Plaza Hotel & Casino

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Not to be confused with List of Las Vegas casinos that never opened § Plaza.

Plaza Hotel and Casino
Plaza Hotel and Casino is located in Downtown Las Vegas
Plaza Hotel and Casino
Plaza Hotel and Casino is located in Nevada
Plaza Hotel and Casino
Location Downtown Las Vegas
Address 1 Main Street
Las Vegas, NV 89101
Opening dateJuly 2, 1971
ThemeClassic
No. of rooms995
Total gaming space80,000 sq ft (7,400 m2)
Signature attractionsCarousel Bar, CORE Arena, rooftop pool and 13 pickleball courts
Notable restaurantsOscar's Steakhouse
Hash House A Go Go
Pop Up Pizza
Casino typeLand-based
OwnerTamares Group
Previous namesUnion Plaza
Renovated in2004, 2011, 2019, 2023
Websitewww.plazahotelcasino.com

The Plaza Hotel & Casino is a hotel and casino located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It currently has 995 rooms and suites, an 80,000-square-foot (7,400 m2) casino and more than 25,000 square feet (2,300 m2) of event space. The Plaza Hotel also has a showroom, rooftop swimming pool, fitness center, bingo room, restaurants, a sports bar, and Oscar's Steakhouse, named after the former Mayor of Las Vegas, Oscar Goodman.[citation needed]

History[edit]

Las Vegas Union Pacific Station[edit]

Union Pacific Station, Las Vegas, c. 1940

Prior to the construction of The Plaza, a Spanish-style depot constructed in 1906 acted as the first train station in Las Vegas on the site.[1] Union Pacific replaced the structure in 1940 with a Streamline Moderne station designed by H. L. Gogerty, including a Union Pacific shield and a "Streamliners & Challengers" neon sign.[2] The station was demolished in 1970. The original casino, named Union Plaza in reference to the railroad station, included a small waiting room for Amtrak train passengers.[3]

Union Plaza Hotel and Casino[edit]

The hotel was built on the station site by Upland Industries (Union Pacific's real estate division), along with the Scott Corp, headed by Frank E. Scott.[4] The hotel opened on July 1, 1971, with the casino opening at midnight,[5] being managed by a team of local casino executives including Sam Boyd, Jackie Gaughan, JK Houssels Jr, and Bill Boyd.[6] It was advertised as the largest casino in the world. With 504 rooms, Plaza's hotel was the same size as Fremont Hotel and merely a third the size of The International Hotel & Casino, but Plaza contained the largest casino floor in Las Vegas at 66,000 square feet.[7]

Before the discontinuation of the Desert Wind train route on May 10, 1997, Amtrak built its Las Vegas station directly connected to the hotel. It was the only train station in the United States located in a casino. The Las Vegas Greyhound bus station was also located at the Plaza from the hotel's opening until management terminated the lease and the station moved on February 23, 2021.[8]

Plaza Hotel & Casino[edit]

Barrick Gaming Corporation acquired the Plaza from Jackie Gaughan. During his ownership, D.W. Barrick's friend, Larry Manetti, who played Orville "Rick" Wright on the television show Magnum, P.I., hosted a celebrity brunch every Sunday, featuring such guests as Pat Morita and Steve Rossi.[citation needed] He also owned Manetti's in the Plaza. When Barrick sold its interest in the hotel to the Tamares Group in late 2005, Manetti closed his restaurant and severed his relationship with the hotel.[citation needed]

On July 1, 2005, then-mayor Oscar Goodman made his opinions clear: "If I had my druthers, I would like to have somebody in place to discuss imploding the Plaza."[9] Goodman wanted to see the Plaza replaced with new construction, creating a scenic entrance to Union Park. In the decades since, the Plaza has invested millions of dollars into property improvements, earning Goodman's support. Since 2011, the former mayor has lent his name to the property's steakhouse, which resides in the Plaza's famed glass dome.[citation needed]

The Plaza's rooftop pool with D*Face mural on North Tower in the background

The hotel closed for renovations on November 11, 2010, and acquired furniture, carpets, and fixtures from the bankrupt Fontainebleau Resort Las Vegas project on the Las Vegas Strip.[10] From November 2010 to August 2011, the Plaza operated its sports & racebook, showroom, one bar, and a portion of the casino. By March 2011, the south tower and the casino had finished renovations, re-opening on August 24, 2011.[11] The hotel officially re-opened for business on September 1, 2011.[12] The cost of the renovation project was $35 million.[13]

The property has undertaken numerous renovations and amenity enhancement projects since 2011. In 2014, the Plaza announced that a new 3,500-seat facility would be constructed at the hotel, to become the new home arena for the Las Vegas Wranglers minor league hockey team of the ECHL.[14] However, the hockey team suspended operations for the 2014-15 season and would eventually fold mid-season.[citation needed] In 2016, the Plaza fully refurbished its rooftop pool creating a "retro Palm Springs meets classic downtown Las Vegas"-inspired outdoor space with a wet deck, hot tub, private cabanas, bar, and food truck. The Plaza has 13 dedicated pickleball courts, the most of any hotel-casino in Las Vegas.[15]

The Plaza built the multipurpose venue CORE Arena, an equestrian center in downtown Las Vegas with 80 equine stalls,[16] which hosts events like rodeos and monster truck shows. CORE Arena has hosted the Las Vegas Days Rodeo in partnership with the Commission for the Las Vegas Centennial since 2019.[citation needed]

In 2019, a $15 million renovation created more than 100 fully renovated Luxe guest rooms and suites on the top floors of the North Tower.[17][18] The Plaza boasts three 21-story murals by artists Shepard Fairey, D*Face and Faile on its North Tower.[19]

In 2023, the Plaza unveiled renovations to its Main Street façade, with four new venues.[20][21] The centerpiece is Carousel Bar, an outdoor bar with life-sized animated Vegas themed elements, including moving carousel horses, a 14 ft (4.3 m) tall neon sign, a rotating ribbon of lights, and Las Vegas' only outdoor video poker machines with seating for nearly 100 guests overlooking the Fremont Street Experience. Pinkbox Doughnuts is located across from Carousel Bar, with downtown's only smoke-free gaming area on the other side. Overlooking the new Main Street venues is a rooftop patio at Oscar’s Steakhouse, downtown's only al fresco fine dining space.[citation needed]

In popular culture[edit]

Film[edit]

  • In the 1989 film Back to the Future Part II, Biff Tannen's Pleasure Paradise Casino Hotel is based on the structure of neon lights & signs of the Plaza.
  • The Union Plaza played a major role in the 1992 movie Cool World.
  • In the 1995 film Casino, a scene starring Robert De Niro and Sharon Stone plays inside the Center Stage Restaurant, where Ginger (played by Stone) and Sam (De Niro) argue over missing money.
  • In the 2000 film Pay It Forward, a scene starring Kevin Spacey plays inside the Center Stage Restaurant.
  • In the 2001 film The Mexican, Samantha and Winston stay at the Plaza, where Frank is killed thrown a balcony and killed.
  • In the 2003 film Looney Tunes: Back in Action, the Plaza serves as the hotel tower for "Yosemite Sam's Wooden Nickel" casino.
  • In the 2004 film The Girl Next Door, desperate to win Danielle (Elisha Cuthbert) back, Matt (Emile Hirsch) and his friends follow her to Las Vegas and find her performing at a convention, which appears to be taking place at the Plaza.
  • In the 2008 film The Grand, the Plaza serves as the hotel tower for "The Rabbit's Foot".
  • The Plaza played a major role in the 2008 film Yonkers Joe.

Television[edit]

Music videos[edit]

  • Carousel Bar and the Main Street entrance of the Plaza are featured prominently in "Atomic City" by U2.
  • The Plaza is featured in many scenes of the video "We Built This City" by Starship, despite the fact that the song refers to 1980s Los Angeles, San Francisco, Cleveland, and New York City, but not Las Vegas.[23]
  • The Plaza was featured prominently in Mase's "Feels So Good".
  • Mase's video was parodied by Monster Magnet, who also filmed in front of the Plaza.
  • Some scenes of Iggy Azalea's "Change Your Life" were shot at The Plaza.[24]
  • Some scenes from The Killers "The Man" were filmed at The Plaza in 2017.[25]
  • Portions of The Weeknd's "Heartless" were filmed at The Plaza.[26]

Gambling history[edit]

  • On April 11, 2004, Ashley Revell, 32 years old, of Kent, England, sold all his possessions and traveled to the Plaza to bet his life savings of $135,300 on one spin of the roulette wheel. He won and doubled his money.[27][28]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Union Station, 1906-1940". Classic Las Vegas. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  2. ^ "Union Station, 1940-1970". Classic Las Vegas. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  3. ^ "Union Plaza". Vintage Las Vegas. Retrieved June 19, 2017.
  4. ^ "Construction of Union Plaza, Spring 1971". Vintage Las Vegas. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  5. ^ "Ed Lattin Heads Security at New LV Plaza Hotel". Henderson Home News. Vol. 24 (52 ed.). Henderson, Nevada. July 1, 1971. p. 1.
  6. ^ "Construction of Union Plaza, Spring 1971". Vintage Las Vegas. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  7. ^ "Construction of Union Plaza, Spring 1971". Vintage Las Vegas. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  8. ^ "Greyhound bus terminal moving to make way for downtown development". KLAS. February 23, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  9. ^ "New land baron moves on downtown". Las Vegas Business Press. July 1, 2005. Archived from the original on January 28, 2013.
  10. ^ Benston, Liz (October 7, 2010). "Plaza gets Strip stuff at Downtown prices". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved October 7, 2010.
  11. ^ O'Reiley, Tim (August 25, 2011). "Fresh look for downtown's Plaza". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  12. ^ "Infographic", Plaza Hotel & Casino. Retrieved on June 26, 2013.
  13. ^ Finnegan, Amanda (June 23, 2011). "Renovation is transforming downtown's Plaza Hotel". Vegas Inc. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  14. ^ Katsilometes, John (February 14, 2014). "Wranglers' search for a new home in Las Vegas ends at the Plaza". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved February 15, 2014.
  15. ^ "Renovated rooftop pool — with food truck — to open at Plaza". Las Vegas Review-Journal. May 25, 2016. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
  16. ^ "CORE Arena". Plaza Hotel and Casino. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
  17. ^ Miller, Ken (July 26, 2019). "Elevate your Plaza experience with Luxe Rooms and Suites". Las Vegas Magazine. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
  18. ^ Horwath, Bryan (June 3, 2019). "Plaza renovation another piece of downtown's renaissance pie". VegasInc. Retrieved March 5, 2020.
  19. ^ "Plaza Murals". Plaza Hotel and Casino. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
  20. ^ McCarver, Katie Ann (June 12, 2023). "Plaza debuts a fresh look while preserving part of its Las Vegas history". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  21. ^ "Check out the Plaza's 'reimagined' Main Street entrance". Las Vegas Review-Journal. June 8, 2023. Retrieved November 14, 2023.
  22. ^ "The Odds (2010) (TV)". IMDb. Retrieved August 16, 2010.
  23. ^ Tannenbaum, Rob (August 31, 2016). "An Oral History of "We Built This City," the Worst Song of All Time". GQ. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
  24. ^ Kim, Emmeline (October 2, 2013). "Iggy Azalea Calls 'The New Classic' A Sonic & Visual Hip Hop Experiment". HipHopDX. Retrieved September 8, 2015.
  25. ^ Bracelin, Jason (June 28, 2017). "The Killers' new video features several classic Las Vegas locations". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  26. ^ Jossel, Jonathan (November 27, 2019). "I recognize these lights". @JonathanJossel. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  27. ^ Revell, Ashley; Ben Riley-Smith (September 18, 2013). "What it's like to bet everything you own on red". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  28. ^ "'All or nothing' gamble succeeds". BBC News. April 12, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
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