Las Ramblas Rambles Into History
Maxim Magazine Plans Hotel
POSTED: 10:02 am CDT June 13, 2006
The much-ballyhooed hotel-condo-casino complex Las Ramblas has rambled into the Las Vegas footnotes. The project has been cancelled and the land sold.Backed, in part, by Academy Award-winning actor George Clooney and nightclub impresario Rande Gerber, Las Ramblas was going to be a $3 billion, 4,000-room resort with a giant casino and tons of upscale amenities located on Harmon Avenue, just west of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino.The land has been sold to Edge Resorts for a whopping $75 million and will be incorporated into the W Hotel and Residences, planned for the adjoining plot of land at the corner of Harmon and Koval. That project, with 3,000 units and a 75,000-square-foot casino, will get a neighbor of smaller boutique hotels surrounding a second casino, according to Edge Resorts spokespeople.Disappointing pre-sales of the condo units and increasing construction costs doomed Las Ramblas, something that is happening to a lot of previously announced condo complexes. Apparently the W is doing well and the first phase is 200 percent reserved, again according to spokespeople. That part should open by 2009.(A note on that 200 percent: Condo projects oversell because a lot of people drop out. There is usually a clause that says that if a unit is not available, the buyergets first dibs on the second phase.)
Remember the Maxim, the rundown and slightly seedy hotel and casino that was located just off the Strip on Flamingo Road? It opened and closed more times than an unlatched porch door in a windstorm and finally got bought and revamped into the quite fine Westin Casuarina.For those who don't remember, it was kind of a dump but in a non-threatening, Vegas kind of way, filled with simple hotel rooms; a small, smoke-filled casino; and not one ounce of sex appeal.Well, it's a whole new century and apparently it's time for a whole new Maxim, this time in the form of a $1.2 billion, 2,300-room hotel and casino carrying the moniker of the sexy men's magazine.That's right, there's already a Hooters hotel and a Playboy club atop the Palms, but what we need is more scantily dressed cocktail servers stirring up the hormones of the men who think they have a shot with Jessica Alba.The hotel is planned for about seven acres of land just north of Circus-Circus (perfect for the kids, too!) that is now home to a gas station, a couple of souvenir stores and a bunch of construction equipment for the Sky Las Vegas condo tower going up right next door.There are a lot of things that make me say, "I'll believe it when I see it" about this project, not the least of which is how the organizers plan to shoehorn a 2,300- room hotel, a 60,000-square-foot casino, restaurants, nightclubs, a pool, parking, and hormonally overcharged 20-somethings onto seven acres.By comparison, Wynn Las Vegas, which has a similar number of rooms, takes up about 50 acres, not including the golf course. Granted, the Maxim probably won't have a mountain, a 3-acre lake and the number of showrooms, nightclubs, and restaurants that Wynn does, but still -- it's going to be a squeeze unless the whole thing is very, very vertical.
Two is apparently the lucky number at The Cannery. The Megabucks slot machine jackpot hit at the North Las Vegas casino last week, the second time it has happened in nine months. The previous winner took the multi-million dollar payout for the second time.This winner, a 64-year-old Las Vegas woman who wished to remain anonymous, had invested only $12 in the Megabucks machine when she lined up the symbols for a $20.5 million payday."My friend told me, 'Megabucks is going to hit'," said the winner. "I couldn't believe I had won it. A cleaning lady in the casino pointed to the big jackpot and said, 'You won that.'"The lucky woman said she plans to use her winnings to pay off her mortgage and possibly buy a new car.The Megabucks slot machines share a linked single progressive jackpot throughout the state of Nevada. When it is won, the jackpot starts over again at $10 million.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board has given its blessing to the Pokerdome, a glorified television studio at the downtown entertainment complex Neonopolis that will host a weekly poker tournament.Things had been dicey when the project was announced, with the NGCB saying that since the facility was a gambling establishment, a hotel was required to be attached to it. The Pokerdome folks fought back, saying that the studio, carved out of three movie theaters at Neonopolis, was not for gambling but for a game show-type event where players could take part in a poker tournament for cash and prizes, but that they would not win directly through game play.The NGCB relented and the shows will start taping at the complex on Saturday nights in late July for broadcast on Fox Sports Net.
Among the many things to love about The Ritz-Carlton at Lake Las Vegas (and trust me, there is a lot), are the interesting packages they put together to make staying at the hotel more than just getting a room.For instance, it had a deal last year that gave the guests use of a Mercedes for a nightly room rate that was roughly the same as what Bellagio and Wynn Las Vegas charged without a Mercedes.This summer, the Ritz is offering a deal called Reconnect. While it won't give you a luxury German car to tool around in, it does have some great perks and amazing rates. The package includes the room (of course), breakfast for two at the Medici cafe, and a poolside root beer float and classic burger-in-a-box for two, plus valet parking and the resort fee for rates that start at $249 per night. Those extras could easily run upward of $75, so that means you're getting one of the terrific rooms for less than $200 a night.The Ritz offers a bunch of interesting packages like this, from relatively inexpensive, family-oriented deals to those that include a helicopter ride to the Grand Canyon for a champagne picnic. Check them out on the packages page of the Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas Web site.
Remember the Maxim, the rundown and slightly seedy hotel and casino that was located just off the Strip on Flamingo Road? It opened and closed more times than an unlatched porch door in a windstorm and finally got bought and revamped into the quite fine Westin Casuarina.For those who don't remember, it was kind of a dump but in a non-threatening, Vegas kind of way, filled with simple hotel rooms; a small, smoke-filled casino; and not one ounce of sex appeal.Well, it's a whole new century and apparently it's time for a whole new Maxim, this time in the form of a $1.2 billion, 2,300-room hotel and casino carrying the moniker of the sexy men's magazine.That's right, there's already a Hooters hotel and a Playboy club atop the Palms, but what we need is more scantily dressed cocktail servers stirring up the hormones of the men who think they have a shot with Jessica Alba.The hotel is planned for about seven acres of land just north of Circus-Circus (perfect for the kids, too!) that is now home to a gas station, a couple of souvenir stores and a bunch of construction equipment for the Sky Las Vegas condo tower going up right next door.There are a lot of things that make me say, "I'll believe it when I see it" about this project, not the least of which is how the organizers plan to shoehorn a 2,300- room hotel, a 60,000-square-foot casino, restaurants, nightclubs, a pool, parking, and hormonally overcharged 20-somethings onto seven acres.By comparison, Wynn Las Vegas, which has a similar number of rooms, takes up about 50 acres, not including the golf course. Granted, the Maxim probably won't have a mountain, a 3-acre lake and the number of showrooms, nightclubs, and restaurants that Wynn does, but still -- it's going to be a squeeze unless the whole thing is very, very vertical.
Two is apparently the lucky number at The Cannery. The Megabucks slot machine jackpot hit at the North Las Vegas casino last week, the second time it has happened in nine months. The previous winner took the multi-million dollar payout for the second time.This winner, a 64-year-old Las Vegas woman who wished to remain anonymous, had invested only $12 in the Megabucks machine when she lined up the symbols for a $20.5 million payday."My friend told me, 'Megabucks is going to hit'," said the winner. "I couldn't believe I had won it. A cleaning lady in the casino pointed to the big jackpot and said, 'You won that.'"The lucky woman said she plans to use her winnings to pay off her mortgage and possibly buy a new car.The Megabucks slot machines share a linked single progressive jackpot throughout the state of Nevada. When it is won, the jackpot starts over again at $10 million.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board has given its blessing to the Pokerdome, a glorified television studio at the downtown entertainment complex Neonopolis that will host a weekly poker tournament.Things had been dicey when the project was announced, with the NGCB saying that since the facility was a gambling establishment, a hotel was required to be attached to it. The Pokerdome folks fought back, saying that the studio, carved out of three movie theaters at Neonopolis, was not for gambling but for a game show-type event where players could take part in a poker tournament for cash and prizes, but that they would not win directly through game play.The NGCB relented and the shows will start taping at the complex on Saturday nights in late July for broadcast on Fox Sports Net.
Among the many things to love about The Ritz-Carlton at Lake Las Vegas (and trust me, there is a lot), are the interesting packages they put together to make staying at the hotel more than just getting a room.For instance, it had a deal last year that gave the guests use of a Mercedes for a nightly room rate that was roughly the same as what Bellagio and Wynn Las Vegas charged without a Mercedes.This summer, the Ritz is offering a deal called Reconnect. While it won't give you a luxury German car to tool around in, it does have some great perks and amazing rates. The package includes the room (of course), breakfast for two at the Medici cafe, and a poolside root beer float and classic burger-in-a-box for two, plus valet parking and the resort fee for rates that start at $249 per night. Those extras could easily run upward of $75, so that means you're getting one of the terrific rooms for less than $200 a night.The Ritz offers a bunch of interesting packages like this, from relatively inexpensive, family-oriented deals to those that include a helicopter ride to the Grand Canyon for a champagne picnic. Check them out on the packages page of the Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas Web site.
The Full Story
- Las Ramblas Rambles Into History
- Major Show Shuts Down Abruptly; Others Change
- Vegas Q&A: Where Can I See Tower Fireworks?
In Next Week's Column
Next week: The latest from Las Vegas.Plus, don't forget to send your questions about Las Vegas. I've got room for more, so send them in today!Find the hotel that's right for you with Vegas4Visitors.com's reviews!And check out the new Moon Handbooks Las Vegas.Rick Garman is the head writer for Vegas4Visitors
