Las Vegas Mythology has Bugsy Siegel as the visionary of the Strip but it was Thomas Hull who opened the El Rancho Vegas in 1941 and who first saw the potential of auto traffic from the LA area. He built his hotel just outside the LV city limits to avoid taxes and zoning issues. The hotel was designed by Wayne McAllister who designed a number of early LV iconic buildings. Today the $3 room rate just covers the "resort fee" at the Gold Coast hotel.