MGM Mirage Builds Las Vegas Mega Resort

 Gambling giant MGM Mirage is planning a new 4,000-room mega-resort and extensive urban development in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip, a project that will dramatically change the landscape of the city's most important commercial hub.

MGM Mirage officials are calling the ambitious plan a "Project City Center" and believe it will help transform Las Vegas into a sophisticated, multidimensional city that rivals other major cities.

"Our master plan presents a significant new direction for our city and our company," said Terry Lanni, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MGM Mirage Inc.

The multibillion-dollar project includes three 400-room boutique hotels, about 550,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment venues, and a 1,650-unit luxury condominium complex.

The large-scale development will be built on a 66-acre site between Bellagio and Monte Carlo Hotel Casino, with the first phase creating 12,000 jobs when completed in 2010.

Over the next 18 months, MGM Mirage will select master architects and residential and hotel partners.

Jim Mullen, president and chief financial officer of MGM Mirage, said once completed, it could be the largest private investment development in the country.

With the announcement, MGM Mirage has addressed the question of where to build the company's next most anticipated hotel casino. MGM Mirage has been discussing building a mega resort in Atlantic City or Las Vegas, which has been a huge success since 2003 with its unprecedented popularity that has helped gambling companies reap dizzying returns. The city is expected to record a record 37 million visitors this year.

Gambling experts reacted cautiously to MGM Mirage's announcement, which was expected on Wednesday.

"It's out of the box for MGM," said John Mulkey, a gambling analyst with Bear Stearns in New York. "They've been more aggressive underwriters than developers in the past, but doing impressive work with this land certainly seems to be within their reach."

Like this city, MGM Mirage will soon undergo tremendous changes.

Lanni said the $4.8 billion merger with Mandalay Resort Group Inc. is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2005.

The deal is pending government approval and will be the world's second-largest gambling company. It is currently held by Harrah's Entertainment Inc.

The MGM Mirage plan is its third mega-resort. Las Vegas Sands began construction at Palacho, a $1.6 billion hotel casino scheduled to open in 2007. It's across the street from Winn Las Vegas, Steve Wynn's latest gambling den that costs $2.7 billion and is scheduled to open on Apr. 28.  안전 슬롯사이트

MGM Mirage shares fell 78 cents to settle at $58.92 on the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, close to a 52-week trading range of $34.05 to $60.07.