Two Way Hard Three | Las Vegas Casino & Design Blog

Last month, several renderings (since removed) of the exterior of the Switch Beach Club at Encore were revealed. They didn't offer much in the way of a surprise - escalators, sweeping stairs and arches, all in the Wynn D&D aesthetic, matching their recent work.

Today, the sleuths at VegasTripping.com turned up a few more renderings - this time sketches of potential interiors. My first impression: hmmmmmm.

Roger Thomas, my vote for one of the best interior designers on the planet (and the best casino designer ever), talked a bit about his intentions on a recent episode of The Strip Podcast. These renderings match that conversation pretty well, lending them additional validity.

These leaks have tempered my excitement about the project's design. Granted, a pool day club is not my personal idea of a good time but I was expecting more. Something special - to match Encore's spa, restaurants, casino and guest rooms, all of which are A+.

I was hoping that whatever came next would at least make me forget losing the beautiful tree-lined, flower ringed atrium that Encore opened with.

Is it possible these aren't final? Yes, it is. The source is solid though - this guy has worked with Wynn D&D and it's predecessor Atlandia Design for years. Perhaps the structure, as built, will be a stunner. I plan to be there opening day to see for myself (Mike E is letting me borrow his Speedo).

Will this project end up being a bit of a dud, at least in terms of the 'evoca-tecture' that Thomas is known for? I hope not... but now I'm a bit worried.

Thomas' work is about creating moments - I hope this is a good one.

Macau's new Chief Executive, Fernando Chui, gave his first policy address March 16. He had been expected to announce stringent plans to slow the overheated gaming market in the Chinese region and announce steps to diversify Macau's economy. Gaming revenues increased almost 70% in the first two months of this year compared to 2009. Gambling accounts for about three-quarters of government revenue for Macau However, his comments appear to have resulted in a sigh of relief by major casino operators who already have a presence in Macau such as Wynn and Las Vegas Sands.

Reuters reports that Chui intends to limit the building of new casinos. This could help current operators' profits by protecting the market from oversupply of new casinos. Wall Street will give its opinion when the NYSE opens this morning.

To read Reuters:
Macau government to regulate the building of casinos

Wall Street Journal initial story (subscription may be requred):
Macau Gambling Industry Awaits Chui's Speech

Update: RJ's Howard Stutz weighs in.
Macau Curtailing New Casino Construction

Update #2: The market liked WYNN and LVS today. Wynn +4.48% and LVS +7.33%.

The process for MGM Mirage to divest itself of its 50% share in Atlantic City's Borgata is starting to become clear:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/mar/12/mgm-mirage-sell-its-stake-atlantic-citys-borgata/

Boyd is the obvious buyer as they own the other half. Who else though? Have recent developments scared off Atlantic City investment? It will be an interesting barometer.

Las Vegas Sands - Net Income: -$113.9 million (loss) Revenue: $1.28 billion LV Sun

MGM Mirage - Net Income: -$434 million (loss) Revenue: $1.45 billion LV Sun

Harrah's Entertainment - Net Income: $295.6 million Revenue: $2.09 billion LV Sun

Wynn Resorts - Net Income: -$5.2 million (loss) Revenue: $809.3 million More Info

Boyd Gaming - Net Income: -$1.0 million (loss) Revenue: $384.9 million More Info

This thread will be updated as other companies report.

Steve Wynn wants to open in Pennsylvania, and it looks like LVS wants to sell Sands Bethlehem after only nine months.
Las Vegas Sands Corp. seeking to sell Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem

This time on the show:

* MGM's Aria - 2 Months In
* MGM Mirage Exits Atlantic City / Wynn Enters Philadelphia Market
* Greenspun / Station Casinos Relationship Disintegrates
* Lake Las Vegas Shuts Down
* President Obama's Remarks and Visit
* Harrah's Interested in The Palms?

Check out the show: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com/2010/02/vegas-gang-44-february-25th-2010/

Feel free to leave comments below. Trivia questions can be sent to editor@ratevegas.com - we might use yours on the show.

In a much rumored development, Wynn Resorts has announced that they are slated to become the managing partner for the casino project slated for the Philadelphia waterfront.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1394346&highlight=

This is a slap for New Jersey and is potentially another significant nail in Atlantic City's coffin.

Here's a little more from the local media:
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20100223_Steve_Wynn_takes_over_Foxwoods_project.html?cmpid=41144277

What's not clear is how much, if any, design influence Wynn Design and Development would have over the project. It's hard to imagine Wynn putting their name on something they didn't design or at least make-over. Time will tell.

UPDATE: Here's the Web site for the project as originally envisioned, including some renderings: http://www.foxwoodspa.com/overview/

This weekend, hoping to break a long set-in case of the burnout blues, I decided at the last minute to head to Las Vegas. Some friends would be in town, it sounded like fun. Hell, I might even get to see the president (I didn't).

Continue after the jump for the rantings and raving of a madman.

I see a lot of stories fly across my various feeds. Rarely is one as juicy as this, if the allegations from GCR Gaming (Greenspun owned, GVR 50% owner) are true.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/18/disputes-erupts-between-green-valley-ranch-partner/

To distill, they're alleging that Station is diverting all the good stuff (customers, vibes and apparently cuts of beef) to their other, 100% owned facilities like Red Rock, away from the '50 cent piece' that is Green Valley Ranch.

It's starting to get fun to watch this one.

Mike is back with another Strip Walk. This time we venture through TI, Bellagio, PH Towers, Palazzo, Aria, NYNY and more, including a mini-review of the Dal Toro restaurant at Palazzo.

Enjoy.

Vegas Mate, my Las Vegas travel guide for the iPhone and iPod Touch, is about to be updated again, to version 2.5. This will be the tenth update to Vegas Mate since it was originally released in August 2008.

What's new in this version? Nearly 13,000 words of updated or brand new content, along with some other tweaks and enhancements.

As I look at the future of Vegas Mate and other related apps (ahem, iPad ahem), I see good content as being right at the core of delivering a top-notch product. With that in mind, I hired my good friend, highly acclaimed freelancer Steve Friess to produce a few words (sometimes more than just a few) on virtually all of the hotels in the Vegas Mate database.

The result is a fantastic update full of a ton of information (some of which was new to me!) I couldn't be more happy with the way it has turned out and I'm sure you'll love it too. It's really fantastic.

My plan is to submit 2.5 to Apple in the next few days so it should be available relatively soon - maybe a week from now if the stars align properly. Vegas Mate updates are free to all existing customers.

In other news, I'm happy to say that a new Vegas Mate Web site is practically done (I cringe whenever I look at the current VM site). It features more info on the app as well as several screen casts showing the app in action.

Well, this seemed inevitable. MGM Mirage announced they are planning to divest themselves of the 50% stake they own in Atlantic City's Borgata.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/08/mgm-mirage-leave-new-jersey-dispute-over-macau-par/

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/MGM-to-divest-from-Atlantic-City-83803412.html

The asset will remain in trust as they arrange a sale.

You know the drill - discuss whatever you desire. Welcome to February.

Is MGM Mirage gearing up to exit Atlantic City? Will they sell their Borgata share and if so, to whom?

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/feb/01/mgm-mirage-disputes-nj-regulators-authority-vet-it/

This time on the show:

* Fontainebleau + Ichan
* Resort Fees
* Harrah's + Planet Hollywood
* Harrah's iPhone App

* Vegas Gang Trivia Episode #1

Check out the show: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com/2010/01/vegas-gang-43-january-21st-2010

Feel free to leave comments below. Trivia questions can be sent to editor@ratevegas.com - we might use yours on the show.