The Pertita brothers, who grew up in Las Vegas, remember the casino opening as a grand event.
Last Tuesday night, when Station Casino debuted its $925 million Red Rock resort, Pertitas didn't want to disappoint its 3,800 special guests.
Highlighted by a six-minute fireworks display over a hotel tower and an hour-long, fullside concert by Grammy-winning rock star Sting, Red Rock Resort announced Summerlin was nearby.
"We wanted something memorable, and we think the stings help give us a memorable opening night," said Lorenzo Pertita, president of Station Casino.
Before Red Rock Resort opened to customers just before midnight, invited guests sampled fare from the casino's nine sedentary restaurants and separate food court outlets. In addition, 25 open bars around the casino served free Dom Perignon champagne and wine from Ferrari-Carano Winery, which is owned by the Carano family in Northern Nevada.
"The best way to show guests a memorable night is to take out all the stops," said Station Casino President Frank Pertita III.
Lorenzo Pertita said he had a mutual friend who knew Sting and the brothers approached Sting with the idea of opening the resort with an outdoor concert. The secret was hidden until mid-afternoon when the brothers told a CNBC interviewer about the show. By noon, VIP guests, who surprised security guards, employees, and stars, were buzzing about Sting's appearance. Station Casino corporate communications director Lauri Nelson rode an elevator with Sting.
Sting, a frontman for polis in the 1980 s, performed award-winning solo songs on his albums Dream of Blue Turtles and Brand New Day, as well as several police numbers for the grateful crowd.
VIP guests flocked to the three-acre swimming pool area for a Sting concert. Frank Pertita introduced the Sting after thanking everyone involved in the development, construction, and opening of the Red Rock resort.
Safety guards surrounded the pool to prevent party guests from swimming spontaneously.
Many guests captured the coveted prototype and canopy chase lounge for the show.
Sting began with "A Message in a Bottle," a police staple, and performed other popular performances such as "King of Pain" and "Synchronization II."
He also performed Beetle's song "A Day in the Life."
Officials from many competing casino companies and executives from many station casino resorts attended the opening ceremony.
Green Valley Ranch Resort general manager Joe Harson said his new sister property set the bar for the rest of the market.
"This is a spectacular, amazing property and Red Rock Resort represents the next generation of the gaming industry," Hasson said.
The VIP party sparked opinions from both the guests and the staff at the Red Rock resort.
"We're ready. We've been trained for weeks and we're ready to have fun," said Jen Porter, a bartender at the Race and Sportsbook Lounge. "We've had some race time but I'm looking forward to seeing all our customers."
Jeremy Crouse, T-bones Chophouse's food server, planned to see some of Sting's performances on the restaurant's outdoor patio.
"This is luxurious," he said of Dom Perignon champagne. "It's $75 a cup. I don't know of any other casino openings that do this. What a night."
Casino Floor Supervisor Pete Eghoian was ready to open at midnight. Having spent 21 years in Harrah's Lake Tahoe, he was often asked to help open casinos on his company's Midwest River Boat. He said the Red Rock Resort ranks first on all boats.
"I really believe this is the coolest hotel casino around, and I've seen a lot of them," he said.
Inside the Saltrick Barbecue restaurant, food servers, managers and staff posed for a group photo session before the influx of guests.
General manager Alan Badis said staff had been together since March 20 as they prepared for the opening of the night.
In the lobby lounge, former U.S. Senator Richard Bryan was greeting his friends. As governor in the mid-1980s, he participated in a Summerlin showcase by Howard Hughes Corp. He remembers when Summerlin Plain was referred to as "Husite."
"We never knew what would be found here," said Brian. "Sixty years ago, it was the end of the world."
As a boy scout, Brian recalled that his unit used to camp overnight near the Red Rock Recreation Area. He said that the 70-acre Red Rock Resort in the master's planned 1,300-acre Summerlin Center near the I-215 Beltway and Charleston Boulevard in Summerlin was probably one of the unit's overnight destinations. 온라인카지노
"It's really spectacular," said Brian, looking at the nearly $1 billion local property.
In addition to the restaurant, the Red Rock Resort opened with 415 hotel rooms, 3,000 slot machines, 62 game tables, poker rooms, races and sportsbooks, and an 87,000-square-foot casino with bingo rooms.