Arena, restaurants and tree-lined patios planned, and more of everything at Mandalay Bay
If there was any doubt who the major operator is in Las Vegas, MGM Resorts International last week put any doubts to bed. With a new $375 million arena under way behind New York-New York, as well as a “Park” linking the Strip to the arena, the company also announced a huge expansion of the convention space at Mandalay Bay along with a major re-branding of THEhotel there.
The week culminated by a star-studded groundbreaking of a new arena MGM is building with AEG, the world’s leading arena owner and operator.
The arena will cost $375 million and seat between 12,000 and 20,000 people depending upon the event and the configuration of the seating.
MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren said that the arena will cement the reputation of Las Vegas as the “entertainment capital of the world for generations to come.”
“The addition of this world-class arena, which will attract new events to the market and enable existing events to grow in scale, is an integral component in that strategy. No destination can deliver the level of energy and excitement found in Las Vegas, where every day has the vibe of a big event day.”
MGM says it expects to host at least 100 events annually in the arena without impacting the smaller MGM Grand Garden across the street. To emphasize the role sports will play in the arena, the groundbreaking included roles for the president of Ultimate Fighting Championship Dana White, the CEO of Golden Boy Promotions Richard Schaefer, NBA and NCAA legend and Hall of Famer Bill Walton, NHL legend, Hall of Famer and president of the Los Angeles Kings, Luc Robitaille. WBC Welterweight World Champion Floyd Mayweather also made a grand entrance to help turn the dirt.
Dan Beckerman, president and CEO of AEG, affirmed that the arena would be a game-changer in Las Vegas.
“Together with MGM,” he said, “we have designed an arena with some of the most unique features, offerings and amenities for our fans and sponsors. We look forward to bringing the best sports and entertainment events to this new state-of-the-art arena in one of the most vibrant entertainment markets in the world.”
To start the week, the company unveiled detailed plans for an eight-acre park, dining and entertainment district to be built on eight acres fronting the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between the operator’s New York-New York and Monte Carlo resorts.
“The Park” will include tree-lined plazas, casual restaurants and retail outlets surrounding the outdoor park setting, which will serve as a grand entrance to a 20,000-seat arena currently under construction, and will link the two casino resorts. It is slated to open in 2016.
The Park’s unique design elements include green initiatives, natural landscaping featuring native and desert-adaptive species of plants, and “microclimates” ofmature trees, vegetation, water features and artful shade structures. Both New York-New York and Monte Carlo will transform their park-facing facades with a series of unique indoor/outdoor dining and entertainment venues, creating what the operator calls “a vibrant patio culture that encompasses The Park’s landscaped spaces.”
Rue de Monte Carlo, the adjacent street providing access from Las Vegas Boulevard, will be realigned as a gently curving, tree-lined parkway providing an approach to the new arena. New cobblestone walkways in front of New York-New York and Monte Carlo will lead guests into The Park from both directions and blend with the mosaic tile patterns that canvas the space.
“Beautiful public places are highlights of many of the world’s finest cities, and Las Vegas shouldn’t be the exception,” said Murren. “The Park will be the first of its kind on the Las Vegas Strip, and is an embodiment of MGM Resorts’ commitment to engaging guests through arts and innovation. To create this picturesque outdoor destination, we are literally taking down the walls and opening the doors at our resorts to develop a unique dining and entertainment district that complements its lush new surroundings.”
“The Park re-envisions the traditional pedestrian experience in Las Vegas,” said a statement from MGM. “It will draw passersby from the hustle and bustle of the Strip into an oasis offering unique opportunities to experience Las Vegas outdoors and at one’s leisure, only steps from one of the largest urban boulevards in the world.
“Inspired by the iconic plazas, promenades and squares that have served as important public gathering destinations within the world’s great cities throughout history, The Park will offer an array of common spaces for socializing, relaxing, exploring and sampling the surrounding tastes, sights and sounds.”
“By day, visitors will be able to bask in pockets of sun or enjoy shade beneath mature trees or one of the stunning, tulip-like shade structures towering more than 50 feet above. Patio-style seating will encourage an interactive social environment, while seating alcoves tucked into large planters will provide areas for respite.”
The Park will include several water features, including water walls stretching more than 100 feet in length along the entrance. Plantings will incorporate a variety of desert blooms. Acoustic guitarists and street performers will be strategically located throughout the attractions. At night, the 50-foot tulips will feature miniature LED light shows.
Clusters of bistros, cafes and casual restaurants and bars with outdoor seating will open each resort to The Park. Ranging from fast casual to mid-level, each offering will be a unique-to-market, up-and-coming brand.
MGM announced details on some of the venues planned:
• New York’s Shake Shack will open its first location at The Park, overlooking the “Brooklyn Bridge” of the New York-New York façade. Established in 2004 in New York City’s Madison Square Park, Shake Shack is popular for its all-natural burgers, flat-top dogs, frozen custard, beer and wine.
• Bruxie of Orange County, California will replicate its fast-casual, gourmet waffle restaurant and its signature waffles and sandwiches.
• Sake Rok will offer sushi, Japanese cuisine and its private sake label. By night, Sake Rok will transform into a high-profile social dining outlet, featuring an experience MGM says is “part culinary, part performance and completely unexpected.” Inspired by Japan’s vibrant pop culture and fashion movements, interactive servers will invite guests to partake in restaurant-wide “sake bombs” while doubling as entertainers, spontaneously breaking into dance and lip-sync serenades.
• The Beer Garden will feature vantage points of all The Park’s activity, while offering “sustainably raised farm-to-table meats,” craft beers and live music, along with bocce, darts and outdoor ping pong.
• A Robert Mondavi Jr. Wine Experience will be a restaurant, lounge and wine bar concept reminiscent of California’s Napa Valley, with the signature warmth and inviting essence of the famous vineyards where Mondavi Family wine production originated. Anchored by an extensive wine program, the venue will boast 100-plus wines by the glass and a variety of formats, accompanied by gourmet wine country cuisine.
• Dyers Bentley’s Whiskey Row will introduce the country star’s contemporary country bar and restaurant concept, offering American gastropub fare, plenty of brews on tap, a specialty menu of boilermakers (a shot of whiskey from a menu featuring more than 40 options, dropped into a glass of beer) and live music by night.
• Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar will reprise the popular East Coast restaurant change with Havana-style restaurant, bar and high-energy Latin night spot.
The design for The Park is a collaborative effort led by MGM Resorts International with master planner Cooper, Robertson & Partners, leading landscape architecture and urban design firm !melk, and Marnell Architecture.
In an interview with Robin Leach for the Las Vegas Sun, Murrin said the Park attraction is indicative of serving a new type of tourist than the Las Vegas Strip resorts currently serve. “Tourism is changing completely for Las Vegas,” he said. “It’s a different tourist. We’re changing, and the landscape is changing. The walls are coming down, and the hotels and casinos are opening up.”
Murrin added that the Park will be the first of many additions to MGM resorts along the Strip. “These resorts are very inward-facing,” he said. “They were designed to try to be provocative, to get people inside and have them stay as long as possible. By opening up these resorts, by creating a much more porous environment with outdoor and indoor spaces and experiences, you’re going to attract a lot more people.”
As for the new arena, Murrin told Leach he hopes it could be a bargaining chip to lure a pro sports team to Las Vegas. “I would love to see one,” he said. “I think Las Vegas will absolutely have one over the next few years. I think we are going to be in a very good position to guide that dialogue in the future.”
And to cap off the week, MGM announced and debuted changes at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino. The company has renamed its adjacent hotel and will expand its convention center to create what it calls “the most flexible and customer-focused convention facility in North America.”
The curiously named “THEhotel” on the Las Vegas Strip is getting a new, more customer-friendly name as well as an all-new South Beach look.
Following an $80 million makeover, the MGM Resorts will be known as Delano Las Vegas. According to the Associated Press, the hotel will not be renamed until September, but has already started accepting online and phone reservations under its new moniker. The 1,100-suite Delano is located at the Mandalay Bay casino.
“This is its own place,” Matthew Chilton, general manager of the Delano, told the AP. “We’re not just Mandalay Bay with an all-suites product. This gives it its own identity.”
The Delano takes its design cues from the Delano hotel in South Beach, Florida. The brand is popular with customers from Latin America, Europe and the East Coast, reports the AP. MGM is catering to those customers, who tend to stay longer and spend more than other Vegas tourists.
“It’s the opportunity to have what you’d expect with a chic, Miami vibe, but create our own brand,” Mandalay Bay President and COO Chuck Bowling said of the hotel, where the rooms will be decorated mostly in white, with sheer curtains and contemporary art and furnishings. Rooms will go for about $200 per night.
Meanwhile, the property’s convention center is also getting an upgrade.
“Several longstanding customers approached us with a need for additional space to grow their business; they looked to us to be a solution provider, and we went to work,” said Bowling in a statement. “In addition to enabling our current clients to develop larger events, the additional space and new flexibility will allow us to attract new business to Las Vegas. We believe this investment will increase visitation to Las Vegas, driving incremental business to MGM Resorts’ portfolio and the city overall.”
The property will add more than 350,000 square feet of exhibit space to the existing 1.7 million-square-foot Mandalay Bay Convention Center. It will also boost its underground parking facilities, add 70,000 additional square feet of ballroom space, and top it all with the largest solar photovoltaic array ever for a convention center, according to U.S. News and World Report.
When it’s done, the convention center will total more than 2 million square feet including 1.1 million square feet of exhibit space and be the fifth largest convention facility in North America.
“Las Vegas is continuing to evolve as a meetings destination and this development will solidify Mandalay Bay as a top choice for corporate groups and trade shows of all sizes,” said Stephanie Glanzer, vice president of sales at Mandalay Bay. “We’re already speaking with new customers about future business in the space as well as current clients about extending their contracts. We are committed to making a complete experience that extends beyond just business, and with more than 41,000 guest rooms across MGM Resorts’ Las Vegas properties at varying price points, we can make a complete contract that is customized for any group.”
Construction on the $66 million project is scheduled to begin in the fall. New exhibit space will be available in August 2015 and the entire project will be complete in January 2016.
Travel experts are viewing the move favorably. David Peckinpaugh, president of Maritz Travel, told the Wall Street Journal, “This expansion takes what is already perhaps the best meeting space in Las Vegas to the next level and puts Mandalay Bay in a truly unique position around the globe with its ability to host premier meetings and conventions.”
David Loechner, CEO of Emerald Expositions, added, “As a fast-growing expositions organizer currently holding 13 annual trade shows in Las Vegas, including four at Mandalay Bay, we are very pleased with the decision to expand and expect to take advantage of the new space as soon as it’s complete.”
