North Strip

North Strip

The North Strip is currently a mess--and probably will remain so for at least another three to five years. Construction projects such as the $4 billion Echelon Place by Boyd Gaming (being built where the Stardust once stood) have been put on hiatus due to the economy; the Fountainbleau, which is 70% completed, found itself in bankruptcy. Elad's The Plaza Las Vegas (where the New Frontier was located) is on hold. What this means is that the one-mile section running from the Fashion Show Mall to the Stratosphere is ugly... and is going to remain so for a long time with nothing but dirt, plywood walls, and skeletal frameworks of barely started buidlings. With the closing of the Sahara on May 16, 2011, things don't look any better for the North Strip either. It's currently unknown if the Sahara will be renovated or razed, but CEO of SBE Entertainment Group, Sam Nazarian (who own the Sahara), has stated on the Sahara's website, "We see the northern end of the Strip as the future of Las Vegas."

Photo by Robyn Barrymore	The massive Fountainbleau to the right was nearing completion in this picture taken June 13, 2009... but then found itself in bankruptcy and looking for a buyer. The building is 730-feet high with 68 floors and has 3,812 rooms.
	The $2.9 billion Fountainbleau under construction just about a year earlier from when the picture above was taken.
	The North Strip as seen from the top of the Stratosphere tower (photo from May 29, 2007). The amount of construction along this section of Las Vegas Blvd is evident. The dirt area to the left and bordered by the Sahara and the Riviera is where the Fountainbleau is now located (where the Algiers and El Rancho used to be)--the massive building was completed in about two years!
	The dirt area across from the Encore is where the New Frontier was located; it was imploded to make way for the Plaza Las Vegas development, the future of which is undetermined. Photo taken March 27, 2011.
	Construction on Boyd Gaming's Echelon Place has been in suspension since August 1, 2008. This is the former location of the Stardust Casino. Photo taken March 27, 2011.
	One of the few things on the Strip located north of Spring Mountain Rd that hasn't been razed and left as a big dirt lot: The Fashion Show Mall with its "cloud".