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Paris Gets OK from Regulators, Opens Sept. 1

Plans for the Sept. 1 opening of the 2,914-room Paris-Las Vegas hotel-casino, the latest in the wave of new resorts on the Strip, were approved by the state Gaming Control Board Aug. 4.

The $760 million project was built entirely with cash flow and without any debt by Park Place Entertainment Corp. of Las Vegas, the largest gaming company in the world. Paris will operate as an extension of the adjacent Bally's, under common management and employees will have a work card so they can be assigned to either location.

Room rates will average $120 but will fluctuate, depending on the season and the attractions in Las Vegas, said David Zerfing, an officer in Park Place Entertainment. There will be about 2,100 slot machines, 80-90 table games and an estimated 4,000 employees.

By treating Paris as an extension of Bally's, the company will be able to avoid some state fees, a gaming official said. Chairman Steve DuCharme of the Control Board said this is consistent with past cases involving Harrah's and Circus Circus.

Park Place owns the Hiltons in Las Vegas, Reno and Laughlin and has gaming operations in such places as Atlantic City, Louisiana and Mississippi. It's also buying the Caesars World casinos. David Arrajj, counsel for Park Place, told the Control Board Paris and Bally's will be operated as one facility. But the revenues must be reported separately during the first year to the state.

Zerfing said there hasn't been any adverse reaction from France to the project, which will have a scaled down 500-foot Eiffel Tower and will feature the American debut of the show Notre Dame de Paris in its 1,200-seat theater starting in January. "We have had lots of cooperation from the French government," Zerfing said. "There will be a live video feed from Paris," at the opening.

Advance room reservations at Paris are living up to expectations, Zerfing said, but he declined to say what the projections were.

Paris follows openings of the Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, the Venetian and the Resort at Summerlin. But Zerfing said he did not believe the Las Vegas market is overbuilt.

The final vote on the application will come Aug. 19 at the meeting of the state Gaming Commission in Carson City.

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