Two Way Hard Three | Las Vegas Casino & Design Blog

Fascinating article today in the Sun about the fast-paced world of design and construction on the Las Vegas Strip.

Cost overruns and safety issues at projects like Fontainebleau and City Center have highlighted the massively iterative nature of the design process, sometimes at the cost of millions.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jun/28/practice-building-designs-are-done-hits-wall-fonta/

A story today in the RJ about how MGM Mirage saved City Center.

Despite painting a rosy outlook at the time, things were very close to catastrophe.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/48721837.html

This is a topic we touched on during a Vegas Gang show - I speculated that Murren and Co really pulled off a near-miracle in keeping the project intact. Knowing now that they did it without having to sell any additional Strip properties is even more amazing.

Happy to be back after a little bit of a break. Lots to talk about, as always.

We discuss:

* MGM Mirage Expands to Egypt
* Tropicana Atlantic City Sells to Ichan
* Fontainebleau Files Chapter 11
* City of Dreams Opens on Cotai

Also, check out WinoTripping.com and Vegas Mate 2.

Feel free to leave your comments below. If it's a question that you want asked on the show, please make that clear in your post. You can also send those to editor@ratevegas.com.

We know that all casino operators take their player databases and deliver offers based on the customer's profile - better customers get better offers, though sometimes it can be far more complex than that - bringing in a long lost customer, enticing some specific block. They use high-end relationship management software to pull these things together.

It becomes more interesting when an operator makes a mistake and the customer gets to see how they are classified in the database.

Over the past day or so, MGM Mirage sent out email marketing information for the Michael Buble concert on July 4th weekend. At the bottom of the offer, where it has the players name, it appears they accidentally included the account classification.

Here's what mine looked like:

I'm not sure what 'Mature Wealth' actually means - I'm 29 years old and haven't been staying or playing with MGM Mirage as much as I did a few years ago. Even when I had, I never dropped any large coin at their properties - it did make me chuckle though.

What's more interesting is that other readers reported tags such as 'Modest Means' - not sure if calling customers poor is the hook MGM was looking for to get people back on property.

Did you get this email? Any other interesting tags you're willing to share in the comments?

I guess the Luxor was just practice - MGM Mirage is going to put an MGM Grand branded hotel into Giza, the Cairo suburb home to the Great Pyramid.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1299491&

I've been to see the pyramids and while they are impressive. I don't know if I can imagine an MGM Grand logo blinking in neighborhood.

An investment group lead by Carl Ichan has finalized a purchase of the Tropicana in Atlantic City. Ichan has gaming experience having previously owned interests in Arizona Charlie's and The Stratosphere in Las Vegas.

The AC Trop was forced into sale when the NJCC opted not to renew the license of previous owner, Columbia Sussex.

The price for Ichan? $200 million - that's 80% less than the $1B the property was expected to fetch. Amazing.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jun/12/tropicana-atlantic-city-sold-carl-icahn-led-group/

Mike is back with a Strip Walk for June 2009 including Encore, Palazzo, Treasure Island, City Center and more.

As always, the photo gallery is here: http://photo.ratevegas.com/gallery/8511233_PnJR7

Click through to read more.

Not a big surprise given the funding problems they ran into when the banks pulled their last $800 million but it's still worth noting that this is bad news.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jun/09/fontainebleau-developer-files-bankruptcy/

Thanks to reader 'G' for sending this to me.

As has been reported in many corners, plans for changes at the Trop in Las Vegas are moving forward.

This RJ story has the details:
http://www.lvrj.com/business/46897947.html

Even if they pump a $100 million into this place, it will still be the Trop. Don't get me wrong, it could go a long way to clean up the casino floor - new carpets, some paint, etc... but let's not pretend that all of a sudden people are going to mistake it for a five-diamond joint.

Trop 3.0 could do just fine targeting the mid-market.

I heard rumblings about the LVS Club Grazie policy a few days ago but completely spaced on it.

Thankfully, Chuck Mike E. @ VegasTripping did not and wrote it up: http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2715

This one is near and dear to my heart. I love playing the casino but I'm *sure* that over the years I've spent way more on hotel suites and fancy meals. I know I would personally benefit from this *cough* Wynn Resorts *cough*.

Hopefully this trend spreads as fast as the ultralounge.

Former Mandalay Resort Group executive Glenn Schaeffer is out as the top dog at Fontainebleau Resorts. This is another *major* blow for the company that is already struggling with financing problems related to its Strip resort.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/46476427.html

The WSJ has an article about City of Dreams, set to open Monday on Macau's Cotai Strip.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124353285659363265.html

At $2.4 billion, it's a very ambitious project and I know a lot of Macau-o-philes that are eagerly awaiting the doors being thrown open. Other than The Venetian, it's the second *major* project to open on Cotai.

Happy to be back after a little bit of a break. Lots to talk about, as always.

We discuss:

* MGM Mirage Pulls a Rabbit Out of its Hat
* Fontainebleau May Not Be Totally Screwed (we'll see)
* UNLV Center for Gaming Research Trends
* MGM Mirage Selling Properties

Feel free to leave your comments below. If it's a question that you want asked on the show, please make that clear in your post. You can also send those to editor@ratevegas.com.

The results of the long-running New Jersey investigation into the suitability of Pansy Ho as a business partner for MGM Mirage has resulted in the department of enforcement recommending against.

MGM Mirage partnered with Ho on MGM Grand Macau and owns a 50% interest of one New Jersey property, the Borgata.

What happens next is unclear - maybe nothing. The Sun has more:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/may/19/nj-mgm-mirage-should-disengage-macau-partner

We sent Mr. Mike_Ch over to Mandalay Bay to see the new production of Disney's The Lion King.

He came back with a mighty helpful and dare I say insightful review.

Enjoy after the jump!

Despite the fact the LVRJ has misspelled the name of the resort (as of this writing it says 'Corporate layoffs begin at Fountainebleau, more cuts likely'), they do have an interesting story about layoffs at the under-construction Strip resort.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/45366242.html

The private equity takeover plan that includes former MGM Grand exec Alex Yemenidjian seems to be moving forward.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/may/15/equity-firm-plans-take-over-tropicana/

MGM Mirage has proposed issuing some new debt and equity to raise up to $2.5 billion. Proceeds would be used to pay off other debts.

Part of the package would includes liens against Bellagio and The Mirage which translates into MGM not selling those places anytime soon.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/may/13/mgm-mirage-issues-plan-avoids-selling-bellagio-mir/

As per an email marketing campaign, Monte Carlo will be introducing 'Hotel 32' in the coming weeks or months.

Details are sparse and MGM Mirage says they're not ready to divulge more yet but the images in the email seem to show a heavily upgraded 32nd floor, the top level damaged by the January 2008 fire. There may also be a special lounge on this floor for suite guests, though that's not confirmed.

http://click.mgg01.net/t/6315812/27690704/12343953/0/

Hotel 32 is expected to start accepting guests sometime in August of 2009.

Las Vegas Sands reported their first quarter results and as many could have guessed, they lost a little money this time around - looks like $87 million.

Details here:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=185629&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1284548&highlight=

Wynn Resorts posted their first quarter numbers today:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/may/05/wynn-resorts-posts-first-quarter-loss/

Looks like Macau, sometimes the lifeboat for earnings, wasn't able to pull it off this time.

A very tough quarter for the Las Vegas based operator - 20% reduction in net revenue. To their credit, they don't sugar coat it - things are tough in gaming and these results reflect that.

If they hadn't had some of the TI sale figures in this quarter, things would have looked even worse.

REVPAR took a big hit - looks like they had to significantly drop rates to stabilize occupancy.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1283960&

CSM at VegasTripping.com has posted some still images of Fontainebleau Las Vegas interiors that were captured from a video rendering. Chuck's post and stills are here:

http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2655

The original video is here:

http://www.spine3d.com/portfolio/animations.html

Chuck mentions in his post that it amps up his interest in the property a good margin. While I think some of it looks interesting, that overhead casino shot reminds me of a nicer version of Planet Hollywood. Of course, I may change my mind when I see it in person.

Still, very interesting. Hopefully this place is completed sooner rather than later.

Sad news this morning - long time Las Vegas headliner Danny Gans, who recently opened a new show at Encore Las Vegas, has apparently died in his sleep. He was 52 years old.

Gans previous show at The Mirage had a long successful run, as did his previous off-Strip engagement at The Rio.

While perhaps not known outside of Las Vegas, Danny Gans' show was one of the town's most popular.

I know Gans was married and had children. Very sad.

Review-Journal: http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/44137092.html

Las Vegas Sun: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/may/01/reports-las-vegas-headliner-danny-gans-dies/

Update: Richard Abowitz has the Wynn statement: http://vegasblog.latimes.com/vegas/2009/05/breaking-vegas-headliner-dead-at-52.html

Update: Steve Friess spoke with Gans manager Chip Lightman: http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2009/05/danny-gans-dead-at-52.html

After a very anti-climatic afternoon which saw MGM Mirage shares stop trading ahead of the closing bell, we see this news that MGM and partner Dubai World have hammered out an agreement, along with the lenders, to make sure CityCenter is completed and opens later this year.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=irol-newsArticle&t=Regular&id=1282241&

It appears that MGM Mirage had to put Circus Circus and its land up as a lien as part of this deal, if construction costs go over.

Here's an open topic thread for y'all, primed with a report that LVS may be looking to sell Sands Macau and then operate it for for prospective buyer.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/apr/27/las-vegas-sands-weighs-deal-macau-casino-property/

We're back with another episode! It can be downloaded here.

Our special guest is casino expert Bill Zender, author of Casino-ology, a collection of his writings over the past several years. Zender was also a guest on Dr. Dave's excellent UNLV podcast.

We discuss:

* Game Protection and the Future
* Casino Consolidation on The Strip
* MGM Mirage Selling Properties

Feel free to leave your comments below. If it's a question that you want asked on the show, please make that clear in your post. You can also send those to editor@ratevegas.com.

According to the award winning Las Vegas Sun, Fontainebleau is suing some banks that apparently don't want to loan about $800MM that was promised to complete the project.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/apr/23/fontainebleau-files-lawsuit-over-funding/

Funny, we were just talking about FBleau on the VegasGang today. Episode to be posted soon.

According to the WSJ, investor Carl Icahn and Oaktree Capital, a private equity firm, have been buying up MGM Mirage bonds and are pushing for the company to file bankruptcy.

More as it develops.

Update: WSJ link.

In 2006, before a cratering economy taught grown men how to cry, a Nevada holding company, Southern NV Rental Holdings, purchased dozens of houses around the Palace Station casino on West Sahara.

In that linked article, the Sun hypothesizes that Station Casinos was somehow involved in these purchases, perhaps for possible re-development in that area. That same holding company purchased other residential properties near other Station developments as well.

Well, it seems these houses are again for sale and whoever does ultimately own them seems willing to take a bath to get rid of them. The original article indicates a range of purchase prices, some in the $200,000 - $285,000 range. Many of the units are now listed at selling prices of $120,000 or less.

Is Station selling assets at fire sale prices to raise cash? Given the level of indirection with these holdings, we can't say for sure and the company didn't respond to my email request for a comment.

Update: Some more from the LVBP archives (thanks David!). Still not completely clear it is Station - could be a business partner that now wants to divest itself of land for a project that probably isn't happening anytime soon... or not. The delving continues.

It seems Dubai World has floated a proposal in the drama that is CityCenter.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123939646828409297.html

Hopefully you can read that (I will post a free link when/if I can) but it basically sounds like they're saying that all the parties should agree to fund the rest of the project - you know, kinda like the original plan they had when they struck their deal in the first place.

Under this plan, MGM Mirage, Dubai and the banks would remove some of the contingencies surrounding the final $3 billion (every time, this number seems different) in funding required to finish the project.

Also, a different story from the RJ about MGM Mirage about the banks letting them continue to go along alone, without DW:
http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/42822312.html

Many of you have already seen the two part interview with Steve Wynn that Jon Ralston did. If not, watch here:

Part One (LV Sun)

Part Two (LV Sun)

Now, along with giving insight into his political beliefs, one of the more interesting bits is the talk about Wynn shopping for assets on The Strip. We also discussed this on yesterday's Vegas Gang. Would Wynn buy Bellagio? I think the consensus is that he meant what he said - if the price is right, Wynn Resorts may be game. This should not surprise anyone.

Wynn says Las Vegas is better off with multiple operators duking it out. I totally agree and hope that one of the positive outcomes of this downturn is that we have better, more vibrant bare-knuckled competition on The Strip. That would certainly make my job more interesting.

Can't get enough of The Steve? He'll be on 60 Minutes this Sunday with a piece by my favorite interviewer, Charlie Rose.

We're back with another episode! It can be downloaded here.

This time around we discuss:

* February 2009 Gaming Numbers
* Listener Questions

Feel free to leave your comments below.

We will touch on this on the next Vegas Gang show but I wanted to post this for comments.

As is typical, the gaming figures have been released. They are of course, down.

Dr. Dave thinks the RJ is downplaying the bad news.

In related news, word comes that the Gaming Control Board is forming an internal crisis team to deal with bankrupt casinos.

Harrah's was able to pull off a debt swap that looks to have improved their position a bit.

Steve Friess has a very interesting photo post over at Vegas Happens Here:

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2009/04/foto-fun-inside-wynn-artists-studio.html

I'd highly encourage checking it out for any Wynn and/or design freaks.

Sources are telling the Las Vegas Sun that City Center may be forced to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy tomorrow, if they miss an important financial payment.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/26/reports-citycenter-hires-law-firm-preps-bankruptcy/

This is also being covered by the WSJ: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123811086468552891.html#mod=testMod

NOTE: This isn't a filing for MGM Mirage, just City Center LLC.

We'll see what happens here. It is unclear if MGM Mirage would be allowed to make the Dubai World part of the payment if they wanted to and if they did, it might not be in their interest to do so, even if they had the cash.

At this point, both companies are positioning themselves in a legal pissing contest for control of the project.

We're back with another episode! It can be downloaded here.

This time around we discuss:

* Casino Photography Rules
* MGM Mirage vs. Dubai World
* Tropicana / Chapter 11
* Las Vegas Sands in Macau

Feel free to leave your comments below.

We haven't had an open topic for some time so here goes...

One thing to kick it off: Dubai is suing MGM Mirage over City Center:

http://www.lvrj.com/news/41688037.html

And the LVSUN:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/23/lawsuit-clouds-future-citycenter/

Casinos have discouraged photography inside for ages - it's nothing new. This is usually under the guise of protecting their customers privacy.

Recently though, some have reported casino security taking a much harder line and in one case, a photographer was even detained.

VegasRex has been beating the drum on this issue for some time - if I recall, he even had a run-in himself. Some of his commentary is here: http://www.vegasrex.com/2009/03/22/photography-in-casinos-officials-respond/

The RJ is now looking at the issue as well, contacting Rex, the detained customer and a few security officials: http://www.lvrj.com/business/41647727.html

As someone who has taken literally thousands of photos of these places, inside and out, I have strong feelings on this. Now, I understand a private business can prohibit photography - I've been asked not to take photos - but the idea that this is some kind of security threat and that it could even possibly be a real offense is ludicrous.

Not much of a surprise given all that's gone on with the company - it seems they are going to use the bankruptcy laws to attempt to re-organize.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/18/station-seek-bankruptcy-protection-april-15/

Not much else to say - just the latest step for Station as it attempts to survive a dramatic fall off of its Las Vegas business combined with the staggering debt load accumulated by going private.

MGM Mirage has posted their late filing of their results from the fourth quarter of 2008.

Summary from the company here:
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1267058&

Unless I'm missing something, seems like they intentionally left out some of the worse looking numbers, leaving analysts and readers to compute them for themselves. Loss per share of $4.15? Not good. Occupancy hovering in the 85% range - I was actually expecting a bit worse.

The language in the filing , likely required by auditors, is pretty stark - it spells out the trouble that MGM Mirage is in regarding financing the completion of their projects.

A conference call is scheduled for this evening and this post will be updated once I have time to read the whole filing.

Update: More from the WSJ: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123732708930762149.html?mod=rss_whats_news_us

An article in the Wall Street Journal today discusses the possibility of more asset sales at MGM Mirage - perhaps enough that it may look more like a breakup of the company than just shedding a few hotel rooms.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123699441708227489.html

(if that doesn't work, you can probably access through Google here)

While MGM Mirage shareholders might not love the idea of the best assets being sold off at potential fire-sale prices, maybe this would be good for The Strip and Las Vegas.

As others have said, when ARIA opens, will Bellagio suffer? If it had a different set of owners, they could compete head-on, full bore.

One thing is for sure - MGM Mirage has bet the farm on City Center.

They are writing down massive amounts of goodwill... plus, the properties aren't throwing off nearly as much cash as they used to.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/13/harrahs-reports-loss-says-lv-properties-hit-hard/

According to the Las Vegas Sun, Australia's Crown Resorts is canceling their purchase of Las Vegas based Cannery Resorts:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/12/australian-company-ends-cannery-purchase-agreement/

The article references licensing requirements in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a potential source of trouble.

Now, the deal isn't 100% dead - Crown has the option to consummate a deal with Cannery down the line, though it's far from certain now.

[Thanks to reader Mark D. for catching this one so quickly.]

Another week, another report of building problems left undiscovered by officials. Instead of City Center, now we have the neighboring Cosmopolitan, the property that can't seem to find a permanent owner having been taken over by its financiers after the developer defaulted last year.

The RJ reports: http://www.lvrj.com/news/41078077.html

With all of this talk about buildings not being properly checked during construction, I can't help but to recall these issues with Harrah's a few years back:

http://www.ratevegas.com/blog/2007/10/harrahs_cut_cor.html

http://www.ratevegas.com/blog/2008/04/vegas_gang_6_ap.html

According to CBS Channel 8 in Las Vegas, Steve and Elaine Wynn are divorcing.

The couple are heavily involved in their company, Wynn Resorts. Both are on the board of directors and their decision making is visible throughout their projects. Elaine is often credited with many of the concepts that have evolved into major resort features, from 'Mt. Wynn' all the way down to the uniforms on the restaurant and cocktail servers.

Steve has often indicated that much of the design, be it guest rooms or public spaces, is heavily influenced by a female point of view. There's a much repeated story about picking glass based on how the color would make female customers look, an example of how important they consider these things. I'd argue that this has been a very big part of the successes they've seen in their resorts.

It's not clear if Mrs. Wynn will remain active in the company, though in the past she has indicated her intention to do just that. I've met her only in passing but from what I have read about her, she just seems like an incredible woman and I personally hope she remains involved.

Bill Weidner resigned as president of Las Vegas Sands today.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/40975622.html

Not much more information is available at this time, though this seems unexpected and sudden. Las Vegas Sands has been hit especially hard by the economic downturn.

Is the Hard Rock looking through people's bags to enforce a 'no outside booze' policy? Seems crazy, right? Well I received an email from a reliable reader saying that they are doing just that, at least this past weekend.

This sort of policy is just as common as people ignoring it - most Las Vegas hotels frown on the practice and if you're walking around with a cooler or carrying a six-pack, you might see a raised eyebrow or even be questioned about it. From what I'm hearing though, the Hard Rock is going a step beyond this with security guards actually having customers open their backpacks, purses, and other bags to ensure that no outside alcohol is coming into the hotel. From what I am told, these searches are being applied unevenly - sometimes they're allowing folks to pass right through and other times stopping everyone.

After taking an informal survey on Twitter, no one had ever even heard of it being taken this far at other properties though HRH patrons confirmed that the hotel has been having guests sign a paper indicating an understanding of the policy for years.

Now, I am not a lawyer but this just seems totally upside down. Being private property, maybe there's nothing at all illegal about asking to go through people's stuff but what happens if you refuse? Do they throw you out? Does grandma have to let security rifle through her underwear?

I have a line into the hotel to see if this is official policy or just an overzealous shift of rent-a-cops. I'll update this post when/if I hear back - so far nothing.

Stories in the Sun and RJ today have word that Cosmo owner Deutsche Bank have decided to re-design the interiors of some floors, resulting in work stoppage.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/06/work-cosmopolitan-resort-hold/

Also, there's word that the bank may have signed a deal with Hilton to operate the hotel and/or casino portions - Deutsche does not have a Nevada gaming license and a recent deal with MGM Mirage seems to have fallen apart.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/40891687.html

Two unrelated stories from the Las Vegas Sun.

First off, it seems Moody's are saying that Fontainebleau might be in trouble if they can't sell condos (insight!):

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/04/moodys-fontainebleau-could-default-debt/

Then we also have Harrah's, a company struggling to avoid bankruptcy. They're attempting to re-structure their debt to avoid that scenario.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/04/harrahs-could-be-short-cash-pay-debts/

Let the good times roll!

MGM Mirage was due to file it's 10K quarterly report information with the SEC but instead, filed for an extension:

RJ: http://www.lvrj.com/business/40703237.html

Sun: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/03/mgm-mirage-says-it-needs-more-time-file-annual-rep/

MGM Mirage is in an incredibly precarious position. If it cannot re-work its capital structure or sell off some additional properties, there may be no option other than Chapter 11 - almost unthinkable for a company that just a few years ago was the king of The Strip.

Principal shareholder Kirk Kerkorian has seen his stake shrink from almost $10 billion to somewhere just shy of $400 million.

Update: MGM Mirage's Jim Murren has sent a letter to employees about the company's financial condition: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/mar/03/mgm-mirage-chairmans-letter-employees-about-compan/

Boyd Gaming, who shut down their Strip project Echelon last year, is making a bid for a chunk of troubled Las Vegas locals operator Station Casinos.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/40115287.html

For $950 million they would purchase Green Valley Ranch, Aliante Station, Texas Station, Wild Wild West and both Fiestas. Boyd has a large locals operation already that could potentially meld well with Station's offerings.

Update: There's some discrepancy over exactly which assets are included in the proposal. This LV Sun blurb doesn't mention GVR: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/23/boyd-gaming-offers-buy-station/

Updated March 3rd: As of today, Station has rejected this offer from Boyd: http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/40660477.html

As most readers know, I was at the M Resort opening party last night... not as an invited guest but as a media person - I basically forced myself on the PR folks and they were gracious enough to give me the green light.

After spending three or so hours there on Sunday night and then another hour again today, I wish I could say it was awesome and that I was blown away. Generally speaking, I wasn't. There are some cool touches like the wine cellar, the pool deck and the pharmacy but other than that, I could have been inside Aliante Station (which also cost $400 million less to build) or GVR and not known the difference.

I don't mean to say there's anything 'wrong' with the place but by that same token, I did not see anything that would make it a recommended must-stop. In the boom times of years past, this would be another strong locals contender, easily in the same bracket as Green Valley Ranch or maybe even Red Rock but those times are long gone. It's certainly a lot nicer than South Point so the folks that live in the area should be pleased, though I think the only people living in the immediate neighborhood are lizards and coyotes - there is nothing but empty desert across the street.

I timed the trip from MGM Grand to the M - 22 minutes by car in moderate traffic on Las Vegas Blvd. It would no doubt be faster on the 15 but the point is that it is quite a ways from the resort corridor of The Strip. If they are trying to poach anyone from that zone, I wish them luck.

In the run-up to the opening, owner Anthony Marnell III has been making a big deal about recognizing the new economic reality. His implication is that the days of expensive hotel rooms and high end meals are waning. My inspection of his restaurant menus didn't give me much faith this philosophy has been implemented - $42 steaks with $7 baked potatoes sounds more like Bellagio prices than Value Central.

When I came back today, Marnell himself was walking the floor, fixing problems and attending to customers - that's great. With Strip casinos being run by large corporations and even the bigger locals operators filled with bureaucracy, it's refreshing to see an owner/operator involved at that level. The Las Vegas Strip is such big business that nothing happens that isn't PR approved and focus group tested - that means little to no innovation and lots of 'me too' copying (see nightclubs, ultra lounges, gourmet burger places, etc...) A directly involved manager like Marnell has an opportunity to innovate and I hope he does. Putting the pharmacy in the casino is a promising first step and his background in technology, a sector known for innovation, gives me hope we'll see them trying new and interesting things out there. The family did that at The Rio and I hope that trend continues at 'M'.

I ended up doing the rounds with Steve Friess and I'm glad I did because it made the entire thing far more fun. His write-up is here and I recommend checking it out if you're curious about the resort. Steve's a much better writer than I am (duh).

So - should you check out the 'M'? If you're in the neighborhood, sure. I think of Red Rock Resort as enough of a spectacle to be worth visiting from other parts of the Valley. Not sure if I would put 'M' in that category, at least not yet. The VP pay tables didn't look all that hot (lots of 8/5). Some of the restaurants looked interesting and the wine cellar joint is pretty cool.

Some new photos:

http://photo.ratevegas.com/gallery/7500149_pD8V6

Update: David McKee has chipped in with more thoughts including from others that were there last night. Seems like opinions are all over the place for 'M'.

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2009/3/2/Menations

I took some photos at the VIP opening party for M Resort, located on Las Vegas Blvd. at St. Rose Parkway.

The party was a lively affair with most all of the restaurants open for tastings. The wine cellar was also open downstairs, one of the cooler parts of the property.

I'm going to go back to the casino again today to spend some more time there before I render an option. First impressions - some interesting restaurants and nice pool deck but a fairly unimaginative casino design. I still think some aspects like including an on-site pharmacy are brilliant.

The photos:
http://photo.ratevegas.com/gallery/7494550_NtYXN

We're back with another episode! It can be downloaded here.

This time around we discuss:

* Boyd Offers to Buy Station Assets
* Wynn Resorts Q4 2008
* iPhone Card Counting Software Makes the Rounds
* 2008 Gaming Abstract Figures
* M Resort Opens Sunday

Feel free to leave your comments below.

Wynn Resorts has released their financials for Q4 2008:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1259580&highlight=

Not great, as expected. Still, not terrible. For the quarter, adjusted net income was $7.6 million, down from $82 million a year ago. Most of this decline is due to Las Vegas as Wynn Macau saw an uptick. They also took a tax charge, bringing the GAAP earnings for Q4 to a loss of $159.9 million.

While only online for a little more than a week in 2008, we get our first peek at how the company will be reporting Encore. It seems that they will not be breaking the WLV/Encore numbers apart. For the Las Vegas complex ADR was $281 and REVPAR was $224. Occupancy was down to 79.7% for the quarter - incredibly low.

Wynn Macau seems to be humming along nicely with a 35.6% revenue bump over 2007.

All the details are in the press release linked above.

Thanks to reader Anthony who pointed out this breaking story... It appears that the rumors may have some truth to them - this has been floating around for a few weeks without any substantiation.

It seems that Deutsche Bank may be looking to extricate themselves from the situation they find themselves in with Cosmopolitan by offering to help finance the rest of MGM's City Center project.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/40126262.html

ARIA, the main hotel component at City Center, is taking reservations starting today. The first night for regular guests is December 17.

The Web site for bookings, which also contains some new renderings of the property and rooms is here:

http://www.arialasvegas.com

Rates for opening night are currently at $299 (ouch) for what is normally a very very slow week in town. We'll see if those come down.

Reservations for Vdara, the condo hotel next to ARIA, are expected to open today as well [online here - thanks Mike P!] for dates starting in October. Not sure what it will be like to stay in what will still be a construction site in the delta between those two openings.

This is the first opening of a [ed: Las Vegas] hotel for MGM Mirage since the company was combined in 2000.

Not a new story but I've been out of commission for the past 36 hours... Looks like some analysts believe that Fontainebleau may run into some cash issues post open, later this year.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/20/sp-fontainebleau-could-have-trouble-making-payment/

Of course, we here and pretty much everyone else, everywhere else has been saying this too.

Mike's back with another Strip Walk column. He's got some photo links in his post but if you want to see the entire gallery, click here:

http://photo.ratevegas.com/gallery/7348756_YyrfG

Continue after the jump to get your Vegas fix.

An interesting note in the 'Inside Gaming' column today - it seems that the Nevada Gaming Control Board is looking into reports that software for the iPhone and iPod Touch could potentially be used to cheat in casinos at games like Blackjack. Counting is not illegal in Nevada but using an electronic device to aid is.

There are many 21 training programs available on the iTunes Store, some that do include a 'counting feature'.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/39633187.html

There's even some vague implication that the phones could be banned - which would be useless... All the various smartphones allow downloadable applications, not just the iPhone - that's nothing new. As they become more and more popular, customers will not stand for not being able to use their phones in casinos.

Game protection is important but these guys need to figure out how to do it without pissing the customer off.

Oh, and IG: iTunes is not a Web site, BTW.

BTW, if you're looking for something fun to do with your iPhone or iPod Touch, consider Vegas Mate (card counting not included)!

We're back with another episode! It can be downloaded here.

This time around we discuss:

* Atlantic City
* Las Vegas Economic Woes
* Tropicana Re-Brands as Value Property (!)
* City Center's Harmon is Stunted

Also, be sure to check out the new podcast from the UNLV Center for Gaming Research. You can subscribe to that here: http://gaming.unlv.edu/podcast.html

The Q4 2008 numbers are in for LVS - the first major operator to report their results.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Las-Vegas-Sands-Corp-Reports-prnews-14329562.html

Looks like an operating loss of $34.4 million, down from income of $133.6 million in the same quarter last year (GAAP). Adjusted, it's a $17.1 million loss vs. a previous year Q4 income of $71.1 million.

In Las Vegas, occupancy was 93.7% for the quarter - better than I expected (though not broken out by property). In Macau, occupancy was at 90%. While not providing figures, the company admits that the Four Seasons Cotai has been slower to ramp-up than they would have liked.

The company believes it can save $250 million a year through a new efficiency program (read: likely layoffs, hour reductions, etc...).

They have gotten their average borrowing rate down to around 3%, which is pretty good considering it used to be almost twice that.

We will no doubt be discussing tomorrow on our next episode of the Vegas Gang.

Updated: Management said that they don't see any market segment where they could really raise room rates other than perhaps in the group segment.

They are working to try to combat the recent national sentiment that seems to be pointing at Vegas based business trips as some sort of 'boondoggle'.

Thanks to Drambuie Man, y'all get to see some updated photos of what's going on in Macau, specifically Cotai.

Chuck is going to be posting these over at MacauTripping.com, starting with the Wynn Cotai site.

http://www.macautripping.com/tripping/post.php?p=325

More to come over the next few days...

Updated: Chuck posted a few more of the photo sets:
City of Dreams
Encore at Wynn Macau

After rebar problems at The Harmon went unnoticed, Clark County is requiring MGM Mirage to assure them and the public that the structures at City Center are sound.

This article in the Sun:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/06/just-making-sure/

and another piece in the RJ:

http://www.lvrj.com/news/39192767.html

detail the process. Perhaps the biggest issue isn't that errors were made - that happens on job sites all the time - but that they still can't figure out how it happened and passed the various, required inspections. That points to a possible systemic breakdown in the evaluation process.

Updated: A story in the LV Sun today titled 'Adaptation or 'disaster'?' discusses what the Harmon changes will mean for the project overall - a very interesting piece.

After spending a few more nights at Encore in the middle of January, I'm sharing some more of my thoughts after the jump.

Along with this, I am still working on editing some additional audio that was taken during various media tours - a substantial job given the varying quality of the source material.

Continue on for a little bit more about Encore.

In what comes as no surprise to Vegas-o-philes, Station Casinos is restructuring their debts under bankruptcy protection:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/03/station-casinos-unveils-restructuring-plan-appease/

If approved, Station would continue to operate under current management, though the equity partners have to kick in $244 million.

Station is one of the largest employers in Las Vegas.

Two unrelated but interesting stories:

Wynn Resorts has long prided itself on not laying off employees (though that does not seem to apply to the Wynn Design and Development sister company who recently shed several jobs). Today the company announced some measures aimed at keeping people employed, even if that means less pay, less hours and reduced benefits:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1251586&highlight=

a little more from the LV Sun: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/03/wynn-announces-salary-reductions-reduced-work-week/

In other news, the IRS followed disgraced Fry's executive Omar Siddiqui to The Venetian this week. They are investigating allegations of tax fraud. Siddiqui was a Las Vegas high roller at several properties for years.

http://www.mercurynews.com/topstories/ci_11611329?source=email

According to this article in the Sun, the Tropicana has hired a branding/marketing firm to help them re-make their image to go after the value conscious consumer.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/feb/03/tropicana-hires-branding-firm-focus-value/

Perhaps a market that was becoming more and more under-served on The Strip but not sure if this was the lifeboat that customers were hoping for,

According to the RJ, an analyst at Moody's believes that recently privatized Station Casinos is about to run out of cash.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/38743474.html

Given the operating environment, I wouldn't be surprised.

Elad, the company that purchased the New Frontier land to build a Las Vegas version of The Plaza Hotel, has been granted a 42 month (!) extension to their $625 million loan.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/38611497.html

Hopefully for us all, the economy improves inside of 42 months.

According to the Las Vegas Sun, the board of directors of Las Vegas Sands, owners of The Venetian and The Palazzo on the Las Vegas Strip as well as several casinos around the globe have been sued for mishandling the company.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jan/28/sands-lawsuit/

Apparently this is not the first time this has happened and suits like this not are uncommon when a company sees a dramatic drop in their share price.

Throwing open another open topic but I got this little nugget to kick around from reader Jeff in OKC:

"Is Bellagio cursed? I don't know of any curse, or any Indian burial grounds, etc., but, I think there's some bad mojo at the Southwest corner of Flamingo and Las Vegas Boulevard. Since the Dunes was built there in the 50's, all kinds of unusual problems have plagued the property. Design and construction problems abounded there in the 60's and 70's. But ownership seems to be the biggest victim of strange things there. From legendary mob control, to the Japanese financial collapse that led to Steve Wynn getting the land. Spectacularly, for our purposes, Steve Wynn built palatial offices for Mirage Resorts, which he had to give up when he got in a cash bind and had to sell out in 2000. I understand MGM moved their HQ to Bellagio after the buyout, and Terry Lanni took over the same office. Lanni, as well, suffered an equally amazing fall from grace in just a few days during November, 2008. If I were Jim Murren, I think I'd move HQ back to the MGM Grand. Any thoughts?"

Thanks to Chuck S. Monster and this link from MacauTripping:

http://www.macautripping.com/tripping/post.php?p=321&src=rss

It seems a local group in Macau is none too happy with the attention on Las Vegas Sands problems. As he said, fascinating stuff. I love how these guys are peeved about a perceived preference for Singapore.

What I'd love to see now is a lawsuit between Las Vegas Sands and protesters that want to picket outside Venetian and Sands Macau. That would be serendipitous.

Funny to see this story today in the Sun about the financing at Fontainebleau:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jan/19/fontainebleau-has-cash-keep-rising/

Just the other day as I was walking outside Encore, I was thinking to myself that it didn't look like much glass had been added to the tower at FBleau since December. Well, photographic evidence proved otherwise - my mind was just playing tricks on me and the glass is indeed rising.

When I checked out the visitors center there a few weeks back, there was a lot of construction activity in the low-rise portions. It is telling though that so far I don't think they will even sell you a condo - perhaps a chance they want to keep their options open?

The visitors area includes a large model of the complex, which does look interesting, as well as a model room. The room itself was nicely appointed - you can see Schaeffer and THEHotel written all over its style. Not quite as big as I would have expected, but then again, neither are the rooms at ARIA.

Vegas Gang #25 is online.

This week on the show:

* Harrah's Suspends Caesars Palace Tower
* LVS v. ELAD v. WYNN
* Rumors Swirling Around The Mirage Sale
* Encore Media Week

Leave any comments below.

For the past several weeks, rumors of a potential sale of The Mirage have been making the rounds. Personally, I've heard at least two different versions and one from a credible source, though no one that has claimed direct knowledge of a deal.

Today, Howard Stutz in the RJ has a piece that made the front page 'Breaking News' section on the persistent rumors:

http://www.lvrj.com/blogs/stutz/Rumors_rife_about_possible_sale_of_The_Mirage_.html

In all the versions of the story I keep hearing, the buyer is always Penn National, with Pinnacle Entertainment a distant second chance possibility. The rumored price is typically between $1.2 and $1.5 billion.

MGM Mirage has consistently said that they evaluate all offers but they have nothing to announce.

Still, does this sale make sense for MGM Mirage? Without a dollar figure, it's hard to say but as Stutz indicated, if liquidity is enough of an issue to force this, I would have expected other assets to be divested first, such as the 50% stake in Borgata or perhaps something like Luxor. Of course, The Mirage may be the only asset that this buyer wants (and can afford - I'm sure they'd love Bellagio).

The Mirage has recently been significantly re-worked and would be a great Las Vegas starting point for a company like Penn.

And to those that keep hoping Steve Wynn would buy the hotel back - no chance (unless the price was super-low). He's looking one direction and that's forward.

UPDATE: As stated in the comments, the RJ link is dead and the home page now includes a note saying Penn Natl is not interested... At this time...

Thanks to reader Mark D., we have this bit of news from the LVRJ:

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/37462974.html

So, along with MGM Mirage's announcement last week about The Harmon being built without its condos, we have this. I hope they at least finish the shell so it doesn't look crappy.

Updated: The LV Sun chimes in: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jan/12/caesars-palace-delays-opening-tower/

Uhhhh... huh?

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/37182444.html

It seems an Israeli company wants to build what would be the world's largest hotel in Las Vegas, just next to the Hard Rock on Harmon.

The hotel would have 6,745 rooms and include a casino.

This is sort of a bizarre story... It claims that Elad, the company that purchased the New Frontier and plans to build The Plaza there someday, is supposedly asking Las Vegas Sands for financial help.

http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idINL67500620090106?rpc=44

Does that make any sense to anyone? LVS has had more than their share of financial problems recently... what sort of help could they possibly offer?

Update: More from Bill Lerner via Steve Friess:
http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2009/01/wynn-or-adelson-want-frontier-land.html

The new year's ongoing lead story will likely be CityCenter as it moves toward either completion or modification in 2009. The speculation about Harmon is followed today by Norm in the RJ raising issues about Veer:
"There are rumblings that MGM Mirage is close to announcing the status of the beleagured City Center project, including whether several buildings will be completed. There's talk that The Harmon, the Light Group's boutique condo-tel, with 400 hotel rooms and suites and about 200 luxury condominiums, will be delayed. The bigger concern, I'm told, is the central iconic tower, which was designed to lean about 22 degrees but is now almost double that because of a cabling issue. ..."
"Norm"

Vegas Gang #24 is online.

This week on the show:

* The Trippies are announced this weekend.
* Encore Las Vegas Opens - EncoreOpening.com
* MGM Mirage Sells Treasure Island to Phil Ruffin
* The Harmon / City Center / Light Group Parting Ways?

Leave any comments below.

Mike is back with the final Strip Walk of 2008.

Yes, there's some more Encore stuff in here but most of the column is dedicated to the rest of The Strip - do not fear, Encore haters!

Enjoy. Main text and photo links after the jump.

The Las Vegas Sun has a story about the deteriorating financial condition of Station Casinos, the large Las Vegas locals market operator.

The company is facing $5 billion in debt that needs to be refinanced or restructured.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/dec/26/infusion-cash-key-stations-viability/

Many of my colleagues have also been writing about Encore and the opening festivities.

Here are some links not to miss:

http://www.vegastripping.com/features/feature.php?feature_id=154&page=1

http://www.dieiscast.com/2008/12/22/and-now-for-an-encore/

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2008/12/22/Deep-Red-Encore

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/12/encore-from-last-night.html

I'm sure there's more good stuff - feel free to add to the comments.

If you didn't catch them last night, I posted more photos on Flickr - these will also be moving to a gallery on RateVegas.com shortly.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lasvegas/sets/72157611429036671/

This will be somewhat brief - I will write a full review of this first stay probably later in the week - but I wanted to share a few first impressions, brought to you from Encore's 61st floor.

I was lucky enough to be given a guided tour this morning by Roger Thomas, VP of Design for Wynn Design and Development. He is responsible for most of the interiors of the resort, along with previous creations like Wynn Las Vegas, Bellagio and Treasure Island. He refers to himself as an 'author' when talking about the design process. Given how much thought goes into his 'prose', I think that's appropriate.

The tour was great - I took a lot of notes that I will transcribe later.

In a word I would describe Encore as breathtaking. It's much smaller - very intimate. It is a fantastic complement to Wynn Las Vegas. The casino, as many anticipated, is very similar to Wynn Macau with smaller chambered areas. Personally, I think this design is a huge win, though it might not work with a larger space. It's more appropriate for a smaller casino floor as they have here.

There are walk up bars on all sides of the property - Thomas told me this was in direct response to customers wanting more bars on the WLV side. One of the bars on the east end of the casino is a huge glass wall overlooking the pool, flooding the gaming areas with natural light.

For restaurants, we saw Sinatra (retro, 60s Palm Springs kinda vibe, but not in an old sorta way). Later in the afternoon, I watched them install the 1953 Best Supporting Actor Award in its display. It's gorgeous.

Had a quick lunch at Society Cafe Encore and it was really fantastic. Simple dishes but my chicken sandwich was perfectly done.

The Esplanade includes several high end boutiques, including a new home store featuring Roger Thomas' furniture. The Wynn and Company Jewelers on this side are displaying the 'Wynn Diamond', a 231 caret stone that is breathtaking to behold.

While not being much of a nightclub guy personally, we walked through XS and I was impressed. I think it's got a chance at being the top spot in town - the interplay between the pool and the club is amazing and sure to be a huge hit, likely to be copied elsewhere.

The Tower Suites lobby is tucked away from the casino floor, as it is at Wynn Las Vegas, while the main Resort check-in is open to the main walkway on the North side. Tower Suites is less of a preferred option at Encore, though the rooms we did see on that side were huge and amazing. The 2 and 3 bedroom, two level sky villas sounded impressive, though we did not get to tour one (yet).

They're being pretty tough about photos so far. I'm hoping that will ease up at 8pm when the place officially opens.

There's a ton of interesting design detail in this place - as much or more than Wynn Las Vegas.

More to come. Please follow us at EncoreOpening.com and feel free to ask questions to us there via Twitter or if you can't do that, leave a comment.

Also, room photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lasvegas/sets/72157611429036671/

Thanks to readers for pointing this out.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal has posted a few PR shots of Encore's interior. They include a couple of shots of the atrium and the spa. Others have rightly pointed out there's a lot of design cross over between Encore and the 'Villa Atrium' at Wynn Las Vegas.

http://www.reviewjournal.com/media/slideshow/encore_opening/

Yesterday, as I was waiting in an interminable airport line, I got a call that came up as 'Wynn Las Vegas' on caller ID. That could have meant one of two things - someone was calling to yell at me about something I wrote or there was some problem with one of my hotel reservations - as many of my readers know, I'm booked at Encore for opening night and will be at WLV before that.

Well, it was the latter...

The call was from an Assistant Hotel Manager who told me that the room I had booked at Encore, a Tower Suites room, was not available and I would have to be downgraded. The explanation was that a 'computer glitch' had made the rooms available for sale when they should not have been. The manager said they 'just figured it out' and were making calls to people. Well, I booked Encore the first moment it became available (someone told me I was the second person to book online, after our friend Brian Fey). That was October 31st.

So, for a month and a half, these rooms (as well as the larger suites) were incorrectly available to book online and apparently no one noticed until December 15th. Uh-huh.

My currently unsubstantiated guess is that they got a better-than-expected RSVP from invited guests and didn't have the rooms to put them in, so they started to bump regular bookings down from the Tower to Resort side of the hotel. I'm working on getting a confirmation on my theory.

Now, I understand the casino is a VIP business and this can happen. Such is life. My first issue would be if I was lied to about the computer glitch in order to get me to 'go quietly' and accept the lesser room. I suggested upgrading to a larger, more expensive room but those were also not available. I wanted to have access to a few types of different rooms for photos and commentary for you fine people, hence my protests when the call came in.

My disappointment will subside. Life will go on.

What's interesting though is that as of now, it seems like people that booked through Wynn's Web site got short shrift compared to other methods. For instance, another reader here had booked through the American Express Travel Agency and thus far has not received a similar phone call about adjusting the reservation. Will he keep his more deluxe rooms?

If this turns out to be true, customers need to be careful who they choose to book with. The advice I've handed out to hundreds of thousands of site visitors - that booking with the hotel directly is often the best route - may no longer hold true in all cases.

Did other readers get the same call? If so, how did it go? What did they tell you? Did they offer you any compensation? I know that at least Brian was able to negotiate a dining credit as part of this downgrade so it's not a total loss.

This morning the news broke that MGM Mirage is selling Treasure Island, one of the resorts it acquired as part of Mirage Resorts in 2000, to investor Phil Ruffin. Ruffin sold the New Frontier site a few years back and is a partner in the Trump International condo development.

http://news.prnewswire.com/ViewContent.aspx?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/12-15-2008/0004941990&EDATE=

Also, this story in the WSJ:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122934991105206643.html

Be sure to read the comments as many readers and some journalists have chimed in. Jeff Simpson from the LV Sun and Vegas Gang spoke with Ruffin this morning.

This post was updated to flesh it out with more info.

Treasure Island holds a special place for me - I stayed there many times before it was 'upgraded', at which point I lost my case. I think it's a great asset that Ruffin will probably do well with. It has a hard time shining compared to The Mirage and Mandalay Bay as the lower end of MGM Mirage's middle tier.

Vegas Gang #23 is online: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time around we cover:

* Mirage Volcano Reborn (Photos: here
* Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas Opens December 22nd - http://www.encoreopening.com
* Nevada Gaming Numbers from October 2008
* Las Vegas Marathon

Feel free to leave any comments below.

We've been alluding to our upcoming coverage for the opening of Wynn's Encore for some time and now we're spilling the details.

I'm proud to announce that we're teaming up with my esteemed colleague, Mr. Chuck S. Monster of VegasTripping.com to bring you coverage that will be the next best thing to being there.

We will both be 'twittering' (or is it 'tweeting'?) via Twitter, posting copious amounts of photos on Flickr and recording our observations for what I'm certain will be multiple blog postings. You can post your questions to our Twitter streams and we will do our best to answer them right from the casino floor.

To make it easier on your inner-Vegas-addict to keep up with everything, we're compiling it all in one place:

http://www.encoreopening.com

That's your one stop shop for all things Encore. The page updates itself so when the gates open, you can sit back and let the sweet nectar flow. See Chuck's note on browser compatibility here. His recommendations are seconded from this corner as well.

There's been some talk about doing a special 'Vegas Gang' episode and while the logistics of how possible that will be are not yet clear, rest assured that we will be getting everyone's opinion on Encore out to you as soon as humanly possible.

Mike_ch is back with his latest Strip Walk. This one is more in 'trip report' style as he was slummin' it down on The Strip for a few nights at The Grand.

It's a long one so grab a cup of coffee and sit back.

http://photo.ratevegas.com/keyword/stripwalk

Robin Leach has come forward with a couple of supposed Wynn Las Vegas / Encore updates.

First is that Wynn wants to do a BeeGees musical at Encore, which may or may not be called 'Stayin' Alive'.

http://vegasdeluxe.com/blogs/luxe-life/2008/dec/01/exclusive-news-steve-wynn-and-bee-gees-plot-emstay/

Second is that supposedly Wynn will break ground on a 4,000 seat 'Wynn Arts Center'.

http://www.lasvegasweekly.com/blogs/luxe-life/2008/dec/02/steve-wynn-plans-4000-seat-arts-center-new-encore/

I assume this would have to be out on the golf course side of things as there's little space elsewhere.

I should note that Leach has not always been the most reliable in the past. As some commenters suggest, it might be prudent to see what unfolds here.

It IS a difficult balancing act, cost control vs customer service. If the holiday season ends with a slow New Year's, the Strip's strategy of superior customer service may have to be rethought, but what is the tipping point at which customers rebel?

"In recent months, the profits of several big casino operators have fallen faster than revenue, or total sales before expenses. It's a sign that the companies have not cut costs deeply enough to offset the decline in their business.
On the Strip in the third quarter, MGM Mirage's revenue fell 9 percent, and earnings declined more than 15 percent over the same period in 2007; Harrah's Entertainment's revenue declined 12 percent, and earnings fell 17 percent over the same year-ago period."

Cutting Costs vs Serving Customers

It's official - Jim Murren has been moved into the CEO and Chairman slot at MGM Mirage.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1228030&

No one needs to repeat that this is a very tough time for business on The Strip and Murren will not have an easy time of it.

Now, does this mean anyone ends up leaving MGM? Does Bobby Baldwin stay? Who gets the now-vacant COO job?

Update: Lanni has declined even a seat on the board. Odd. http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/35155994.html

Matthew Farley, author of "Good Food, Good Whiskey, and a Good Gamble: Outdated Nostaligia or Still Effective Today?" was kind enough to write up and share his thoughts after attending G2E in Las Vegas.

This dovetails nicely with yesterday's Vegas Gang coverage of the event.

Thanks to Matthew for sharing his insights - I'm sure you'll all enjoy this.

Click through for more...

Vegas Gang #22 is online: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time around we cover:

This is a special episode, focusing on the annual G2E gaming conference.

Feel free to leave any comments below.

Also, please consider voting for us in the Trippies!

According to the LVRJ, Station Casinos 'owners' (which party is not specified) have will be injecting between $450 and $500 million into the company to shore up its debt situation.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/35095264.html

Similar to a move by Las Vegas Sands just weeks ago, it shows the difficulties that the consolidated gaming companies are having in this economy.

A slightly less basic than before Encore Las Vegas Web site is live:

http://www.encorelasvegas.com

Before the resort opens, not a lot of photos... Really, not a lot of anything. Still, more than the teaser we saw before.

I have to admit, I'm getting very excited for the 22nd and can't wait to unveil our coverage plans. I think you'll be pleased.

PS - Hey, Wynn Resorts! What's the official name of this property? I've heard 'Encore Suites at Wynn Las Vegas' but now you are promoting this as 'Encore Las Vegas', 'Encore at Wynn Las Vegas' and even just 'Encore'. What's the story?

UPDATE: Site is back online.

UPDATE: The TV commercial is on the site.

The Las Vegas Business Press sent a reporter in to City Center to work as a construction hire for three days. The write up is here:

http://lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2008/11/17/news/iq_25074122.txt

Vegas Gang #21 is online: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time around we cover:

* Terry Lanni to Leave MGM Mirage
* Las Vegas Sands Financial Woes Continue
* Should the Nevada Gambling Age Be Lowered to 18?
* WSOP Changes This Year

Feel free to leave any comments below.

Also, please consider voting for us in the Trippies!

Terry Lanni, MGM Mirage's chairman and CEO, is planning to retire at the end of the month.

Jim Murren, COO, is being recommended for the job.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/34422724.html

Whoa... Didn't see this coming. End of the month? That's not much time for a transition. Is he sick? Hopefully not [ED: a memo to employees says it is not health related].

I can't imagine majority shareholder Kerkorian would toss him during such a tumultuous time. They've worked together for ages... It must be something else... The timing is just so strange.

Update: MGM Mirage press release here:
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1226453&

We're discussing this on the Vegas Gang, which will be out later today.

UPDATE: The Wall Street Journal is reporting there are some questions about his MBA from USC as the school could not verify the degree.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122661583489225999.html?mod=testMod

After posting fairly dismal third quarter results today, Las Vegas Sands indicated that it should have deals in place by the end of the week that will give it access to over $2 billion in new capital.

The company recently informed investors that it was in danger of breaching debt covenants due to leverage issues.

The company is suspending part of its ongoing Cotai Strip development in Macau to focus on its two other projects: Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and Bethlehem, PA casino project. The St. Regis condo project on the Las Vegas Strip will also be suspended.

http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=AP&date=20081110&id=9365806

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/11-10-2008/0004922432&EDATE=

Harrah's earnings took a hit, as expected.

From the Sun: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/nov/07/harrahs-sees-fall-third-quarter-earnings/

The RJ says they are going to work on cost cutting: http://www.lvrj.com/business/34137664.html

Also, from a newer blog that Dave Schwartz clued me in on, some info on AC layoffs: http://www.gamingatlantic.com/index.cfm/2008/11/7/Atlantic-City-Blues--good-news-too

As required by law, Las Vegas Sands filed a disclosure statement with the SEC today that indicates the company may not be able to maintain required leverage ratios which could put it in danger of a default.

A default could potentially lead to other action such as bankruptcy, though the company did not use that term in its filing.

Will Sheldon Adelson lend the company more money? Is he in a position to do so?

Will we see cuts at their resorts, in either staff or service?

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/34023824.html

UPDATE: The Las Vegas Sun has more:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/nov/06/las-vegas-sands-may-miss-covenant-requirements/

Last night was the opening of the new Cirque du Soleil show 'CRISS ANGEL Believe' at Luxor. The show features illusionist Criss Angel's magic combined with the artistry that we know from Cirque.

Well, it seems that CDS' run of perfection may be over, at least if they don't end up completely re-working the show that premiered last night.

Many of the reviews are in and they're not great.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/nov/01/illusion-elusive-angels-believe/

A friend said he had heard that Caesars Palace has mothballed the entire Centurion Tower due to lack of demand. Centurion Tower is 14 stories and opened in 1970. Can anyone confirm this?

Just got off the Q3 2008 call for Wynn Resorts. Final quarterly numbers are here:

Wynn Resorts Q3 Results

On the call, the company discussed it's cash position (strong), it's future outlook and plans.

Encore is scheduled to open December 22nd, though it's still not 100% clear the first date that the public will be able to book a room. We should get that information in the coming weeks.

When asked about development on Cotai, Steve Wynn stated that they were waiting to see evidence that the current supply in Macau had been absorbed properly and at that time they'd proceed on that front. With The Venetian and Four Seasons on Cotai, the market does seem to be struggling somewhat to support the new properties, with the visa restrictions contributing to that.

It sounds like Wynn Resorts is in no hurry there - they plan to build what they describe as the world's most amazing resort and one would assume anything that fits that description will stand the test of time.

On the topic of purchasing perhaps distressed gaming assets, that pretty much was shot down - Wynn likes to build, not buy.

Overall, quite a bit of confidence from the principals.

Updated: As of this morning, Encore is accepting reservations from opening night (December 22nd). Yours truly will be there that first night, reporting all the details... We'll have photos, blog updates and live twittering.

Vegas Gang #20 is online: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time around we cover:

* Trippies 2008
* Gaming Stocks Slide
* Bellagio Turns 10 To Little Fanfare
* How MGM Mirage and Harrah's Market

Feel free to leave any comments below.

MGM Mirage announced their 3rd quarter results for 2008:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1219027&

and

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/33503729.html

Profits are way down from the year ago quarter. MGM Grand Macau is doing a bit better and Bellagio had an unexpected uptick but generally, they're feeling the pinch as you can see in the figures.

This RJ piece indicates that Boyd Gaming is not sure when construction on their halted Las Vegas Strip project, Echelon, will resume.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/33468339.html

BYD reported its earnings today (not great) and yesterday we got news that retail operator General Growth Properties is trying to sell off Las Vegas assets because it can't make the mortgage payments. Crazy times indeed.

After finally getting temporary certificates of occupancy for part of the structures at Encore, planning for the opening is starting to firm up.

We're hearing that Wynn Resorts staff can now start to use the hotel tower and new convention rooms with more to come as other areas are completed.

The other tidbit that's starting to leak out is that instead of a grand opening for Encore like the sort we're used to, the Company may opt instead to have a gala birthday celebration for Steve Wynn (his birthday is January 27th) to celebrate the opening of the hotel.

Yesterday Wynn Resorts put out a press release that once again mentioned that the hotel was taking reservations from January 12th onward. It's still not clear if we'll see any customers occupy the hotel before then.

The hotel has been taking reservations for weeks already but it's funny to see a bunch of news organizations parrot the press release and announce that the spigot has been opened.

Mike Ch is back with another Strip Walk. This one covers Encore, Treasure Island, City Center, The Mirage, Palazzo and more.

Photos are here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/october2008

Thanks Mike! Enjoy!

Fellow Vegas Gang member Dave Schwartz has posted a photo essay bringing us up to date on what's going on in Atlantic City over on AtlanticCityTripping.com.

http://www.atlanticcitytripping.com/features/feature.php?feature_id=1&page=1

In what should come as a surprise to no one, Tropicana Entertainment has confirmed that the plans that would have put 10,000 rooms on that site are dead and any future development could be seven years away.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/31224039.html

It's good to hear they want to put some money into much needed maintenance but if they think that putting a food court by the pool is going to turn this place around, they're insane.

David McKee posted this story today about potential financial problems at Harrah's Entertainment:

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2008/10/16/SOS-Harrahs

We also covered this at length in today's Vegas Gang episode that will go up in a day or so.

An article on the upcoming Aliante Station property opening in November.

As Dave Schwartz pointed out to me, 'contemporary Scottsdale' doesn't really sound all that awesome.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/31095614.html

Dave Schwartz reminds us that 10 years ago today, Bellagio opened:

http://www.dieiscast.com/2008/10/15/happy-birthday-bellagio/

Pretty amazing it has already been ten years - and the place still looks great and is always one of the top earners in town.

Wynn Resorts decided to release preliminary third quarter results today at the close of the market.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1208899&highlight=

At a glance it seems that Wynn Las Vegas will either squeak by with a $2 million profit or post a small $2 million loss. This is down from $35.8 million in the year ago quarter. Part of this is pre-opening expenses but mostly it sounds like lower EBITDA.

WLV ADR is down by $10 from the year ago quarter.

Wynn Macau is expected to clock in between $57 and $63 million, way up from the $39.2 million in the year ago quarter.

They're not offering much guidance given the economy and the Macau visa restrictions.

It seems like once again the Macau property salvages the earnings. The company reported having $1.7 billion in cash.

Las Vegas' long weekend is over... But that's not the end of the line for an industry that has bright days ahead.

Perhaps never more than now, Las Vegas gaming is run by people that are extremely competent and can weather the storm. These companies are mostly well capitalized with good banking relationships, even if they may have to adjust projections that were made in better times.

They are often diversified - granted some more than others - but even if we were to see something like a major Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the great midway that is the Las Vegas Strip is going nowhere.

People always need a place to forget their troubles and relax, in good times and bad. No one is better at that than Las Vegas. The electricity that draws me and so many others to come again and again cannot be shut off - it's part of the American psyche. Yes, we'll see a 'correction'. The seemingly endless acceleration of quality, luxury and prices will slow even more or even be put on pause. That's okay and consumers will welcome the chance at a bargain. They'll see rates and rooms that could have been priced much higher only months before and when things swing back the other way, they'll have tasted the best Vegas has to offer and want more.

Those that believe in Las Vegas will not stop investing in it. That investment might not be a new multi-billion dollar golf course redevelopment project in the near term but you better believe all that remaining Strip land will be built out in the future - it's inevitable.

Right now, you can get some of the best deals we've ever seen on casino industry equity - yes, the companies are not all in the same spot financially and some are probably better investments than others but I think you can count on nearly all of them to head north of their current trading prices.

Personally, I'm sick of the doom and gloom stories. Let's work on fixing the problems and move on instead of harping on disaster.

This long weekend may be over - and there may be a hangover - but the weekend will come again.

I'm betting on Las Vegas.

My good friend and fellow Vegas Gang-banger Chuck Monster from VegasTripping has been doing a bang up job covering what MGM Mirage has in store for us at City Center.

If you haven't seen these already, be sure to check out the following links:

ARIA:
http://www.vegastripping.com/features/feature.php?feature_id=152&page=1

City Center Tram:
http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2326

ARIA Pool:
http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2323

VDara Pool Deck:
http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2322

My friend and fellow Vegas Gang member David McKee put up an interesting post yesterday with a few updates on the status of the forced sale of the Tropicana property in Atlantic City.

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2008/10/9/Trop-this

We've talked about Tropicana Resorts several times on the Vegas Gang Podcast but it seems the news never stops... and for those not reading McKee on a regular basis, you're missing out.

Check out this YouTube video that combines Wynn's Encore renderings with construction photos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGpO1Zlchis

Huge thanks to Mike E for tracking this down.

Also, this piece in the Sun on Encore:
http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/gaming/2008/oct/09/wynn-encore-will-take-hit-despite-position-strengt/

Wynn talks about hoping to open on December 22nd if he can get temporary occupancy before that. In the past they haven't seemed as worried about getting that occupancy certificate so why this time?

The piece also talks about opening a couple of hundred rooms per day so I guess we have confirmation of the first Wynn soft opening, at least when it comes to planning.

The LVRJ is reporting that the Wynn Las Vegas dealers that sued to remove the tip sharing program have lost their appeal:

http://www.lvrj.com/news/breaking_news/30691889.html

My friend Steve Friess has a note on his blog about the outcome of the Elad vs. Tamares case over naming use rights for "The Plaza" for a future resort on the Las Vegas Strip.

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/10/breaking-ny-plaza-wins-can-use-plaza.html

Give it a look. Also, Vegas Gang member Dave Schwartz was an expert witness in the case - expect us to touch on this in the next 'Gang episode.

Two quick unrelated items:

* EatingLV.com has a tidbit about "Switch", one of the new restaurants at Encore. Supposedly it will feature an internal environment that does just that - switches mid-way through the evening.

* Looks like Cher is having some health issues that will force her to cancel shows this year, which will no doubt hurt Caesars Palace.

Interesting article in the LV Weekly talking about the economic situation and it's impact on Las Vegas nightlife - we may see a swing to a more customer hospitable Saturday night.

http://www.lvweekly.com/news/2008/oct/02/carousing-crisis-clubbing-buyers-or-sellers-market/

Thanks to donnymac for pointing this out - a site with a bunch of renderings that I haven't seen, at least not all of them:

http://activerain.com/blogsview/702919/34-brand-new-renderings

Once again, another StripWalk from MikeCh, this time covering South Strip properties (and a trip to the Hard Rock).

Continue after the jump to read the details, photos are here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/september2008

First seen on Twitter, the Las Vegas Sun now has a story about a robbery today at the Las Vegas Hilton.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/sep/26/las-vegas-hilton-sports-book-robbed/?latest

Don't know about Twitter? You can follow us: Twitter.com / RateVegas or me: Twitter.com / Hunter

George (Drambuieman) is back with another great report on Macau. Some info on CotaiJet, Ponte 16 and more.

Click through to read and be sure to check out the photos:

http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/drambuieman

Vegas Gang #17 is online here: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time around we cover:

* Economic Update
* Kansas Update
* Strip Clubs in Strip Resorts?
* Mega-Resort Designs of the Future?
* ARIA Update

Feel free to leave your comments below.

MGM Mirage has started to leak the info on the restaurants that will be built inside ARIA, the main resort at City Center.

Two takes on the line-up, which is heavy on big names and maybe a couple of great restaurants:

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/09/aria-sings-food-glorious-food.html

http://www.eatinglv.com/2008/09/aria-announces-celebrity-chef-lineup/

Thanks to our friend George (Drambuie-man), we have a report on the construction of the Marina Bay Sands, the Las Vegas Sands project in Singapore.

Photos are here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/marinabaysands

Continue after the jump to read more...

Thanks to reader Josh for pointing this out.

The LA Times has an article about tech at City Center's main hotel, Aria. The article includes a room mockup photo:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3029/2848186661_9c330d983f_m.jpg

The full article:
http://travel.latimes.com/daily-deal-blog/index.php/tech-leads-the-way-a-2733/

Update: This MGM Mirage press release has more info on all the tech going into the room. Some of it sounds pretty cool, though I hope the Internet speed is a bit higher than 128kb that they indicate in the release.

A nice piece in the Sun about the guys that developed the Eastside Cannery and Cannery Resorts.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/sep/13/cannery-partners-did-it-their-way/

The Mirage Volcano, a fixture on the Las Vegas Strip for almost 20 years, is being re-launched.

MGM Mirage teamed with WET Design (Fountains of Bellagio) to re-create the iconic front-feature.

http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/mgm/34865/

WET brought in Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart and Indian tabla sensation Zakir Hussain to create the audio for the new volcano.

More info here:
http://www.mirage.com/attractions/volcano.aspx

Scheduled to be unveiled later this year, we have a bunch of photos of the construction progress here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/mirage

It seems that the embattled Cosmopolitan Hotel project on the Strip has found a buyer after the bank foreclosed on the original developer.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/sep/04/buyout-keeps-cosmopolitan-play/

Thanks to Mark D for pointing this out.

Also, some coverage in the RJ:

http://www.lvrj.com/business/27848684.html

My friend Steve Friess wrote the other day about the closing of the 40/40 Club at Palazzo. Steve is a curious and thoughtful guy who isn't scared about political correctness when he writes - that's part of what makes him a great reporter.

Well, it seems some people took what he wrote the wrong way:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/gaming/2008/aug/29/nevada-black-leaders-upset-blog/

As someone that knows Steve a little bit, I can say with certainty that he was just positing a question - something for discussion (I suggest you read the comments on his story). That's what he does - he fosters discussion. If we can't talk about this stuff, we'll never make any progress.

Update: Steve has posted an update here: http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/08/of-chicken-wings-and-irresponsibility.html

The next step for Las Vegas Sands' 'Cotai Strip' is the Four Seaons, opening next to the Venetian Macao (or Macau for any non LVS folks). Well, the opening has arrived:

http://cotaicasinonews.com/2008/08/28/four-seasons-hotel-macao-2/

This also includes the Cirque show, 'Zaia', opening at The Venetian Macau. Cotai Strip development may slow as credit markets tighten but things are now rolling with the inventory of rooms starting to build.

As Chuck at VegasTripping.com notes, the Eastside Cannery opens tonight.

I don't have this hotel in the RV or Vegas Mate databases yet and it brings me back to a question I've been asking myself for some time - should I remove a lot of the 'locals' joints from RateVegas and Vegas Mate?

Those pages get far less traffic than Strip and even Downtown properties and having them there means more upkeep and more data to clutter navigation. Is it worth it?

I'm sure I'd keep places like GVR and Red Rock and of course The Palms, Rio and other near-Strip joints. I'm talking about nixing the Fiesta, Texas Station, etc... If I'm going to do it, now is the time, especially for the iPhone app. Thoughts?

Mike Ch is back yet again - this time with a boots on the ground report from Planet Hollywood.

Our man on the scene braved the Palace of Earl to bring back some first hand intel.

As always, photos are here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/august2008

Also, he linked up some photos in his post as well. Enjoy after the jump.

As an aside, I'm well aware of how bad the photo gallery sucks. I've not had the time to do much about it but I actually think that might change in the near future. Stay tuned.

Word comes this morning that the 40/40 Club at The Palazzo is closing. This has been long rumored and many have doubted the place was doing very well.

In other Palazzo news, Lavo, the club from the creators of Tao, has opened. Lavo is notable because it is the center of ongoing litigation between the operators and Las Vegas Sands.

Fellow podcaster David McKee keeps us updated on the Kansas gaming process here at Stiffs and Georges:

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2008/8/22/Kansas-Round-1-Its-Harrahs-Penn

Mike Ch is back with another Strip Walk.

This time he hits both ends of the Strip with Luxor, Echelon, Encore, City Center and more.

Photos are here: http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/august2008

A very interesting story from the LV Sun that covers how the timing of reporting can skew gaming win figures:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/blogs/gaming/2008/aug/11/timing-gaming-earnings-can-skew-numbers/

Regular reader Jeff from OKC wrote in to describe what seems to be a dwindling number of hotel and airfare packages available from the mid-west to Las Vegas.

Is this happening in other areas and how severe is it? As smaller carriers shut down or cut back on flights, how is that impacting the flow of people into Las Vegas in a time when it needs more visitors, not less? These are often subsidized, at least in part, by gaming companies - are these subsidies drying up?

As Jeff said, it seems like the worst time for it to be harder to get to town.

The RJ posted a story in which they confirmed tips they had been sent regarding City Center construction workers having alcohol before they entered the job site.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/26371359.html

Perini, the site's main contractor, has a zero tolerance policy regarding alcohol and drugs.

Construction safety has been highlighted at City Center due to the number of construction deaths since the project began.

Another development in the saga of the Tropicana and Columbia Sussex. This time, the Nevada Gaming Control Board has recommended that the Las Vegas Strip casino be taken over by an unlicensed group of trustees as it progresses through bankruptcy.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/aug/06/unlicensed-board-clears-hurdle-control-tropicana/

What's interesting is that they are not licensed employees and that they say that CoSux head Bill Yung is no longer part of the decision making process.

This decision, as well as the recent stoppage at Echelon and other Las Vegas issues will be topics on tomorrow's Vegas Gang.

Here's a story from the Sun on today's reporting from MGM Mirage on their second quarter:

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/aug/05/mgm-2q-profit-drops-69-percent/

Some properties, such as Bellagio, didn't do as poorly as some might have guessed. Executives seemed bullish on the future.

The New York Times has a long story on Steve Wynn, Las Vegas and gaming in Sunday's paper. It doesn't break new ground for anyone familiar with Wynn or the industry, but it's interesting. The highlight for me was reading that Steve is irritated by the sound of rushing wind in the elevator shafts. The writer must not be familiar with the old DI. She makes it sound like Steve Wynn bought the homes around the property in order to build a golf course. Yes, he did, but the DI always had a golf course.
Read the story here:
The Chips Are Down in Vegas, but Steve Wynn Is Betting Big

This was rumored the past few days. It's too bad for Las Vegas and the North Strip. I hope they can resume construction in a year or so. BYD's Conference Call is at Noon today, so we'll get more information then.

NEW YORK, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Casino operator Boyd Gaming Corp (BYD.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) said on Friday it has decided to delay construction of its new Las Vegas Strip casino called Echelon and suspended quarterly dividends.

The company also posted lower second-quarter profit as the U.S. economic slowdown reduced gambling revenue.

The company also said it has decided to delay the construction of Echelon due to the challenging economic environment. It plans to resume construction in three or four quarters, assuming credit market conditions and economic outlook improves.
Boyd Delays Echelon

Despite a softening Las Vegas market, Wynn Resorts pulled through with some strong company-wide numbers.

According to the Company: "Net revenues for the second quarter of 2008 were $825.2 million, compared to $687.5 million in the second quarter of 2007. The revenue increase was driven primarily by a 50.3% increase in revenues at Wynn Macau."

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1179096&highlight=

I'll have to listen to the conference call later - if there's anything good in there, I'll update the post.

Update: Listening to the call now - as Jeff indicates below, classic Wynn on display in the call. Lots of fun to listen to as he takes jabs at various parties - and he has the numbers to back him.

Here's a KLAS interview with Steve Wynn covering the Encore hiring, his take on City Center, Encore itself and more...

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/global/video/popup/pop_playerLaunch.asp?vt1=v&clipFormat=flv&clipId1=2719390&at1=News&h1=WEB%20EXTRA:%20Steve%20Wynn%20on%20Hotels,%20Jobs

Thanks to Chuck at VT for pointing this out.

Today's Wall Street Journal (subscription required) has a great article on Sam Nazarian, new owner of The Sahara.

He wants to provide a superior experience, even for guests priced out of the market by the swing to luxury offerings - he plans rooms at about $200 a night. That doesn't mean implosion - he wants to work with the canvas he has, while adding to it and improving it.

It's a great read, check it out.

This week's Zoning meetings:

LVS is asking for a time extension on its approval to build a new Convention Center. The Agenda item says LVS is in the process of obtaining permits, but could the economy be a reason?
Las Vegas Sands Convention Center

Wynn has requested a deviation for Encore's signage:
Encore's Signage

The show is up:
http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time we feature:

* Wynn Hires Tim and Tim / Wynn Early Financials
* Nevada and Illinois Post Bad Numbers
* Tropicana E.Coli Outbreak
* Don Barden / Pittsburgh
* MGM Mirage / Wynn Resorts Market Cap

Comments welcome below.

Don't forget the Podcast-a-palooza:
http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com/2008/07/vegas-gang-podcast-live-august-16th-vegas-podcast-a-palooza/

My friend Steve Friess posted a story on his blog about a supposed "hack" at MGMGrand.com that supposedly offered illegitimate low rates to customers.

Based on the email that went out afterwords, MGM Grand handed this poorly.

Also, I agree with Steve - based on all I know from years of building Web applications for e-commerce, this sounds like BS to me... If it is true, they were likely penetrated extremely deeply, which would be even worse. Just own the mistake and honor the rates already!

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/07/was-mgmgrandcom-hacked.html

Updated: Steve has more details - not a 'hack' - just a promotion that was used by those it was not intended to be offered to. Still, maybe not the best handling?
http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/07/mgmgrandcom-not-hacked-but.html

Just saw this fly across the wire - Wynn Resorts has announced preliminary 2nd Quarter results:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1173860&highlight=

Operating income at Wynn Las Vegas is expected to be $18-22 million, down from $63.4 million last year. Wow, big drop. Looks like they are blaming it on lower hold percentages, lower ADR, and lower occupancy.

On the other end, Wynn Macau did much better than last year it seems with operating income almost doubling to $100 million or so.

The company also announced they will be buying back more shares.

Mike's returning with a new Strip Walk. This time we see Fontainebleau, Encore, Echelon, City Center, Luxor and more.

Keep reading after the jump and check out his photos:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/stripwalk

A surprising bit of news this morning.

"LAS VEGAS, July 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tim Poster and Tom Breitling will be joining Wynn Resorts (Nasdaq: WYNN - News) subsidiary Wynn Las Vegas as Sr. Vice Presidents of Strategy and Development."

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080702/law516.html?.v=14

Vegas Gang #11 is online here: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This time we feature:

* Encore at Wynn Las Vegas Opening
* Cosmopolitan Sued Over Its Name
* MGM Mirage Using Social Networking
* Harrah's Pays Debt With Debt
* Adelson Profiled in New Yorker

Feel free to add comments below...

My good friend and fellow 'Gang Member', ("yeah, I'm in a gang") Chuck has posted a bunch of new Encore construction photos:

http://www.vegastripping.com/news/news.php?news_id=2144

Enjoy!

Thanks to fellow Vegas Gang member Jeff Simpson for this link... Looks like the New Yorker has done a profile on everyone's favorite casino overlord, Sheldon Adelson of Las Vegas Sands. Check it out below. Also, props to Jeff for the mention!

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2008/06/30/080630fa_fact_bruck

Well, it looks like things have gotten just a little bit worse for the Cosmopolitan:

http://www.lvrj.com/business/20625604.html

Hearst says they own the name. Ouch.

How about a little due diligence when you start a project, huh?

I just read this article from fellow VegasGang podcast member Dave Schwartz and I really enjoyed it. I think he's 100% correct.

The economics of Las Vegas have fundamentally changed (for the better) and a new 'cheapo-era' is NOT the answer to dealing with a (hopefully) short term problem.

http://www.lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2008/06/18/opinion/columnists/schwartz/iq_22082752.txt

Vegas Gang #10 is up - http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

This episode focuses on the CityCenter walkout and the economy vs. Las Vegas. We cover a few stories on the specifics, including an entry suggesting that LVS is heading for Chapter 11. That may be an extreme outcome but its an interesting discussion point.

Also, a little bit on the iPhone and its impact on Las Vegas.

Enjoy the show and feel free to post your comments here.

UPDATE: Stiffs and George's has a story about Palazzo's underwhelming performance: http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/index.cfm/2008/6/13/Oops-he-did-it-again

The Las Vegas Sun is reporting on a workers strike at City Center, MGM Mirage's large development on the Las Vegas Strip.

Due to a rash of construction deaths, the workers are demanding increased safety provisions be made before work will start again.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/jun/03/workers-walk-citycenter-site-protest/

Update: It's possible that work will re-start again soon - it appears Perini and the trades had a positive meeting.

All you readers probably realize that the 'parent' of this blog is our ratings site, RateVegas.com. We allow readers to rate and review hundreds of Las Vegas hotels, restaurants, nightclubs and more. It's been running since 1999 and has a huge database of worthwhile data.

Over the years, I've added several features designed to protect against malicious uses of an open system - I was getting a ton of submissions that were nothing but spam links to gambling sites. I track the IP address of each submission for the purposes of comparison (no personal info is tracked or stored unless you submit your email address).

Well, over the past few months I've noticed quite a few glowing reviews for Tao Nightclub at The Venetian. At first they looked legit but the wording from week to week was QUITE similar. I checked and of course they are all coming from the same IP - one that is registered to Cox Communications in Las Vegas, NV, the region's cable modem provider.

So, it appears that Tao, or someone working for them, is attempting to defraud the public with fake reviews posted through my service. I assume they're doing this elsewhere as well.

I mention this just because it is interesting. I'll do nothing more but delete the incoming fake reviews and continue on my day.

Any other site operators notice anything like this? Fake comments? Planted submissions? Are Vegas casinos, clubs and PR operations *finally* getting smarter about using the 'Net?

Also, a note to Vegas businesses that want to get their word out - I'm happy to listen to your pitch and I love sharing interesting stories and info with my readers. Just don't try to come in the back door.

The rumor floating around today is that The Related Cos has purchased/taken over the Cosmopolitan project on the Las Vegas Strip and it will be an outpost of the 'W' hotel chain. Time will tell...

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/whatsnews.cfm

Looks like Richard Suen, the Chinese businessman that supposedly helped Las Vegas Sands setup their contacts in Macau will get a pay day after all.

A Las Vegas jury awarded him $43 million in damages. The company will appeal.

http://www.lvrj.com/news/19245874.html

This is good news that Tableau's Mark LoRusso will definitely move to Encore, and it looks like Tableau's space will remain a restaurant instead of becoming another club.

"Steve Wynn has lured another star chef to Wynn Las Vegas. Larry Forgione, a pioneering chef from New York, will move An American Place into the Tableau space this winter, when Mark LoRusso opens a restaurant at Encore, the new luxury suite hotel at Wynn Las Vegas. "Larry Forgione was one of the first chefs to focus exclusively on American ingredients and cuisine," Wynn said. "His vision and commitment to sustainability paved the way for many of today's chefs." ..."
Norm Column in the RJ: Norm

As speculated, the name 'ARIA' is official.

MGM Mirage's press release had a bit more info than I've seen published elsewhere. I don't usually just publish these things but I think this is of interest so continue reading after the jump.

Vegas Gang Podcast #8 has been posted:

http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

Comments can be posted here on this site, below.

Our guest is Steve Friess and we cover his book, 'Gay Vegas' as well as Las Vegas marketing, MGM Mirage splitting up, casino cheating and more.

My good friend Chuck at VegasTripping.com is just back from Las Vegas and wrote up a little report about the transition at Luxor:

http://www.vegastripping.com/features/feature.php?feature_id=139&page=1

Yes, we're back (and better than ever?).

Anyway, the episode is posted here: http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com

Comment away!

MGM's 1st Quarter Conference Call transcript is available:
MGM Transcript

It looks like the 'chickens are coming home to roost' for Tropicana Entertainment - in our pre-call bater for Vegas Gang, Jeff Simpson tipped us off to this story.

Thanks to Chuck for the link.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jCaSMpwrAzEulgNBAe6Lj0iiHrfQD90FOA480

Shadow Creek, MGM Mirage's fabulous golf course located in North Las Vegas, will close for a few months for an extensive renovation.

The press release is after the jump but basically it says that it will close until December while original architect Tom Fazio looks over the changes.

Thanks to globalcasinoboom.com for this interesting story that talks about Wynn Resorts potentially managing or consulting on a casino from Arusze in the Philippines.

http://globalcasinoboom.com/casinos/philippines-wynn-may-manage-aruzes-25-billion-manila-bay-casino/

Yes, the property formerly known as 'Wynn Diamond Suites' has been renamed 'Encore at Wynn Macau'.

Thanks to VegasTripping for the tip and also a photo of construction:

Encore at Wynn Macau
Encore at Wynn Macau Construction Photo

Yes, this is a few days old but we need a story to cover it and I was out.

LVS - Las Vegas Sands had an unexpected 1st quarter loss which has caused the stock to tumble. Slow ramp up for Palazzo in Vegas and a new weakness in Macau seems to be the culprit. Some numbers here.

WYNN - Wynn Resorts did better than expected on revenue but it looks like it missed on EPS. I am hoping to have some more time later to get deeper into these figures and listen to the call playback. http://www.thestreet.com/s/wynn-posts-mixed-quarter/newsanalysis/leisure/10414810.html?puc=googlen&cm_ven=GOOGLEN&cm_cat=FREE&cm_ite=NA

The LV Sun gives us a glimpse into CityCenter Casino's server-based slot floor. Will players be apprehensive about a casino's ability to manage the games, denominations, paybacks and players' comp accounts from a central IT office? Or, in this age when everyone, including seniors, are at ease with computers, will the benefits be welcomed? In my opinion, it will be a huge success as long as players don't believe the casino can manage payback with each spin of the reels. This concern can be easily managed with strict controls from gaming regulators and through effective communication strategies by casinos. What does everyone think?
Server- Based Slot Floor At CityCenter

Mike_ch is back with the latest Strip Walk. This time we have a look at Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, Caesars Palace, New York New York and Luxor.

Notes after the jump, photos here:
http://www.ratevegas.com/photo/gallery/stripwalk

On the most recent episode of The Strip Podcast, Steve Wynn talks about his ultimate plans for the golf course - two new hotels for a total of 10,000 rooms (including WLV and Encore) and a 1.5 million square foot convention facility.

Clearly, this would put Wynn Resorts in direct competition with the various other convention centers in town, most specifically Las Vegas Sands and their Sands Expo. No specific timeline was given for the development.

KLAS-TV has a three part, 30+ minute interview with Steve Wynn on its website. The audio is so poor that I haven't listened to it yet. I'll need headphones, but for Wynnophiles, it might be interesting.
KLAS-TV Interview With Steven Wynn

I really should have posted this earlier as it is a fascinating story.

It seems a gentleman that allegedly helped Adelson's company get into the Macau market believes he was promised more compensation than he has received (nothing so far).

Well, now he's suing the company in a Nevada court. Should prove a very interesting exercise.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2008/apr/17/trial-outs-sands-dealings-macau/

The rumors are true! Gans will move to Encore when it opens, leaving The Mirage.

What's funny is that Wynn denied this point blank to Steve Friess in the last interview.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1131831&highlight=

The story says it all - at least some of the doom and gloom is true enough to scale back.

http://www.lvrj.com/breaking_news/17679794.html

Thanks to Brian and Detroit for pointing this out.

Harrah's Entertainment, the recently gone-private casino behemoth, has decided to change its name - to Caesars Entertainment. Fun.

http://investor.harrahs.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=84772&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1127757&highlight=

A Las Vegas-is-gonna-go-bust doom and gloom article from the Times Online in the UK.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/chris_ayres/article3701686.ece

The Wall Street Journal follows up on the condo-hotel bubble, and focuses much of the story on Residences at MGM Grand and Trump's new tower. The story should be available without a subscription:

"It's been a very bad investment," said Moji Adekunbi, a 47-year-old engineer, who bought a $550,000 condo-hotel unit in the Signature at the MGM Grand in 2005 in Las Vegas, where one of every four hotel rooms being developed is a condo-hotel unit. Mr. Adekunbi counted on the cash flow from renting out his unit more than covering his $3,000-a-month mortgage payment, leaving him with a tidy profit.
He said the developer's sales staff led him to believe that the hotel would have 94% occupancy and $350-a-night rates, Turns out, he said he is netting only between $400 and $1,800 a month before his mortgage payment."
Condo-Hotel Buyers See Investments Sour As the Market Weakens

Episode #5 of the Vegas Gang has been posted below:

http://www.vegasgangpodcast.com/2008/04/vegas-gang-5-tom-breitling-april-3rd-2008/

This features Tom Breitling, formerly of the Golden Nugget, talking about his new book. Enjoy!

Steve Friess chats up Steve Wynn for this weeks The Strip Podcast and there is no shortage of great quotes, particularly near the end when he gets into Adelson's claim that at one point he had offered Wynn a job.

I assume the show will be posted sometime Thursday. It's certainly worth a listen, along with a few bits on Encore and the Binkley book, "Winner Takes All".

Thanks to a tip from David McKee comes this story about convention attendees at the Westin Casuarina who, when the convention organizer failed to pay their bill, apparently had their cards charged by the hotel to cover the loss.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/5667867.html

If this is true, it is insane. Hopefully we'll hear more on this. The quote from the LVCVA is funny.

Some may recall that before the 're-opening' of the Aladdin as Planet Hollywood, I was quoted in a London paper by writer Steve Friess and gave a less than stellar prognosis for the troubled property. That subsequently lead to an exchange between Friess and Hollywood principal Robert Earl.

Anyway, as I said all along, I have nothing against the property or its operator and here's a story that indicates their strategy is indeed working, pulling PHo back from the abyss that was the Aladdin. For the sake of healthy competition, I hope we see this continue. Congrats to them for hard working paying off it seems.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/17216192.html

Two important stories on LVS:

Why would Sheldon Adelson make such public comments about MGM, Pansy Ho and Atlantic City?
Sands Chief Questions MGM Mirage's Motives

What is the real story on CFO Rozek's departure from LVS?
Robert P. Rozek resigned from his position as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp

It looks like the Crown Las Vegas project, which was to be a super tall hotel tower at one point, is dead - at least in its current incarnation. Something will be built there someday, the question is what.

http://www.lvrj.com/business/17044791.html

According to the WSJ (sorry, registration required), the Related Companies, no stranger to distressed Vegas developments, is looking at the Cosmopolitan project.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120613069739055703.html?mod=hpp_us_whats_news

Thanks to Brian for the tip! Happy Easter!

Steve Friess picked up on the news from Wachovia that Elad is putting the Plaza Las Vegas project on hold due to the challenging credit market:

http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/03/plaza-put-on-hold-as-wynn-predicted.html

Very interesting, especially coupled with the Cosmopolitan news. Friess apparently just did an interview with Steve Wynn where the casino mogul predicted this.

Update: Elad, the developer, is denying the report so at this point this is in question.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/03/17/financial/f175003D71.DTL

Thanks Hail2Skins!

Here's another Vegas book, but I'll skip this one:

Double or Nothing: How Two Friends Risked It All to Buy One of Las Vegas' Legendary Casinos, by Tom Breitling

We talk the concept of 'free' and casinos, lots of fresh details on Encore at Wynn Las Vegas, Majestic's Vegas numbers, and more. This is a don't miss for Wynn fans.

The participants include:

Jeff Simpson - http://www.lasvegassun.com and http://www.inbusinesslasvegas.com

David McKee - http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/

Dave Schwartz - http://www.dieiscast.com

Chuck Monster - http://www.vegastripping.com

Direct Download: http://media.ratevegas.com/37-VegasGang03062008.mp3

Winner Takes All, a new book by Christina Binkley will be released on March 4. Binkley was formerly the casino/gaming reporter for the Wall Street Journal.
Winner Takes All: Steve Wynn, Kirk Kerkorian, Gary Loveman, and the Race to Own Las Vegas

Dave Schwartz has an interesting article where the talks about a piece from Wired that is discussing the proliferation of free services in business, especially on the Internet. Dave spins that into a gaming business narrative and breaks it down for us.

http://www.dieiscast.com/2008/02/26/could-casinos-become-free

Wynn Resorts have settled on December 2008 as the unveiling for Encore Suites, the sister resort going up next to Wynn Las Vegas.

Few new details besides the opening timeframe are in the press release, though it does allude to many of the features we've already covered here in the past.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1112568&highlight=

We're back with roundtable #2 - this time around the topics include Crown investing in Harrah's/Station, MGM Grand Detroit, Pure being raided by the IRS, Cuba as the next Macau and more.

The participants include:

Jeff Simpson - http://www.lasvegassun.com and http://www.inbusinesslasvegas.com

David McKee - http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/

Dave Schwartz - http://www.dieiscast.com

Chuck Monster - http://www.vegastripping.com

Direct Download: http://media.ratevegas.com/36-podcast_02212008.mp3

Some info on MGM Mirage's quarterly results, announced today:

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=101502&p=IROL-NewsText&t=Regular&id=1110879&

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/mgm-mirages-net-profit-soars/story.aspx?guid=%7B74B0CA0C-98F3-4472-B48D-EB7F4B52CDFA%7D

This is still breaking but it seems like the Feds raided Pure, the nightclub at Caesars, today.

Pure is not run by Harrah's, it is a separate entity.

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=7901495&Call=Email&Format=Text

Wynn Resorts just reported their results.

http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=132059&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1107473&highlight=

That's the press release. I'll update this with some thoughts as soon as I have a chance.

Las Vegas Sands hosted an Investors Day on February 11 in Las Vegas. Management presented detailed information on the company's operations in Las Vegas and Macau as well as on other projects being built or planned both in this country and overseas.

One important announcement was the plan to build a New Sands Expo at the corner of Koval and Sands. Once the facility opens at the end of 2010, the land that the existing Sands Expo Center sits on could be used for another resort or other purposes. The site is 20 acres and is part of the Venetian/Palazzo complex.

The Investors Presentation is available as a webcast and as a slide presentation. The slides of the New Sands Expo and of the 20 acres for future development are very interesting.

Investors Day Slides=Part I
Investors Day-Part II
Webcast Replay Links

Baccarat to be offered on private flights to and from Asia:

http://www.lvrj.com/business/15474536.html

The first episode of what could become a new, semi-regular podcast has been posted.

It doesn't yet have a name but the working title is 'Vegas Roundtable'. It's a gaming industry related podcast in a discussion format. Today's participants include:

Jeff Simpson - http://www.lasvegassun.com and http://www.inbusinesslasvegas.com

David McKee - http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/blogs/dmckee/

Dave Schwartz - http://www.dieiscast.com

Chuck Monster - http://www.vegastripping.com

Thanks to all participants. The podcast is in my normal feed for 'The Worst Las Vegas Podcast' but it will probably move to a dedicated feed. Also, if anyone can think of a good name, drop them in the comments.

If you don't subscribe to the feed and want the direct URL, here it is:
http://media.ratevegas.com/35-roundtable_1-02_07_08.mp3

Thanks to David McKee's blog for pointing out this article from Macau with some quotes from LVS boss Sheldon Adelson.

The Macau Daily News says in their piece that according to Adelson, the number of concessions will NOT be expanded in 2009 and in fact may *shrink* as some of Ho's more ghetto places get hit.

Interesting. Sorry Harrah's.

Las Vegas Sands reported their Q4 2007 results and the press release is here:

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080204/lam127.html?.v=23

I'll update this story in a bit with some details and numbers once I have a chance to dig in.

Updated: Ok, I took a look at the numbers, which were down a bit. They cited increased development costs, which looks like it makes sense. Net income was WAY down but they had a ton of costs from opening Palazzo and post-opening stuff at Venetian Macau on Cotai. Interest expense was way up which indicates they had to fund some of those through bank loans. The Cotai property didn't perform at the level they wanted in terms of winnings but volume seems pretty strong - the property is already contributing about half of the company's gross. With Palazzo and Venetian Macau open, Sands is setup for a pretty nice story in fiscal 2008.