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Riviera (hotel and casino)

1955 establishments in Nevada2015 disestablishments in NevadaBuildings and structures demolished by controlled implosionBuildings and structures demolished in 2016Casino hotels
Defunct casinos in the Las Vegas ValleyDefunct hotels in the Las Vegas ValleyDel E. Webb buildingsDemolished hotels in Clark County, NevadaHotels disestablished in 2015Hotels established in 1955Landmarks in NevadaLas Vegas StripPages containing links to subscription-only contentSkyscraper hotels in Winchester, NevadaSubscription required using via
Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vagas
Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vagas

Riviera (colloquially, "the Riv") was a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada, which operated from April 1955 to May 2015. It was last owned by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, which decided to demolish it to make way for the Las Vegas Global Business District.The hotel had more than 2,100 rooms, fewer than half of which were located in a 23-story tower. The casino had 110,000 sq ft (10,000 m2) of gaming space.

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Riviera (hotel and casino)
South Las Vegas Boulevard,

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Latitude Longitude
N 36.135 ° E -115.162 °
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Circus Circus

South Las Vegas Boulevard
89169
Nevada, United States
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Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vagas
Riviera Hotel & Casino, Las Vagas
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Majestic Las Vegas

Majestic Las Vegas is a cancelled high-rise condominium project that was to be built on property previously occupied by the La Concha Motel on the Las Vegas Strip, in Winchester, Nevada. The project was announced by La Concha owner Lorenzo Doumani in February 2004. The 42-story condominium tower was to be accompanied by Hilton's Conrad Las Vegas, a Conrad-branded, 37-story hotel that would operate in a separate high-rise building on the same property. The project was initially expected to open in February 2006. In 2005, the project was redesigned to combine the Majestic and the Conrad into a single tower. Later that year, a new two-tower design was announced as a result of rising construction costs, which made the previous one-tower design financially impossible. In 2006, it was announced that the project would again consist of a single tower, with the top 10 floors to be occupied by The Waldorf-Astoria Residences. In 2007, Majestic Resorts filed a request for arbitration against Hilton after the company pulled out of the project. The undeveloped property was sold that year for $180 million. In 2019, Doumani received county approval to build a new version of Majestic Las Vegas on the former site of the nearby Clarion Hotel and Casino, which he had imploded four years earlier. This version of Majestic Las Vegas would be a 45-story, non-gaming hotel with 720 rooms. The project would cost $850 million and stand 620 feet, and would be located near the Las Vegas Convention Center and the Las Vegas Strip. Groundbreaking is scheduled for early 2022, with completion expected in late 2024.

Circus Circus Las Vegas
Circus Circus Las Vegas

Circus Circus Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the northern Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Phil Ruffin. Circus Circus includes the largest permanent circus in the world. It features circus and trapeze acts, as well as carnival games, at its Carnival Midway. The resort also includes the Adventuredome, an indoor amusement park. Circus Circus was originally owned by Jay Sarno and Stanley Mallin. It opened without a hotel on October 18, 1968. It included a casino on its first floor, while a second floor contained carnival games for children. Circus Circus was the first family-oriented casino in Las Vegas. It struggled financially during its early years, in part because of its lack of a hotel. A 15-story tower, with 409 rooms, was added in 1972. Sarno and Mallin were subsequently investigated for tax code violations and alleged connections with organized crime. In 1974, the casino was leased to Bill Bennett and William Pennington, taking over operations from Sarno and Mallin. The property thrived under its new management. Another 15-story tower was added in 1975, followed by an RV park in 1979. A year later, Circus Circus added a series of motel structures, increasing the total room count to 1,610. Bennett and Pennington eventually purchased Circus Circus in 1983, and added a 29-story tower in 1986. The amusement park was added in 1993, and a 35-story tower was completed three years later. The casino contains 123,928 sq ft (11,513.3 m2), while the hotel has 3,767 rooms. The Circus Circus property also includes the small Slots-A-Fun Casino, which Sarno opened in 1971. The resort was owned through Circus Circus Enterprises, which was renamed Mandalay Resort Group in 1999. The resort was sold to MGM Mirage (later MGM Resorts International) in 2005. MGM intended to renovate and expand Circus Circus, but canceled such plans amid the Great Recession. Fifty years after its opening, Circus Circus remained popular among families. In 2019, MGM sold Circus Circus to Las Vegas casino owner Phil Ruffin. At the time, the resort included the only RV park on the Las Vegas Strip.

Fontainebleau Las Vegas
Fontainebleau Las Vegas

The Fontainebleau Las Vegas (formerly The Drew Las Vegas) is a hotel and casino currently under construction on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is on the 24.5-acre (9.9 ha) site previously occupied by the El Rancho Hotel and Casino and the Algiers Hotel. The project was announced as Fontainebleau Las Vegas in May 2005, with initial plans to begin construction by March 2006, and to have the resort opened by 2008. It was intended to be a sister property to the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel. It would be developed by Fontainebleau Resorts, which was owned by Jeff Soffer. Construction began in February 2007, and the hotel tower was topped off on November 14, 2008. A group of banks had agreed to provide financing, but the group was sued by Fontainebleau in April 2009, after it refused to continue funding the project. Construction was slowed down considerably, and was eventually put on hold in June 2009, when the project went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The project was 70-percent completed, and the opening had been scheduled for October 2009. The project, upon completion, was to include a 95,000 sq ft (8,800 m2) casino, 2,871 hotel rooms, and 1,018 condo hotel units, among other features. The hotel tower rises 68 stories, standing 737 feet high. It is the tallest building in Las Vegas and in the state, excluding the nearby Strat observation tower. The Fontainebleau was designed by Carlos Zapata Studio with Bergman Walls and Associates as the executive architect. Carl Icahn purchased the project out of bankruptcy in 2010, but he never restarted construction. In August 2017, the unfinished resort was sold to investment firms Witkoff Group and New Valley LLC for $600 million. In February 2018, Witkoff and Marriott International announced a partnership to open the resort as The Drew Las Vegas. Upon completion, the project would include a casino as well as three hotels with 3,780 rooms; plans for condominiums were scrapped. Witkoff Group founder Steve Witkoff named The Drew after his deceased 22-year-old son, Andrew Witkoff, who died of an OxyContin overdose in 2011. The Drew was intended to open in 2022. However, construction stopped in March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Nevada. In February 2021, Soffer bought back the project through his company Fontainebleau Development, with Koch Real Estate Investments as a partner. Soffer named it back to Fontainebleau Las Vegas and intends to open it in late 2023.

El Rancho Hotel and Casino

The El Rancho Hotel and Casino (formerly known as the Thunderbird and Silver Bird) was a hotel and casino that operated on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It originally opened on September 2, 1948, as the Navajo-themed Thunderbird. The Thunderbird was owned by building developer Marion Hicks and Lieutenant Governor of Nevada Clifford A. Jones. A sister property, the Algiers Hotel, was opened in 1953. During the mid-1950s, the state carried out an investigation to determine whether underworld Mafia figures held hidden interests in the resort. Hicks and Jones ultimately prevailed and kept their gaming licenses. Hicks died in 1961, and his position as managing director was taken over by Joe Wells, another partner in the resort. Wells added a horse racing track known as Thunderbird Downs, located behind the resort. The Thunderbird also hosted numerous entertainers and shows, including Flower Drum Song and South Pacific. Business at the resort declined as ownership changed several times. In 1965, Wells and Jones sold the Thunderbird to Del E. Webb Corporation, which later sold it to Caesars World in 1972. Caesars World planned to demolish the Thunderbird and construct a $150 million resort in its place, but the project was canceled because of a lack of financing. The Thunderbird was sold to Tiger Investment Company, which leased it to Major Riddle starting in 1977. Riddle renovated and expanded the resort, and renamed it as the Silver Bird, hoping to reinvigorate it. After Riddle's death in 1980, the Silver Bird was taken over by his estate. The resort closed on December 3, 1981, after an auction failed to produce a buyer on the lease. Ed Torres subsequently purchased the Silver Bird and reopened it as the El Rancho on August 31, 1982. The resort featured a western theme and was named after the original El Rancho Vegas across the street. Torres added a 13-story hotel tower in 1988. The El Rancho closed on July 6, 1992, unable to compete with newer mega resorts. It sat vacant for the next eight years while two companies made several failed attempts to reopen or replace the resort. A news investigation later found the decrepit buildings to be in violation of health and safety regulations. Turnberry Associates purchased the El Rancho and its 20 acres in May 2000. The company had been developing the Turnberry Place high-rise condominiums on 15 acres located behind the El Rancho. The closed resort was considered an eyesore for the new project, so Turnberry Associates had it demolished. The El Rancho's last remaining building, the 13-story hotel tower, was imploded on October 3, 2000. The former property of the El Rancho and Algiers later became the site of the Fontainebleau Las Vegas resort, which began construction in 2007 and is scheduled to open in 2023, after delays.

Stardust Resort and Casino
Stardust Resort and Casino

The Stardust Resort and Casino was a casino resort located on 60 acres (24 ha) along the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. The Stardust was conceived by Tony Cornero, and construction began in 1954. Cornero died in 1955, and the project was taken over by his brother. The Stardust had numerous creditors, and construction was stopped in 1956, when the project ran out of money. Rella Factor, the wife of John Factor, bought the Stardust in January 1958, and finished construction. The Stardust opened on July 2, 1958, as the world's largest hotel. It had 1,065 rooms located across six motel structures, and included a 16,500 sq ft (1,530 m2) casino. An adjacent hotel-casino, the Royal Nevada, became part of the Stardust in 1959, with its casino converted into Stardust convention space. A nine-story hotel addition was completed in 1964. The resort operated the off-site Stardust Country Club and the Stardust International Raceway during the 1960s, and in 1972, it became the first resort on the Las Vegas Strip to open an RV park for guests, a concept that proved to be popular. After several ownership changes, Argent Corporation purchased the Stardust in 1974. Argent added a sportsbook that would later become a popular attraction for the Stardust. In 1976, a state investigation found that a skimming operation was occurring at the Stardust and at Argent's other properties. The Stardust was sold again in 1979, to Al Sachs and Herb Tobman, both of whom had previously served as general managers for the resort. Another investigation determined in 1983 that skimming was occurring at the Stardust again. The Nevada Gaming Commission concluded that Sachs and Tobman had failed to prevent the skimming, and the men agreed to sell the Stardust. The Boyd family purchased it in 1985, and would retain ownership for the remainder of the resort's history. The Stardust had been one of the few Las Vegas Strip resorts without a high-rise hotel tower, until the Boyds added a 32-story tower in 1990. The original Stardust motel structures were demolished around 2000, to make way for an expansion of the resort, although the nine-story tower was kept. In its final years, the Stardust included an 85,000 sq ft (7,900 m2) casino and 1,552 hotel rooms. It was small compared to newer resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, and revenue fell during its last years. Boyd Gaming announced in January 2006 that it would close and demolish the aging Stardust to build a new project, Echelon Place, on the site. The Stardust closed on November 1, 2006, and the two hotel towers were imploded on March 13, 2007. The resort had a popular roadside sign, which was given to the city's Neon Museum. Construction on the Echelon project was halted in 2008, because of financial problems caused by the Great Recession. Genting Group bought the Echelon project in 2013, and announced plans to finish it as Resorts World Las Vegas. It opened in 2021, after several delays. The Stardust hosted numerous entertainers and shows throughout its history. At its opening, it debuted Lido de Paris, which featured topless showgirls. The show continued playing until 1991, when it was replaced by a modernized show known as Enter the Night. Wayne Newton was the resort's resident headliner from 2000 to 2005. Other entertainers who performed at the Stardust include Don Rickles, Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, Siegfried & Roy, and Steve and Eydie. In 2020, Boyd launched its Stardust Social Casino online game. The following year, Boyd partnered with FanDuel to launch Stardust-branded online casinos in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.