas said that the bankruptcy trustee in charge of South Edge LLC, a which owns Inspirada, can tap $4 million of $21.4 million bankruptcy loan being provided by affiliates home builders KB Home, Beazer Homes USA Inc. and Toll Brothers Inc. Those builders, who were among the legion of lenders, contractors and developers involved in the massive project, last month agreed to pay lenders as much as $340 million to settle legal actions related to the failed project. "The cost savings associated with the successful implementation of the settlement will enhance the overall value to be recovered by the settling parties, who are the estate's primary economic stakeholders," Judge Markell wrote in a ruling filed Monday.

The settlement, which has the backing of trustee Cynthia Nelson, is expected to form the basis of a Chapter 11 exit plan for South Edge, an off-balance-sheet company created by a handful of home builders and an affiliate of John Ritter's Focus Property Group, a Nevada-based land-development company.

The Focus affiliate had balked at the financing pact, claiming it would allow the builders to "effectively lock in" the plan of reorganization. Focus's lawyers had argued while the plan may be good deal for the builders because it reduces their exposure and insulates them from litigation, it is not a good deal for Inspirada. Focus and the home builders were allies in 2004 when they formed South Edge to purchase land for the 2,000-acre Inspirada project in Henderson, Nev., from the federal Bureau of Land Management. But the two sides fell out when the real-estate bubble and the builders halted work on the project.

Focus claimed most of the builders had defaulted on their agreement and an arbitration panel awarded Focus $38.1 million, ruling the builders had breached their agreements when they voted to stop work on the project. But the financing pact prevents the trustee from asserting any claims against the builder, what Focus says is the estate's most valuable asset, unless she terminates the financing, which triggers the loan's maturity. A Focus spokeswoman wasn't immediately able to comment on the ruling. The builders have appealed the arbitration award. Markell, the bankruptcy judge, will consider whether the trustee can draw down the remainder of the loan at a hearing scheduled for Aug. 12.

The dispute dates back to December of last year, when a consortium of lenders that included J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Wells Fargo & Co. and Credit Agricole SA launched an involuntary bankruptcy case to try to force South Edge into Chapter 11. The three banks were among 39 lenders that pumped $585 million into the company before claiming that project insiders wrongfully put the brakes on the development. In February, Markell approved the bankruptcy petition and appointed Nelson as trustee to oversee the project's operations.

Inspirada was supposed to be a 2,000-acre showcase of "new urbanism" planning dreamed up by some of the nation's most successful home-building companies shortly before the bursting of the nation's real-estate bubble. The development was to incorporate 8,500 residences clustered in seven "villages," with a 300-acre town center that had retail, gambling and municipal offerings serving as the development's heart.

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[saiholmes]

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Las Vegas Sun

Caesars set to break ground on $500 million Strip project
Linq development to include observation wheel, entertainment district next to Flamingo
By Joe Schoenmann (contact)
Las Vegas Sun
Wednesday, 3 August 2011, 4:45 p.m.

Construction will begin this month on a $500 million mid-Strip development that will include a 550-foot observation wheel — developers insist it not be called a Ferris wheel — and a restaurant-entertainment district linking the Imperial Palace and Flamingo resorts.

Clark County commissioners approved the 18-month “Linq” project Wednesday, giving Caesars Entertainment the green light to break ground, said Marybel Batjer, Caesars Entertainment vice president of public policy and communications.

Design and construction of the observation wheel — its 32 cabins will each carry up to 30 people — will be a technical feat on par with the construction of San Francisco’s Bay Bridge, Batjer said.

“This takes that kind of thoroughness,” she said. “Only a few engineering firms in the world are capable of doing this.”

The project also involves the “re-skinning” of the Imperial Palace and O’Sheas, giving the businesses new facades, and the creation of 326,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment venues between the Imperial Palace and the Flamingo.

Representing Caesars Entertainment before the commission, attorney Tabitha Fiddyment said the project will cost about $500 million and “completely change this area of Las Vegas Boulevard … it’s going to entirely revitalize it.”

The project will employ 3,000 construction workers; when it’s complete it will create 1,500 new jobs.

Asked why Caesars Entertainment is doing the project now, as Las Vegas and Nevada remain in the grips of recession, Batjer said reinvention is what Las Vegas is known for.

“None of us in Las Vegas ever sits on our laurels,” Batjer said. “You continue to develop and bring new visions to this terrific place.”

When finished, Batjer said the area between the resorts will become an urban gathering place akin to the Meatpacking District of Manhattan, Fulton Street in New Orleans and South Beach in Miami.

The Linq observation wheel is the second planned for the Strip. In May, developer Howard Bullock of Compass Investments broke ground in construction of a 500-foot-tall wheel across Las Vegas Boulevard from Mandalay Bay. Completion is expected in the first half of 2013.

Commissioners said they hope the Linq development is a “green shoot,” signaling economic development will begin throughout the county.

“It will create thousands of jobs, both construction and permanent, and be another amenity on the Las Vegas Strip for tourists to visit and enjoy,” Commissioner Steve Sisolak said. “It will also provide an economic stimulus to county revenues.”

Commissioner Larry Brown added: “This project is another sign of growing confidence in the Las Vegas market. A $400 million investment, thousands of new jobs — the type of commitment that builds tremendous momentum for our economy.”

Project approval came a day after the commission voted to create a committee that will spend the next few months figuring out how to address a sense of disorder on the Strip, including how to keep it physically clean and dealing with a growing number of unlicensed peddlers crowding sidewalks and irritating tourists. The committee will consist of representatives from the district attorney’s office, Metro Police, casinos and a handful of county agencies.

Read More: http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/au...strip-project/

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Furniture Today

IMC completes acquisition of High Point's Showplace properties
Heath E. Combs -- Furniture Today, August 1, 2011

LAS VEGAS — International Market Centers announced that it has completed its acquisition of Showplace and associated properties, the final step in its plan to purchase the majority of showroom space of the furniture industry's biggest U.S. markets in High Point and Las Vegas.

The announcement did not disclose a purchase price.

Earlier this year, a Guilford County Superior Court judge said the value of a tentative deal was about $43 million. The proposal was in court because the Showplace properties were in receivership.

With the Showplace properties, IMC has about 60% of High Point's active showroom space, including the International Home Furnishings Center and the former Merchandises Mart Properties Inc. holdings. It also owns the World Market Center in Las Vegas. IMC officials have said the acquisitions in both cities were valued at $1 billion.

With the addition of the properties, IMC can focus on its primary mission to create the most compelling home furnishings market platform for the industry, IMC officials said in a press release.

"We look forward to working with our wide range of business partners to develop a world-class business-to-business platform for both buyers and sellers in the furnishings, home décor and gift industries," said Bob Maricich, CEO of IMC.

Showplace along with four other downtown High Point properties held by the Showplace owners, was placed in receivership in 2009, by a Guilford County judge after its owners defaulted on an $81 million note held by Bank of America.

The properties have more than 930,000 square feet of showroom space, including about 465,000 square feet in Showplace. The other properties include Showplace West (the former First Factors building at 101 S. Main St.) and smaller buildings at 200 N. Hamilton St., 320 N. Hamilton St. and 330 N. Hamilton St.

Showplace was purchased in 2005 by private equity firm Walton Street Capital and three North Carolina developers, High Point residents Maurice Hull and Coy Williard Jr. and Charlotte resident Paul Bell.

IMC said its portfolio now comprises 18 buildings spanning more than 11.5 million gross square feet.

IMC is majority owned by funds managed by Bain Capital Partners and a subsidiary of certain investment funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. Related Cos., Bassett Furniture Inds. and affiliates of Network World Market Center.

Read More: http://www.furnituretoday.com/articl...properties.php

[desertpunk]

Great news about the big wheel! Will Vegas have two?

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by KLAS-TV 8 News NOW

New Waterpark in the Works for Las Vegas
Posted: Aug 05, 2011 3:46 PM PDT Updated: Aug 05, 2011 3:46 PM PDT
By Sharie Harvin, Reporter
KLAS-TV 8 News NOW

LAS VEGAS -- A new 26-acre waterpark is making a splash in Las Vegas, creating jobs and boosting the bottom line for businesses. Clark County Commissioners unanimously voted for the park and aquatics center, saying they are a few months away from a groundbreaking.

The park will be built near Fort Apache and Warm Springs. The county expects about 400 jobs -- 200 to build the facilities and 200 to operate them. Businesses in the area excited about being flooded with more customers.

"Right now it's ok, but I think it's going to be more customers," said Pia Taing with Benjarong Thai Restaurant.

Not far from the restaurant Taing manages is Raw Health, where the owner Robin Shaw is thinking about the health of the community.

"There's just a lot of vacancies, a lot of empty resident spots, lot of empty commercial spots. So by bringing this project over here, it might make certain people aware of this and say, 'Hey, maybe I should move here or I'll start doing some business here,'" she said.

"We plan on moving forward, they plan on moving forward and it was a seven to zero vote," said County Commissioner Susan Brager. "It's going to be in the southwest section of our community, great access to freeways, people seeing what's out there. Wet n' Wild was over the top and that's how this is going to be, along with that aquatics center and a park in the very front of it."

The Howard Hughes Company, who is supporting the project, has several other parks in Texas called Hawaiian Falls. Owners say they want to keep the name of this park a secret until the groundbreaking, but it's no secret they will be open for business Memorial Day of 2012.

Read More & Video: http://www.8newsnow.com/story/152195...-for-las-vegas

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Las Vegas Sun

Strip development ongoing, but it looks different
By Delen Goldberg (contact)
Las Vegas Sun
Tuesday, 16 August 2011, 2 a.m.

Among the assumptions of the Las Vegas business model is that something big — think opulent resorts — should open every few years to keep the town fresh and give tourists a reason to return.

Instead, resort construction has stalled because of the toxic economy, and big-name investors have abandoned projects once hailed as transformative. Returning tourists today will see the same vacant lots and incomplete buildings they saw two or three years ago.

That isn’t to say development is dead. It’s just not what we had grown accustomed to. Investors are adjusting to a new economy and banking on tourists still being pleased by what they see.

“It’s easier to get $50 million these days than to get $5 billion, so you can make more cosmetic changes on the Strip without building a megaresort,” said Randy Fine, a casino marketer-turned-industry consultant.

Thus, the Strip is entering an era of smaller-scale entertainment ventures, with developers and tourists alike tightening their belts.

Chief among the changes awaiting tourists on the Strip: two Ferris wheel projects, one at an amusement park being built across from Mandalay Bay, and another between the Flamingo and O’Sheas that will include a 325,000-square-foot outdoor corridor of bars, restaurants and shops. Also being pitched by a developer who needs a place to put it: Parabounce Vegas, an aerial bumper car game featuring people strapped to helium balloons.

Elsewhere along the Strip, the Flamingo is turning part of its casino floor into Margaritaville; Treasure Island is building a Strip-front Starbucks; and Bellagio is refurbishing rooms, as Wynn Las Vegas did this spring.

Investors are backing less-ambitious projects that can generate quick returns. This is the first year in decades without plans for construction of a resort.

“In an environment where there are not big resort openings, companies are hoping with all these smaller projects they can still create a buzz and attract customers,” said Patrick Bosworth, an industry consultant and former business strategist at Wynn. Even relatively minor changes such as room renovations can keep a property fresh and justify maintaining room rates, Bosworth said.

Caesars Entertainment breaks ground this month on a $500 million mid-Strip development that will feature a 550-foot observation wheel and entertainment district. The project includes the “reskinning” of the Imperial Palace and O’Sheas facades to give them new looks.

Developers of a 500-foot Ferris wheel and amusement park across from Mandalay Bay launched their project in May. When completed, that wheel is expected be the tallest in the United States.

Howard Bulloch of Compass Investments, lead developer of the project, said his company studied the economic potential of a Ferris wheel and amusement complex and found it to be a sound investment. Las Vegas tourists want the biggest bang for their buck. An observation wheel with views of the city and a low price tag offers that, Bulloch said.

“When they come to Las Vegas, they can spend so much gambling and it’s gone in two minutes, or they can spend the same amount and go to a nice dinner or see a good show. Or they could spend it on an amusement. People are being conscious of how they spend their money and are looking for all the different opportunities,” Bulloch said.

Whether the development of two giant Ferris wheels on the Strip will help or hurt one or the other remains to be seen.

“If we can come up with fun things for people to do, it can’t be a bad thing for Las Vegas,” Fine said. “But they need to be unique or interesting.” And he suggests that two big observation wheels is overkill, especially because there are other high vantage points along the Strip to view the area.

But it has long been true in Las Vegas — at least until lately — that the more resorts and attractions, the better, because of the synergy they create in attracting tourists, just as auto dealers frequently seek to congregate along a single street or mall because of the drawing power of so many cars at one venue.

And tourists have shown a liking for attractions. Last year, a fifth of Las Vegas visitors spent time at an attraction other than a show, such as a thrill ride or theme park. Turnout was up 4 percent from the previous year. In Singapore and London, Ferris wheels are top tourist attractions.

“It’s human nature that people want to check out the newest thing,” said Kevin Bagger, senior director of marketing for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. “In Las Vegas, we benefit from a lot of really smart marketers who work to keep their product exciting, and it’s keeping our economy going. Beyond a new resort opening, the individual hotels are very proactive about keeping their product current and fresh.”

The challenges facing Las Vegas are shared by the city that most competes with it, Orlando, Fla.

When the stagnant economy caused profits to dip at Walt Disney World at the East Coast’s tourist mecca, Disney abandoned the building boom it adopted during the flush years, when it regularly introduced new theme parks and rides, and instead redesigned and relaunched aging ones and embarked on a marketing campaign that tried to entice visitors to stay longer and spend more.

The approach paid off. Attendance rose at Disney properties. Just recently, a retooled Star Tours at Hollywood Studios caused so much buzz that the park extended its hours and doubled its tour schedule. Company profits increased, in part because of the larger attendance, but mostly because customers bought more food and souvenirs.

Resort owners and developers hope to see a similar result in Las Vegas. Analysts expect the trend away from megaresorts toward entertainment to continue for several years, until the economy rebounds. The challenge that comes with that is to offer entertainment options that aren’t found in other vacation destinations. And for Las Vegas, given the spread of gambling across the country, offering entertainment diversity has become all the more important.

Read More: http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/au...oks-different/

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by Los Angeles Times

Rick Caruso to develop $550-million open-air attraction on Las Vegas Strip
Caruso is tapped by Caesars Entertainment to oversee creation of the Linq, a retail and entertainment district crowned by an enormous Ferris wheel.
By Roger Vincent and Ashley Powers, Los Angeles Times
August 18, 2011

One of the world's biggest casino operators has hired Los Angeles shopping center magnate Rick Caruso to develop a $550-million retail and entertainment district in the middle of the Las Vegas Strip crowned by an enormous Ferris wheel.

Caruso, who is weighing a run for mayor of Los Angeles, was tapped by Caesars Entertainment Corp. to oversee creation of the Linq, a new open-air attraction across Las Vegas Boulevard from Caesars Palace.

The outdoor venue would have more in common with Caruso's Grove shopping center in Los Angeles than it would with hermetically sealed casinos. City leaders hope the Linq with its bars, restaurants and stores will become a destination with special appeal to the gambling mecca's growing Gen X and Gen Y clientele.

"There are millions of people walking around the sidewalk in Vegas," Caruso said, "but they have nowhere to go except inside."

The Linq represents a new tack for luring visitors to Las Vegas, which has mostly relied on ever grander resorts to generate buzz in years past. A building boom and the recession left casino companies overloaded with hotel rooms and debt, pressing the city to find other ways to entice tourists.

This time, the new attraction will be the world's tallest observation wheel called the Las Vegas High Roller. At 550 feet, it is to stand 100 feet taller than the London Eye. Groups of up to 40 could fit into each of the 28 transparent cabins for the half-hour round trip.

Construction on the Linq is set to begin late this year and to be completed by 2013. The project has been approved by Clark County, Nev., officials and has financing, according to Caesars. The project would be a quarter-mile long and hold more than 200,000 square feet of shops, eateries and bars. Caruso said he would select retailers who did not already have outposts in Las Vegas, but he declined to name potential tenants.

Caruso, who also developed the Americana at Brand in Glendale, said the Linq would have a Vegas sensibility without being gaudy.

"We are not looking to reinvent ourselves," he said. "We are bringing what we do well."

Like the Grove and Americana, the Linq will have elaborate fountains and host events such as outdoor concerts. The design will include shading and heating elements to address temperature spikes in the desert.

Caruso also hopes to manage the Linq for Caesars after it opens, an arrangement that's still under discussion. It would be the first project that his company Caruso Affiliated would operate but not own.

It could be years before Las Vegas celebrates another major resort opening; the economy is soft and all the major casino companies are laden with debt from the building boom. But tourism boosters must still find ways to entice recession-weary visitors to the Strip. More modest projects such as the Linq give them a way to market something new.

Caesars has been planning the Linq since 2007, said Greg Miller, senior vice president of development.

"The conclusion we reached back even before downturn was that we didn't need more hotel capacity," and the search was on for something that Vegas didn't have, Miller said. "We looked at the Grove and said that's it."

For two decades Las Vegas went on a building spree, imploding run-down casinos and opening multibillion-dollar mega-resorts. In doing so, the Strip mostly sidestepped a quandary other tourist destinations faced: how to win over new visitors while bringing old ones back.

Tourists who had giggled at the Excalibur castle returned to gawk at the Luxor pyramid. When themed casinos gave way to upscale resorts such as the Bellagio, Venetian and Wynn Las Vegas, they tried to top one another in terms of opulence. The annual number of visitors soared from 16 million to 39 million in two decades. That's why tourism boosters crowed that in Las Vegas, supply created demand.

The recession quashed that theory. A string of casinos has opened since 2007, when the recession began, but none of them has revived tourism like officials hoped. When the largest project, MGM Resorts International's CityCenter, opened in December 2009, Chief Executive Jim Murren predicted that it would woo at least 5% more tourists to the beleaguered Strip. Instead, visitation inched up 2.7%.

For years, resorts have slashed hotel rates — a key source of revenue — to fill tens of thousands of rooms. Although visitation, room rates and gaming revenue have picked up through the first half of 2011, national economic jitters threaten to wipe out what was widely viewed as a budding recovery.

Meanwhile, other hotel-casino projects on Las Vegas Boulevard stalled. The Fontainebleau and Echelon, abandoned midway through construction, have languished for years, while the Sahara recently went dark with no immediate plans to reopen. CityCenter's Harmon condo-hotel tower was lopped in half because of construction defects and the flagging economy. MGM Resorts officials this week asked the county for permission to implode it.

The Linq will replace a road that runs between the Flamingo and the Imperial Palace, Miller said. It is the first major project in Las Vegas to be announced since the recession humbled the city.

"It was good idea before the downturn," he said. "Now it's really a good idea. This symbolizes our confidence that the market is and will continue to be the most important entertainment destination in the country."

Read More: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...,1733774.story

[CrazyAboutCities]

WOW! I love this rendering! It looks much better than old rendering. Can't wait to check it out when it completes.

[saiholmes]

Originally Posted by CrazyAboutCities

WOW! I love this rendering! It looks much better than old rendering. Can't wait to check it out when it completes.

Americana at Brand by Rick Caruso

[desertpunk]

LVR-J

Identity sought for city's center



By Tim O'Reiley
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
Posted: Aug. 27, 2011 | 2:00 a.m.

Would downtown Las Vegas be a bigger draw if you could meet your friends in Dixieland or hang out in front of the New York Stock Exchange?

In pushing the idea of a master identity for the down-on-its-heels heart of the city, former Lt. Gov. Lorraine Hunt-Bono has hit on the idea of theming different parts of it. Along the west side of Las Vegas Boulevard, a few blocks to the north and south of Fremont Street, the side streets would be dressed up to reflect milieus appealing to Hollywood, such as vintage Vegas, the Old West and the urbanity of Wall Street. To the east, streets would be tied to different musical genres such as jazz, blues and country.

"Right now, downtown is all pieces," said Hunt-Bono, who has also served on promotional boards in the state. "It's really an entity unto itself, and we should think of it as one entity and sell it as the city the way the resorts have done with the Strip."

So far, her concept, explained in a five-page binder, has been given to only a handful of people. One of them, Mayor Carolyn Goodman, was not available for comment.

The presentation touts "side streets adaptable for movie/TV ad commercial productions highlighting a music and arts district," and notes that "the 'city' of Las Vegas is now at its 'Tipping Point' and needs to be 'tipped' in the right direction."

[...]

read more: http://www.lvrj.com/business/identit...128519578.html

[triodegradable2]

muy buen render ,me encanta !

[desertpunk]

Las Vegas Rental Market Improves

Las Vegas

The Las Vegas rental market is finally beginning to stabilize after 11 consecutive quarterly declines, according to a recent report by the business advisory firm Applied Analysis. The report found that apartment rents in the area saw the smallest quarterly drop -- 1 percent -- since late 2008. The market appears to be "feeling its way along a choppy bottom," Jake Joyce, a manager at Applied Analysis, told the Las Vegas Review Journal. The average monthly Las Vegas rent dropped to $758 in the third quarter, down from $766 in the same period of last year, the report showed. Meanwhile, occupancy rose to 92 percent from 90.7 percent in the prior-year quarter. Occupancy rates bottomed out at 90.1 percent in late 2009, Joyce said, and have been steadily rising since then. However, Las Vegas landlords are facing more competition from single-family homes, as investors increasingly buy houses in all-cash sales with the intention of renting them out. "This is changing the dynamic of our communities, as more and more and more homes have become tenant-occupied," said local real estate agent Bill Myers.

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