LAS VEGAS | Boom Project Rundown! 2.0

[Quixote]

Where's Project City Center located?

[The_Analyst]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

I'll be in Vegas later this month. I'm glad to see so much activity beyond The Strip! Though it appears that much of the projects are "centers" and therefore are rather un-pedestrian friendly. They need to encourage people to walk AWAY from The Strip. I've been to Las Vegas a number of times (at least 20) and I can definitely say that I've NEVER walked away from The Strip. I never turned a corner and walked on a side street and to be honest, I don't think anybody else does as well! What efforts are being made to make Las Vegas a more organic environment that flows naturally?

You raise a good question. The Strip itself is generally pedestrian friendly--especially mid-central portion. By pedestrian friendly I mean that the sidewalks are wide and the skybridges enable you to not get run over or have to walk across 8 lanes of traffic. One could also argue that the new casino projects are so large that they are in effect neighborhoods onto themselves and people can walk from dining to hotel room to showroom to nightclub, etc. without a car.

But, ped-friendly streets perpendicular to the Strip is almost non-existent. Of course I-15 is a barrier to the West but development could be friendlier to pedestrians heading East. One of the reasons the monorail seems to be failing is people can't walk a block or two off the Strip. But, I don't think thats because they are unwilling, I think they just arent aware of it or how to get to it.

The Harmon corridor would seem to be ideal for developing an East-West compliment to the Strip in a pedestrian friendly way. I wonder if the county is doing anything to support that. I think Tropicana is too far gone as a virtual surface level freeway but Flamingo East of the Strip could be improved especially if Harrah's eventually takes down Barbary Coast and/or Bally's.

[jazfingr]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

Where's Project City Center located?

For the nwebies here in the Vegas Boom page, this map shows all the projects and their locations. The rest of the site is pretty cool too (If I say so myself)

http://www.vegastodayandtomorrow.com/condomap.htm

[jazfingr]

Originally Posted by The_Analyst

One could also argue that the new casino projects are so large that they are in effect neighborhoods onto themselves and people can walk from dining to hotel room to showroom to nightclub, etc. without a car.

There is no argument here. Caesars Palace alone, would comprise about 25 city blocks in mid town Mattahan. When I did this image to illustrate this point, my jaw dropped. These mega resorts are indeed neighborhoods.

[vegasrain84]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

I'll be in Vegas later this month. I'm glad to see so much activity beyond The Strip! Though it appears that much of the projects are "centers" and therefore are rather un-pedestrian friendly. They need to encourage people to walk AWAY from The Strip. I've been to Las Vegas a number of times (at least 20) and I can definitely say that I've NEVER walked away from The Strip. I never turned a corner and walked on a side street and to be honest, I don't think anybody else does as well! What efforts are being made to make Las Vegas a more organic environment that flows naturally?

I have to vent, because I think you hit on something that is lacking in Vegas.. Vegas doesn't have a feng shui, I think its probably because the place was built in the desert in 1911, hardly any living creatures inhabit the area natuarally. And if you stray away from the Strip, well, you either end up across the 15 in a bunch of industrial parks, or you end up in the Ghetto near UNLV and risk getting shot near Paradise Rd. Simply put, there isn't much off the immediate strip, but if you go up to say Summerlin, you can kind of enjoy more ascetic scenery near red rock resort and all the nice homes up there.. On the other side, old Henderson has improved but its not very exciting, Lake Las Vegas is great, Its like a martian landscape meets Italy. Downtown is improving, that is where I have the most hope for a kind of urban real city experience, but its just not there yet.. Fremont St. is great, but not good enough.. Once they finally (if they ever do) get Union Park built, I think downtown will be a great place for the kind of organic flow you might be talking about.. With real residents, mixed with tourists, culture and all the things you would expect from a place that is home to over 1.6 million people.. Vegas has always lacked a real culture, its culture is tourism.. But there is nothing outside the strip. No museums, well except the Liberace museum. And they are trying with the Arts district, if you go on their first fridays which is held.. well the first friday of every month, you can go on an Arts tour through downtown, its fun if you are into Arts street fairs. But I totally agree with you, Vegas needs a feng shui intervention!

[Quixote]

Originally Posted by The_Analyst

One could also argue that the new casino projects are so large that they are in effect neighborhoods onto themselves and people can walk from dining to hotel room to showroom to nightclub, etc. without a car.

You have a great point there. Though I think that there can only be so many of these "centers". But IMO, Las Vegas is an exception because that's what makes the city so unique. I see a lot of that strip mall/office park areas quite a bit away from The Strip. Rather than another "center" they could build several 10 story wall-to-wall apartment buildings though that might not be in accordance with the zoning laws in place. But having several mid-rises would really give more of an urban vibe to the area and would in turn would be more of an organic environment.

And you are quite right about the street perpendicular to The Strip. I think they are un-pedestrian friendly and you would think some of that energy would flow away from The Strip. Hotels and restaurants need to be situated right on the street and they need to be on side streets, allowing pedestrians to turn corners and reach their destination.

I think the southern portion of the strip needs more life. Despite it being on The Strip, it just feels cut off from the action. I also notice the sidewalks to be much more narrow. Though the majority of The Strip doesn't have any retail or restaurants fronting the street, The Strip is still pedestrian friendly because of the wider sidewalks (as you said earlier).

Nevertheless, I'm excited at the fact that Las Vegas is becoming more than just a "get-away town". Actually, it's been departing from that cheap, gambling town atmosphere for quite some time now. Right now, I perceive Vegas to be more of an upscale, young, and hip town with some of the best nightlife and shopping. Now it's becoming more of a place to live and settle down. Though I think to fully shed that "get-away town" feeling, there must be more of a downtown.

[mdiederi]

Rinkai has applied for an extension to develop the Holy Cow site (Summit/Ivana), saying that the factors that cancelled it have been resolved and the project can proceed.


http://www5.lasvegasnevada.gov/sirep...doctype=Agenda
Scroll down to number 77 for a bunch of pdf files, including these Plans (same original plans)

[BrandonJXN]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

Where's Project City Center located?

In between Monte Carlo and the Belligio. I went to Vegas this past September and it is a huge site. But I was shocked at how HUGE the Palazzo is. I've never seen anything that big in my life.

You said something about how the South Strip is pretty lonely. I think because McCarran International is basically right across the street from Mandalay Bay.

Well..across the street and around the corner.

Word of advice: DON'T TAKE THE DEUCE. It might seem like fun to ride a double decker bus but it took well over an hour to travel from the Hilton to the Tropicana. And they're about a mile and a half apart.

[Quixote]

So there will be three Wynn towers? The original and the Macau (1 and 2)?

[jazfingr]

Originally Posted by Westsidelife

So there will be three Wynn towers? The original and the Macau (1 and 2)?

Four actually, as he's building Encore next to the existing tower in Vegas. Encore will be taller than the original and may have an angled side but the curve, glass color and white stripes every two floors are the same.

You can see an approximation here:
http://www.vegastodayandtomorrow.com/wynn.htm#encore


.

[jazfingr]

There are a few opportunities for "side street" pedestrian areas along the strip.

The first is (as mentioned) the Harmon Corridor with the Planet Hollywood Towers, W hotel, Chateau and Signature at MGM Grand. Although there were other (failed) proposals for the remainder of that mile, I sure it's only a matter of time before it will fill in. Harrah's also has a large amount of land behind Aladdin, Paris and Bally's which spans from Harmon to Flamingo and they will surely develop it at some point.

The second possibility is (of course) Flamingo with Harrah's owning the old Bourbon Street site and the Westin next to it, i can see an attractive opportunity there.

Convention Center Rd. is another possible urban corridor.

The area down by Mandalay is a bit weird (being one sided and all) but Harrods will at least fill in the area across from the Luxor (if it gets built).

[vegasrain84]

Originally Posted by jazfingr

The area down by Mandalay is a bit weird (being one sided and all) but Harrods will at least fill in the area across from the Luxor (if it gets built).

The new additions to the Tropicana will also do quite a bit to help fill in the south end of the strip.

It really is too bad that Related Co. couldn't get it together with Las Ramblas, that was one of the most exciting projects proposed.. Hopefully someone else will come along and attempt something similar. I am sure that once the W Hotel anchors the Harmon corridor, it will happen.

[Don Pacho]

Panorama Towers








Encore at Wynn




Marriott Grand Chateau






.

[ScottG]

great diagrams Vegasrain84!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mojava]

Has there been any further news on the Maxim hotel that was announced a few months back. I think it was going near Sky.

[vegasrain84]

Originally Posted by ScottG

great diagrams Vegasrain84!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Scott! I still think that my drawing of the World Jewelry Center needs some more work, but that is the perfectionist in me I suppose. I just finished with a new rendering of Wynn and Encore (based on info from VegasTodayandTomorrow), and also with Panorama towers 1, 2 and 3. I have tower 4 done, but I am waiting to see what they decide the final height will be. My guess is that it will be the same as pano tower 3. I am on break from school, so I while away the hours on the diagrams. I'll be working on some more drawings for the buildings without them, so look for more in the coming days..

[sharpie]

Hey Everyone

I just got back from my first trip to Vegas (wow, what a blast). The amount of construction going on is crazy, and it sounds like there is a lot more to come. I noticed two things, and found them really odd. How you can have these amazing projects being built on one side of the street, and something very seedy right next door? Also, does the city/county not require developers to dedicate and landscape roadside areas? For all the foot traffic, the sidewalks are very narrow (not to mention the street lights in teh middle of the sidewalks), and there was very little landscaping. Not very ped friendly (from what I remember, it's kind of a blur)!

[ScottG]

^^^^actually you reminded me of something..... if you are talking about the construction of city center on one side of the road and that crappy hawaiian market place tourest trap block of shitty motels and run down stores on the other side...well, i heard a few weeks ago that a developer bought EVERYTHING from the harrly davidison cafe to the hawaiian market place and plans are tearring it all down....then last week i herd the city bought all that property and plans on tearrying it alll down....either way i like the tearring it all down part.


and as far as landscape goes, we are in the deseret- its difficult to do landscape (other than "zero scape") that any one would pay for. the city does have that center road island decked out in flowers and palm trees, but no- you wont find landscaped plazas on the strip,,, that is a waste of space that could be generating money if it were a mall or casino....

[mdiederi]

The Sunday RJ has an article about smart urban planning and the Howard Hughes Corporation's plan for an urban village in Summerlin next to the Red Rock Casino. It will be 400 acres and have 7,000 residential units, 1,000,000 sq ft of office space, and 1,500,000 sq ft of retail and be pedestrian friendly.

[vegasrain84]

Great Photos Don!! Keep them coming!

Perhaps it is just from the camera angle, but it appears as though Encore is angled a little bit compared to Wynn, anyone else see that, or is it just me? I am really shocked that without having ever seen the Encore logo before, I managed to get it right on the money in my drawing of Encore.. I just noticed the Encore logo in the photo by Don.. Pretty kewl! Marriott is coming along nicely!

I hope that the W Hotel and Residences starts construction soon.. Then the whole Harmon Corridor will be a sea of cranes from Panorama towers, CityCenter, Cosmo, PH Towers, Chateau, MGM and W!