Caesars, MGM add to reopenings list
Resorts, shops, gaming floor next in line
MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment Corp. on Tuesday announced reopening plans that will expand hotel and casino capacity in the city.
In separate news releases, MGM said it will open Luxor and the Shoppes at Mandalay Bay Place on June 25 and will open Mandalay Bay and its Four Seasons and Aria properties on July 1, while Caesars said it will open the gaming floor at The Linq on Friday. The Linq’s parking garage and hotel will remain closed.
Both resort companies, the two largest operators on the Strip, opened properties Thursday, the first date casinos were allowed to be open after 78 days of closures statewide ordered by Gov. Steve Sisolak to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Nevada.
Caesars Entertainment had opened Caesars Palace, Flamingo and Harrah’s Las Vegas, while MGM operated Bellagio, New York-new York, MGM Grand and its MGM Grand Signature properties.
“It has been a pleasure to welcome guests and team members back to some of our properties in Las Vegas and in other parts of the country,” said Caesars CEO Tony Rodio. “We are encouraged by customer interest and visits, strong demand and the implementation so far of our enhanced health and safety protocols.”
Rodio, who participated in a grand reopening ceremony at Caesars Palace with Wayne Newton on Thursday, said the addition of the Linq gaming floor, food and beverage amenities as well as the Linq pool, and also the expanded amenities at Caesars Palace and Harrah’s “are the next steps towards resuming normal business operations in Las Vegas.”
“It was exciting and emotional to see the energy in Las Vegas last week
cochere and delivery area already planned at the under-construction resort.
Scott Sibella, president of Resorts World Las Vegas, said the proposed extension “would provide convention guests and visitors with a rapid and seamless experience between the Las Vegas Convention Center and Resorts World Las Vegas.”
The Resorts World tunnel would transport passengers to the convention center in under two minutes, according to the resort.
The route to Encore includes a tunnel alignment running from near the Las Vegas Monorail Station at the convention center, across the
Desert Inn and Paradise roads intersection, then underneath a portion of Wynn’s golf course and ending up on the north side of Encore, just east of Las Vegas Boulevard.
The tunnel would ramp up to the outside of the porte cochere of Encore, Hill said.
“Cars will be able to come out of that ramp, drive around the porte cochere and then back down into the ramp,” Hill said. “The anticipated capacity is not as high as it is at the convention center; we will be able to do this project with a single tunnel.”
It would take around two minutes to travel between the convention center station and Encore.
Wynn Resorts, in a statement, called the project an important step for the resort company as it continues
investing in eco-friendly options for the meeting and convention space.
Both convention center tunnels have been dug. Tunnel one is having ongoing paving and cosmetic repair work, while tunnel two is being cleaned and will soon begin to be paved.
Hill said it took about three months to bore the first tunnel and two months to bore the second. Dissatisfied with that time, The Boring Co. has been working on a new boring machine, which can start above ground and is expected to dig out tunnels more quickly and cheaper, Hill said.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@ reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.