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/Hoover's
Online/ - Dubbed "The Toast of the Town" in 1980s-era
television and radio ads, it's now been years since anyone raised
a glass at the Maxim. These days, though, there's plenty of
glass being razed at the shuttered Flamingo Road hotel-casino
just east of the Strip. Now in the early stages of a $40 million
renovation, the property's new owner is modernizing the nearly
25-year-old building in preparation for a scheduled July 1 debut
as the Westin Casuarina Hotel and Spa.
Since December,
workers have been removing interior fixtures as well as the
Maxim's signature glass facade. Richard Kannapell, regional
director of sales for Columbia Sussex Corp., said the project
is currently in its "demolition phase," coupled with
some exterior work that has gradually brightened the site. "We're
basically gutting the entire building," said Kannapell,
whose privately held, Kentucky-based company purchased the hotel
in September for
$38 million.
Within the next few weeks, the Maxim's outdoor
sign will be replaced with a renovated display featuring the
Westin logo. In addition, a model room will be available to
the public in late February.
Once open,
the new hotel-casino will include an expanded, 10,000-square-foot
meeting area as well as an all-new, 11,000-square-foot spa,
Kannapell said. Westin's trademark "Heavenly Bed"
and "Heavenly Bath" features will also be included
in each
hotel room.
Remodeling
will also increase the property's guest room total from 795
to 825. Although the company has not finalized its rate structure,
Kannapell estimated that rooms will likely rent from $50 to
$199 per night, depending upon the season and day
of week.
Unlike some
Las Vegas landmarks whose glory days have passed, the Maxim
was not considered a target for implosion because Columbia Sussex
felt that
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Kentucky-based
Columbia Sussex Corp. is spending about $78 million on the nearly
25-year-old former Las Vegas Maxim.
option would
have been too expensive and time-consuming. "We want to
open this year. If we'd imploded it and had to clear the site,
we couldn't have opened until at least July 2004," Kannapell
said.
Columbia
Sussex operates about 60 hotels in the United States and several
overseas markets, Kannapell said, including the Horizon
Casino Resort in South Lake Tahoe as well as a sister Westin
Casuarina property on Grand Cayman Island.
Columbia
Sussex's casino management company will operate the new Las
Vegas casino, which is expected to open with the hotel in July.
Occupying less than 15,000 square feet, Kannapell said the casino
will serve as an amenity rather than the hotel's primary attraction.
Westin is
a division of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, a White
Plains, N. Y.-based hotel chain that operates more than 750
properties in more than 80 countries. In Las Vegas, the company
previously owned Caesars
Palace and the Desert Inn but has not had a presence in
Nevada since it sold the Desert Inn to casino developer Steve
Wynn in June 2000.
Located
at 160 E. Flamingo Road, the 795-room Maxim opened in 1979,
closed in November 1999, and reopened without a casino the following
month. It began its current closure in August 2001.
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Barona
Valley Ranch Resort & Casino Unveils
Golf Getaways With Barona Creek Golf Club
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SAN
DIEGO, CA - Barona Creek Golf Club, recognized by leading
golf publications as one of the nation's best golf courses,
is now the centerpiece of one of the nation's best new
hotel and casino resorts.
 Opened
in January, the $260 million Barona
Valley Ranch Resort & Casino, San Diego's only
luxury casino and destination resort property, is welcoming
visitors with Barona Golf Getaways available through May
31, 2003.
The
Barona Golf Getaway packages include:
- One
Night, One Round: Standard deluxe room, one round of
golf, golf cart, use of driving range, range balls and
club storage. This package is priced from $145 per night
midweek or $205 per night weekend.
- One
Night, Two Rounds: Standard deluxe room, two rounds
of golf, golf cart, use of driving range, range balls
and club storage. This package is priced from $205 per
night midweek or $285 per night weekend.
- Two
Nights, Two Rounds: Standard deluxe room, two rounds
of golf, golf cart, use of driving range, range balls
and club storage. This package is priced from $279 per
night midweek or $409 per night weekend.
Recipient
of numerous awards including Audubon Signature Certification
and rated #4 in California by Golfweek Magazine and #10
in the U.S. by Golf Magazine, the Barona Creek Golf Club
offers one of the most challenging golf experiences in
Southern California. Designed by the acclaimed Gary Roger
Baird Design International, the 18-hole course is a par
72 and features 7,088 yards with nearly 100 multi-fingered
bunkers and a series of lakes and ponds that are connected
to the area's naturally fed streams.
Now
complementing the course are the equally elegant and acclaimed
hotel and casino. Blending the best of San Diego's coastal
resorts with the gaming excitement of Las Vegas, the Barona
Valley Ranch Resort & Casino is San Diego's newest
destination resort featuring 397 luxury guest rooms and
suites, a 300,000 square foot casino, a lakefront wedding
chapel, a full-service events center, and the 18-hole
championship Barona Creek Golf Club. The resort offers
world-class luxury, seclusion and gaming excitement ideal
for a midweek or weekend getaway.
For
Barona
Valley Ranch Resort & Casino Golf Getaway package
reservations and information, visit www.barona.com
or call toll free 877-BV-Ranch (877-287-2624).
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