By Maria Willson
The newest casino of Las Vegas downtown was launched recently. The Downtown Grand Hotel, which opened unofficially in downtown Las Vegas, is unlike the retro casinos that populate the Old Vegas area. The Grand opened its doors to its guests on last Sunday, October 27, and aims at bringing the element of luxury to the region. The hotel and casino is located on the Ogden Avenue and 3rd Street corner, where the erstwhile Lady Luck casino once thrived.
The building, although new, fits better into the urban landscape of the downtown area than most other buildings in the area do.
Steve Wynn Steals the Show
The opening of the Grand in Downtown Las Vegas may have made Seth Schorr’s day, the CEO of the new luxury hotel and casino in Las Vegas. But the limelight was all on Steve Wynn, who was present to take a sneak peak at the hotel, along with the general public. Well, Steve Wynn was not here to stakeout his competition. Apparently, Mr. Wynn is an old friend of Marc Schorr, Seth Schorr’s father, who worked with Wynn earlier at the Golden Nugget. Their association is a close one and goes a long way back. Both the senior Schorr and Steve Wynn opened the casino in style and were handed $5,000 worth chips to play their choice of games.
Wynn, who seemed obviously impressed with the Grand, stated that it was good to see Fremont Street back. He also quoted columnist George Will, regardless of their income levels, all people are the same in the eyes of Lady Luck in Vegas. He also said that Fremont Street is a place that allows people of all incomes levels to try their luck, and he was pleased to see Seth Schorr and his team bring it back now.
Three Years’ Hard Work Finally Pays Off
The Downtown Grand has been in the making for over three years now and a total of $100 million went into building the casino and hotel, according to Seth Schorr. The hotel is not only making money, but will also be creating employment to the locals, according to Schorr. He said that the hotel, which will have over 600 rooms, will be hiring 800 people, who will be working both at the hotel and the casino.
The Grand casino will have more than 600 slot machines and over 30 table games to entertain its guests, Schorr added. Considering the number of jobs it is creating and the revenue it is likely to generate when it officially opens after the ribbon cutting on November 12, the Downtown Grand hotel and casino is going to have a significant impact on Las Vegas’ economy.
Grand to Offer the Best of Urban Hospitality in Vegas
The Grand hotel and casino consists of a 25-story Grand Tower and an 18-story casino tower. The building is designed to blend in with the many storefronts and brick facades of other buildings in the area. It has a number of doors that lead in and out of the casino, encouraging the casino guests to take a walk along Las Vegas’ downtown. Also, guests can reach a restaurant inside or out, without having to walk through the casino. The casino has both indoor and outdoor spaces and even an outdoor gaming arena for its guests. The first guest of the casino on its launch was Alan Oshiro of California, who was rewarded with a $100 chip and a ticket to Life is Beautiful festival.
Oshiro had been a regular at the Lady Luck casino, which had over 743 rooms. The casino closed in February 2006 and was bought by New York based developer CIM Group in 2007.