OPENINGS IN LAS VEGAS LAST MONTH (MARCH,2007):
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Mar. 1= BARBARY COAST reopened under the new ownership of Harrah's and with the new name of
BILL'S GAMBLING HALL & SALOON (in honor of Harrah's founder, Bill Harrah).
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Mar. 1= Cirque du Soleil's aquatic spectacular 'O' performed its milestone 4000th show at the Bellagio.
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Mar. 1= HOOTERS renamed their slot club the "Owl Rewards Club."
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Mar. 1= Midnight movie openings start every Thursday night- South Point.
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Mar. 2= The SAHARA (1,720 rooms) was sold to new owners subject to the usual regulatory approvals.
Major renovations are expected but no details have yet been released.
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Mar. 3= HYPNOSIS GONE WILD reopened -- Empire Ballroom.
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Mar. 3= Café Martorano opened in the RIO. The restaurant, which is taking over the former
Rosemary's Restaurant space, blends nightlife and dining.
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Mar. 5= Las Vegas Hilton's Andiamo restaurant, was renamed “Casa Nicola”.
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Mar. 6= Jean Philippe Pâtisserie in the Bellagio, opened two hand-crafted chocolate bunnies fish from an animated steamboat floating on a pond of sugar waves, complete with a working paddle. This is a one-of-a-kind sculpture. The display is 7-feet tall and 8-feet long and is made of approximately 520 pounds of dark and milk chocolate. The chocolate sculpture exhibit is on display through May 5. It is open 24 Hours a day and is free to the public.
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Mar. 8= WYNN LAS VEGAS preview shows began for Eric Idle's (of Monty Python fame) sold-out
Broadway musical spoof of the King Arthur tale "Spamalot", in a specially designed $70 million theater
called The Grail Theater (which was where the ill-fated Avenue Q played) to house the 90-minute
production. John O'Hurley (best known as J. Peterman on Seinfeld) will play King Arthur. The show won
2005 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Director for Mike Nichols and Best Featured Actress in a
Musical for Sara Ramirez.
Great internet site at:
http://www.montypythonsspamalot.com
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Mar. 9= LAS VEGAS MOTOR SPEEDWAYcompleted $27 million of upgrades to their facility including
a new fan interactive area and Nextel Cup garage in the speedway's infield. This new area will allow race
fans to look directly into the garages from both a raised level and ground level as the teams prepare their
cars to race. The Speedway is also increasing the banking and moving the pit road closer to the
grandstands. A new media center also will be part of the project. Removal of existing asphalt has begun.
More info. at:
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-nascar12mar12,1,3818312.story?coll=la-headlines-
sports&ctrack=1&cset=true
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Mar.11= Spring exhibit opened- Bellagio Botanical Gardens.
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Mar.15= Lucky Strike Lanes opened in the RIO.The project will feature a 10-lane bowling alley,
full-service restaurant and large bar area. The decor will be red brick facades, retro bowling
photographs, a neon Las Vegas sign and projection screens. Open seven days per week from 11 a.m.
until 3 a.m.
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Mar.15= STRATOSPHERE opened the POLLY ESTHER NIGHTCLUB, which will be a nightclub with
four different rooms, each with its own type of music. Location of the Polly Esther Nightclub is just
inside the main entrance of the Stratosphere between the Poker Room and Sportsbook. The four signature clubs, which will all be extremely detailed, decade themed venues, are: the 70's themed POLLY ESTHERS,the 80's themed CULTURE CLUB,the 90's themed NERVE ANA and Polly Esther's Las Vegas will also debut SUITE 2000, a club themed around this decade and specially designed for
Las Vegas. All rooms will be accessible with one cover charge.
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Mar.21= Venus Pool Club, opened inside Caesars Palace. Venus Pool Club features extravagant
elements of poolside indulgence such as posh cabanas, oversized chaise lounges, and air-conditioned
bars with flat screen TVs and luxuries as frozen towels, cooling Evian face spritzers and body massages.
Menu items range from lobster sandwiches to fresh ceviche, and a traveling drink cart equipped
for creating multiple flavors of mojitos and margaritas. Venus Pool Club will open 7 days per week from
9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and is ocated in the pool area of the Palace Tower.
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Mar.22= Cirque du Soleil announced a new Cirque du Soleil show. Cirque du Soleil will present
'Mindfreak' illusionist Criss Angel in a $100-million+ magic spectacular to open in mid-2008 at the
Luxor. This will be the seventh resident Cirque show in Vegas joining Mystere, O, Zumanity, Ka and
LOVE with an Elvis-based show opening at MGM Mirage's City Center when that is completed before
the decade's end.
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Mar.22-24= Don Rickles started the first of many exclusive engagements at the GOLDEN NUGGET.
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Mar.23= Opening Night for the STEVE WYRICK REAL MAGIC show in the Steve Wyrick Theater
located in the Desert Passage Mall in the Aladdin. The theater is very badly designed as you have to
walk up three flights of steps or have a long wait for a single, small elevator.
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Mar.24= Preview shows began for a new show "Stomp Out Loud," an expanded version of the off
-Broadway hit "Stomp." The show will be performed inside a new, $28 million theater specifically created
for this production - Aladdin/Planet Hollywood.
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Mar.26= Celebrity chef, David Burke opened his new restaurant "DAVID BURKE", serving modern
American cuisine. Located on the casino level of the Venetian, where the Royal Star Chinese
Restaurant was located.
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Mar.28= Grand Canyon West, a destination owned and operated by the Hualapai Tribe at the Grand
Canyon's western rim,opened THE SKYWALK. The Skywalk will be the first-ever cantilever shaped
glass walkway to suspend more than 4,000 feet above the canyon's floor and extend 70 feet from the
canyon's rim. Access to The Skywalk will run from dawn to dusk and will cost $25 per person in addition
to the cost of a Grand Canyon West entrance package. One hundred and twenty people will be allowed
on the bridge at a time. The cost is $25 perperson until December 31st, when it will go up to $45 per
person.
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Mar. 31= Beacher's Madhouse,and his eccentric motley crew of midgets, drag queens, strippers,
stilt walkers, contortionists and celebrities started again on a once-a-month basis -
HARD ROCK HOTEL.
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Mar.31= TERRIBLE'S took control and closed on their $400 million purchase, from MGM Mirage, of the
three casino/hotels, with 2,644 hotel rooms, in Primm, NV (Whiskey Pete's, Primm Valley Resorts and
Buffalo Bill's). The purchase also includes the convenience store, on the border, which is the California
Lottery's number one sales outlet.
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Mar. 31= WYNN LAS VEGAS Opened Eric Idle's (of Monty Python fame) Broadway musical spoof of the King Arthur tale "Spamalot", in a specially designed $70 million theater called The Grail Theater
(which was where the ill-fated Avenue Q played) to house the 90-minute production. John O'Hurley (best
known as J. Peterman on Seinfeld) plays King Arthur.
Internet site at:
http://www.montypythonsspamalot.com
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LAS VEGAS OPENINGS COMING UP IN THE FUTURE: 2007
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Apr.4= TROPICANA is open for 50 years. They opened April 4, 1957.
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Apr.5= Harrah's to hold special shareholder meeting to approve the company's sale toTexas Pacific and
Apollo. The company owns and operates 12 properties in Nevada.
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Apr.5= WYNN LAS VEGAS reopens the La ReveTheater after undergoing $8 million of renovations.
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April 6 = Good Friday.
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Apr.6-8= First Vegas GRAND PRIX (sponsored by Visa):
www.vegasgrandprix.com
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April 14= New show: "Hello Dere!" Starring Marty Allen and Karon Kate starts -Gold Coast Showroom.
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April 16-19= NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS (NAB) TRADE SHOW.FREE passes to
see the exhibits at:www.nabshow.com(use code: BR08)
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Apr.17= Grand opening for a new show "Stomp Out Loud," an expanded version of the off-Broadway hit "Stomp." The show will be performed inside a new, $28 million theater specifically created for this production - Aladdin/Planet Hollywood.
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Apr.20= HOOTERS opens the transformation of their "13" Martini Bar into the 300-seat "Hooters
showroom" featuring headlining acts.
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April 20-22=Pool,Spa and Home Expo-South Point Hotel.
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Apr.21= PALMS opens their multi-million dollar, state-of-the-art concert theater named THE PEARL
CONCERT THEATER. Gwen Stefani will headline the Grand Opening. The farthest seat from the stage
will be a mere 120 feet away, allowing performers to personally connect with the entire audience. Two
14-foot by 16-foot video screens will be located on each side of the stage for close up looks at the on-
stage action with additional plasma screens located throughout the concourse areas.With special
scalable curtains, The Pearl's capacity can easily adjust to accommodate from 1,100 to 2,400 guests.
In addition, the floor will allow for seated concert viewing or general admission standing room audiences.
The new concert facility will be hard wired to The Studio at The Palms.The facility is also designed to
host live television programs, sporting events and award shows. Internet site:
http://www.palmspearl.com/
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Apr.27= Magician Dixie Dooley opens his new show,"DIXIE DOOLEY, MASTER MYSTIFIER" at the
Weston Casuarina.
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Apr.??= ALADDIN changes its name to PLANET HOLLYWOOD RESORT & CASINO.
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Apr.??= FOUR QUEENS opens their nightclub called the Canyon Club.
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Apr.??= SOUTH POINT will open a new, fine-dining restaurant called MICHAEL'S, named after the
successful restaurant in the Barbary Coast.
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Sometime in the spring of 2007, GREEN VALLEY RANCH will open additional casino space and a
400-seat lounge and entertainment venue which will feature recurring acts and touring headliners.
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Sometime in the spring of 2007, the NBA (National Basketball Association) will put the issue of
expanding to Las Vegas into the hands of the owners, who will vote. Observers think that the NBA will
expand into Las Vegas, as long as the betting issue is resolved, with the casino sports books, to the
league's satisfaction.
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Sometime in the spring of 2007, the RIVIERA is scheduled to open a new show. The Riviera Showroom is now under renovation to accommodate this new show which is rumored to be the Moscow ice Show.
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May 4, 2007= TAO Nightclub at The Venetian will open TAO BEACH, a sophisticated Asian themed
European-style beach club and nightclub.
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May 5, 2007= Boxing. Oscar De La Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather-TICKETS SOLD OUT IN THREE
HOURS = MGM Grand Garden Arena.
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May 17= Grand opening for the Carmen Electra and Dutch magician Hans Klok "The Beauty of
Magic" show at ALADDIN/PLANET HOLLYWOOD.
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Sometime in late May, The MATSURI show opens in the Sahara.
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May??= MGM MIRAGE is opening Towers B and C in the RESIDENCES AT MGM GRAND.
The project has three Towers, each 40-storeys high and each Tower will have 576 condominium units.
The Towers are very creatively called:Tower A, Tower B and Tower C.The condominium units can be
rented by the public under the MGM Mirage program called The Signature at MGM Grand. Tower A is
now open. The whole project is being built where the MGM Grand Adventures Theme Park was located,
in the back of the MGM Grand. Turnberry & MGM Mirage are partners. Tel. 1-888-891-1688 or
(702) 891-5555. Beautiful internet site is at:
http://www.mgmgrandresidences.com
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June 1-3= International Jewelry Show-Cashman Ctr.
http://www.intergem.com/event/detail.cfm?showID=50
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June 2-4= International Esthetics, Cosmetics & SpaConference at the Las Vegas Convention Ctr.
http://www.iecsc.com/lasvegas.php
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Sometime in mid to late June, 2007, the $4 billion, multi-use ECHELON PLACE will start construction, where the Stardust was located. The project will have five hotel towers of 5,300 hotel rooms in five hotels (Echelon Resort, Shangri-La Hotel, one as yet unnamed and Morgans Hotel will open Delano and Mondrian. One million square feet of convention and meeting space, 350,000 square feet of joint ventured retail space, several entertainment venues including a 4,000-seat production theater and 1,500-seat performance venue. 25 restaurants and bars. plus the centerpiece 140,000-square-foot casino.
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June??, 2007= RED ROCK RESORT will open a $65 million, 72-lane bowling center on the west side of
the property near the movie theaters and additional parking. The bowling center will also include a
lounge, dining area, full service pro shop and a self-contained VIP bowling area with 12 lanes to host
private banquets, meetings and special events. This is the last and Phase 3 of their expansion plans.
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July 4=Independence Day
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July 7, 2007= Expected to be the busiest dayever, in the history of Las Vegas wedding chapels.
(07-07-07)
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Sometime in the summer of 2007, SANTA FE STATION will open a new poker room, two restaurants
named Tides Oyster Bar and Salt Lick BBQ and a Center Bar concept similar to the ones at Green
Valley Ranch and Red Rock Station.
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Sometime during late summer or early fall of 2007,FIESTA HENDERSON will open a Food Court,
Arcade and 12-screen movie theater operated by Regal Cinemas.
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Sometime in the fall of 2007, TOWN SQUARE, phase one,will open with theaters, restaurants and
offices. This $750 million project on 1.9 million square feet, is located at Las Vegas Boulevard and
Sunset Road.
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Sept. 3=Labor Day
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Oct.??= PLANET HOLLYWOOD RESORT & CASINO(formerly the Aladdin) completes $1 billion
in major renovations and remodeling.
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Oct.??= $2 billion TROPICANA expansion starts by the new owners. The company has filed plans
with Clark County to expand the old casinoto 10,224 rooms counting 948 condo-hotel units. Existing
hotel towers will stand as will the showroom while the rest of the property is demolished for the
redevelopment. The current two towers, which total fewer than 2,000 rooms, will be reworked and
merged into new towers.Hotel will remain open during the construction period.
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Oct.??= The VENETIAN will open their third tower called "Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino" on the south
-east corner of The Strip and Spring Mountain where the now demolished Tam O'Shanter Motel was
located. The 53-stories tower will have 3,025 suites, cost $1.8 billion, with casino (1,900 slot machines
and 80 table games), meeting space, shopping mall (with Barneys ofNew York), restaurants,
underground parking and 1,500-seat theater. There will be a 60-foot glass domed entry lobby with a two
-story fountain.When completed, it will be part of the largest hotel complex in the world with 7,052 hotel
rooms. Hip-hop mogul Jay-Z will open a 40/40 club. Also opening is a 20,000-square-foot casual
entertainment facility called ROCKET, a seafood-focused outlet, as well as an Italian steakhouse AND
A Wolfgang Puck eatery."Jersey Boys" is set to open in the Palazzo Tower. The Broadway hit is slated
for a long run in a new theater. The biography of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons won four Tony
awards, including best musical. It opened on Broadway in November,2005 and grosses more than
$1.1 million per week.As in the first two towers, there will not be a buffet.
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Nov. 4= Daylight Savings Time ends. Put clocks back one hour.
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Sometime in 2007, the Aladdin/Planet Hollywood will open a new show "Lumiere".
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Sometime in 2007, HARMON AVENUE EXTENSION opens that would link the street with Frank
Sinatra Drive and The Strip.
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Sometime in 2007, the Hard Rock Hotel will start A $750 million expansion with the addition of
approximately 950 guest rooms, including an all-suite 15-story tower with upgraded amenities,
approximately 60,000 square feet of meeting and conventionspace, and approximately 35,000 square
feet of casino space. In addition, the project includes the expansion of the Hard Rock's award-winning
pool, several prominent new food and beverage outlets, a new and larger "JOINT", live entertainment
venue, 30,000 square feet of new retail space, as well as a new spa and health club. The project,
is expected to be fully completed by mid-2009.
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Sometime in 2007,the Monte Carlo will open DIABLO CANTINA MEXICAN RESTAURANT. The two-
story,Strip front entrance restaurant will offer casual Mexican food with a modern festive approach.
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Sometime in 2007, Station Casinos will start construction on its DURANGO STATION CASINO
complex. Phase I of the project will include 400 hotel rooms, a 120,000 square-foot casino and
amenities. Phase II will add a 600-room hotel tower, entertainment center and other expansions.
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Sometime in 2007, Station Casinos will announce plansfor a mixed-use project (condos, retail etc.)
on 52-acres near their Palace Station.
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Sometime in 2007, Herbst Gaming/Terrible's will finalize its $400 million purchase of the three Primm,
NV hotels and casinos (Whiskey Pete's, Buffalo Bill's and Primm Valley Resort), it purchased from
MGM Mirage.
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Sometime in 2007, Construction is scheduled to beginon THE WORLD JEWELRY CENTER by a
California developer called Probity International Corporation as part of the city's development of its 61-
acre Union Park site, vacant land just west of downtown, across from the $2 billion World Market
furniture center. The $500 million World Jewelry Center would occupy 5.4 acres, be 57 stories tall, and
have a million square feet of commercial space designed to bring together jewelry manufacturers,
wholesalers, retailers, and consumers. Roughly 800,000 square feet would be devoted to exhibition and
meeting areas, gem-grading laboratories, classrooms, a jewelry and gem museum, a café, and a private
club. A 125,000-square-foot retail center, consisting of up to 50 stores, would be open to the public.
Up to 25 residential condos would occupy the top floors. The World Jewelry Center would be competing
with established jewelry centers, such as New York City's 47th Street Diamond and Jewelry Center,
L.A.'s Hill Street Diamond District, and Miami's Seybold Jewelry Building.It will take three to three-and-a
-half years to complete.
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Sometime in late 2007, the famous CROBAR Nightclubwill open where the Rita Rudner Theater was
located - New York-New York.
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Sometime at the end of 2007 = Opening of the $365 million, TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL &
TOWER LAS VEGAS. It is a 64-story hotel condominium project located west of Las Vegas Blvd on
Fashion Show Dr., behind the New Frontier. The project is modeled after the successful New York
venture at One Central Park West, Condominium units are in the price range from $700,000 to $7
million and feature1,282 condominium hotel units ranging from studios to multiple room suites. This
will be the tallest residential tower in Las Vegas. "The Donald" promises his project will shake up Las
Vegas' already thriving high-rise residential market:
http://www.lasvegashighriseprojects.com/TrumpInternational.html