Old Vegas facts for kids
| Previously known as Westworld (1979) | |
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| Location | 2440 South Boulder Highway, Henderson, Nevada |
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| Coordinates | 35°59′44″N 114°55′42″W / 35.995423°N 114.928359°W |
| Status | Removed |
| Opened | November 1978 |
| Closed | July 1, 1986 |
| Theme | 1850s Las Vegas / American Old West |
| Slogan | A Passport to the Past |
Old Vegas was a fun amusement park located in Henderson, Nevada, near Las Vegas. It was designed to look like an American Old West town from the 1850s, showing what early Las Vegas might have been like. The park had different rides and a copy of the Old Mormon Fort. Inside the fort, there was a casino called Hondo Casino.
By 1979, the casino made up half of Old Vegas. The park also featured buildings that were moved from the famous El Rancho Vegas hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. A historic train, the Eureka Locomotive, was also on display in the 1980s. Old Vegas was created to be a "sister park" to Old Tucson, a similar theme park in Arizona.
Old Vegas was approved in 1975, and building started in 1977. The park opened its first part in November 1978, with over 100 people working there. It closed briefly in 1979 after being sold to TV producer Burt Sugarman and Gabriel Alarcon Jr. They reopened it as Westworld, but it soon went back to being called Old Vegas.
Building for the second part of the park began in July 1980 and finished later that year. Old Vegas closed in 1986 for updates but never reopened. The park was torn down in 1997. Today, a neighborhood with 631 homes, also named Old Vegas, stands on the land.
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Building a Wild West Adventure
In January 1975, the city of Henderson approved plans for Old Vegas. This huge project, covering 124 acres, would be built along Boulder Highway. It was planned to have a western village, apartments, a dude ranch, and stables. The idea was also to use it as a place to film TV shows and western movies.
The people behind the project also owned the Old Tucson theme park in Arizona. Robert Shelton led this group. They hoped to start building within six months and open by late 1976. The park was meant for tourists and families. This $8.1 million project was proposed by Old Vegas Corporation. It aimed to show the history of southern Nevada with a theme of 1850s Las Vegas.
Cecil Simmons was a key person in organizing Old Vegas. He later helped fund the project. Robert Shelton designed the western theme park and film studio with the help of Wells, Tate and Kennedy architects. The overall plan was created by LARC (Leisure and Recreation Concepts) from Dallas. Robert L. Smith Construction was the main builder.
Old Vegas was planned in two stages. The first stage was being built in 1977 and was expected to cost $2.5 million. It was set to finish in spring 1978. This first part would cover 55 of the 124 acres. Future plans for the other 69 acres included a resort ranch, a motel, a camp site, and apartments. These would be built after Old Vegas made enough money. The project also included a large sound stage, like the one at Old Tucson. Hollywood art directors designed the western streets to be perfect for filming movies.
The first part of the park was later set to open in mid-June 1978. The whole park was expected to be ready by summer 1979. The first phase was then scheduled for September 1978, costing $3.5 million. The total cost of the project was expected to be between $7 million and $10 million. In mid-1978, three buildings from the old El Rancho Vegas hotel on the Las Vegas Strip were moved to Old Vegas. They were to be fixed up for future TV and movie appearances. In August 1978, Old Tucson Corporation and Old West Corporation, the park's developer, agreed to join together. Old Vegas was built as a "sister park" to Old Tucson, located at the edge of Henderson.
Grand Opening and New Owners
Old Vegas opened its first part in November 1978. It had over 100 employees. The second part would add more western buildings and rides, like a stagecoach and a steam train. A third part was also being planned.
An 11-foot-tall bronze statue of Raphael Rivera stood along Boulder Highway, inviting people to the park. Also along Boulder Highway was a copy of Las Vegas' Old Mormon Fort. This $3.5 million fort had several attractions. These included a general store and a blacksmith area. The fort also had the Hondo Cantina, with a saloon and steakhouse on the first floor. A 225-seat banquet room was on the second floor. Inside the fort, visitors could find the Hondo Casino and a history museum. The fort also had the 300-seat Commandant's Theatre. Here, visitors watched a film narrated by Dale Robertson about the local area's history. The park used the slogan "A Passport to the Past" in its advertisements.
In November 1978, the city council approved plans for 140 townhouses at Old Vegas. Later that month, Old West Corporation got approval to run 87 slot machines at Old Vegas' casino. The casino started operating in December 1978 with 70 machines. In February 1979, a small fire started in an employee locker room. It was quickly put out. A former employee was arrested for setting the fire. That month, the owners of Old Tucson Corporation agreed to sell most of their company shares. The buyers were Burt Sugarman, a TV producer, and Gabriel Alarcon Jr., a businessman from Mexico City.
Westworld: A New Name
Old Vegas closed temporarily on March 13, 1979, for changes. It was planned to reopen the next month as Westworld. Mary Kempner, the park's marketing manager, said that the new owners wanted a park more like Disneyland. The plan was to mix the old-time feel with new attractions.
Changes included updating the park's kitchens for faster food service. Other planned improvements included more attractions for young people. These would feature a video game arcade and a train exhibit. Eight major amusement rides and four children's rides were also planned to open by June 30, 1979. They also thought about showing about nine hours of Priscilla Presley's home movies of Elvis that had never been seen by the public. Future plans included a covered rodeo area. The new owners applied for a gaming license to keep operating the 92 slot machines in the casino.
Westworld's opening became uncertain when the Nevada Gaming Commission had concerns about the new owners' casino license. The casino was a big part of the park at that time. In May 1979, the city council approved Sugarman to operate three blackjack tables. The gaming commission also approved his gambling operations. That month, Old Tucson Corporation announced it had bought many items from Paramount Pictures' western street. These would be added to Westworld's western street. Old Tucson Corporation also announced it had bought the rights to show the Elvis Presley home movies at Westworld and Old Tucson. Old Tucson Corporation changed its name to Westworld Inc. in May 1979.
Westworld opened in early June 1979. Priscilla Presley visited the park before it opened to film an introduction for the home movies. Later in June 1979, the city council approved plans for amusement rides. These would be built on land that was originally for Old Vegas buildings. At the end of the month, Alarcon was not approved for a gaming license. This was because investigators could not fully check the source of his money. In August 1979, LARC agreed to help manage Westworld and Old Tucson.
Park Expansions and a Fire
In September 1979, Sugarman sold his share in Westworld Inc. The park then went back to its original name, Old Vegas. By this time, Simmons was in charge of the gambling operations. By 1980, Old Vegas had two restaurants and a casino. There were plans to rebuild the Paramount Pictures western street next to the Old Mormon Fort.
Westworld Inc. started building the second phase in July 1980. This phase would include a railroad museum and other historical exhibits. It would also have the Wagon Camp picnic and barbecue areas. A big part of the second phase was the Eureka Locomotive. It went on permanent display at Old Vegas, along with other Virginia and Truckee Railroad equipment. Other new things would be a merry-go-round, go-karts, and an old steam locomotive.
The second phase cost $1.5 million and opened in October 1980. More than 10,000 people visited Old Vegas during the opening weekend of the second phase. The third phase, which would have a western street and more rides, was planned to start building in December or January.
However, nearby residents started complaining about noise from the park. This included music, fake gunfights, and late-night fireworks. Westworld Inc. lost money in 1982. This was mostly because not enough people were visiting Old Vegas. Plans to update the park were put on hold. Old Vegas ended up having several small streets but not a full western town. The park was not used much for filming movies. To make money, Westworld Inc. tried to sell land around Old Vegas. They decided not to sell the park itself for a while. In 1984 and 1985, Westworld planned to sell Old West Corporation. A Tony Roma's restaurant was open at the park in the mid-1980s.
A fire happened at the park on May 8, 1985. It burned down the park's rock shop, which fell onto the Eureka locomotive. The local fire department put out the fire in less than an hour. A police detective said the fire was not natural and likely not an electrical problem. Arson was considered a possibility. Westworld was later given several deadlines to install a fire sprinkler system. The final deadline was July 1, 1986.
Closure and Future Plans
Westworld Inc. decided to close the park on July 1, 1986. This was to install the fire sprinkler system and do other updates. Old Vegas was expected to reopen in about two months. However, later in July, Westworld Inc. instead put the closed theme park and the entire 125-acre property up for sale for $5.6 million. For the two years before this, Westworld Inc. had quietly tried to sell the park. At the time of the closure, the Henderson Home News said that "Park managers have kept Old Vegas' local profile very low." They seemed to only try to get bus tours and other visitors.
In late December 1986, Steve Allen and Maurice Threinen agreed to buy 43.5 acres that included the Old Vegas buildings. They planned to reopen the park in March 1987. In February 1987, Westworld Inc. filed for bankruptcy during the sale. By the next month, Allen and Threinen had problems and had not finished buying the park. They also had not applied for the city and state licenses needed to run the property, including gambling licenses.
By April 1987, Threinen's contract with Westworld Inc. had ended. The company then started talking with MarCor Development, a firm from Las Vegas. MarCor agreed to buy the entire 125-acre property. MarCor had plans to turn the 125 acres into a project for tourists and homes. MarCor finished buying the property in September 1987. MarCor and Boyd Group, along with others, then formed Sunset Partners. They planned to build a hotel-casino project on the 125-acre property. The group hoped to start building in early 1988 and open by the end of the year.
Early plans included a 200-room hotel, an RV park with 200 spaces, and a small theme park. The whole project would cost $20 million to $30 million. It would involve tearing down the fort. The rides would also be removed. Other family attractions like a bowling alley and a picnic area would be added. MarCor was not sure if they would keep the Old Vegas name. Starting construction on the new resort was delayed for different reasons. This included other new resorts opening in the Las Vegas Valley.
Focus 2000, which used to be MarCor Development, announced plans in July 1992 to fix up and reopen Old Vegas. This included the fort, its restaurant, and casino. Focus 2000 was connected to MarCor Resorts, which owned the Rio hotel-casino in the Las Vegas Valley. After the planned reopening, Focus 2000 wanted to build up to three hotel-casino projects next to Old Vegas. They also planned three truck and RV centers and possibly a factory outlet mall.
Over the next year, Focus 2000 worked on the project plan with nearby residents. The residents were worried about how it would affect their neighborhood. In June 1993, Focus 2000 suggested a big plan for the Old Vegas site. It included three hotel-casinos and an RV park. Work on the new project was not expected to start until early 1995. This was about a year after a nearby road project to reroute U.S. Route 95 was supposed to finish. Marnell Corrao Associates was chosen to be the main builder for the hotel-casino complex.
Changes to the land use for the site were approved in September 1993. The project would have a 522-space RV park and three hotels with a total of 4,000 rooms. It would also have a convenience store on three acres, called Old Vegas Convenience Store. Retail space, totaling 160,000 square feet, would also be part of the project. The entire project was expected to be built slowly over seven to ten years. Residents approved the project if Focus 2000 built a 2,200-foot-long wall. This wall would separate the project from the homes. Focus 2000 was worried about getting money for the wall, which was expected to cost over $200,000.
As of 1995, the closed theme park was only used for special events. That year, Rio Hotel and Casino Inc. bought 60 acres of the site as a partner. This was part of the company's plan to grow. Rio planned to focus on expanding its own resort. Building on the Old Vegas project was planned for a future date. The company had early plans for the site to build a hotel-casino with 600 to 700 rooms. A decision on whether to tear down Old Vegas depended on the theme of the future project. Harlan Braaten, a Rio senior vice president, said, "If we have a western theme, then that might work. But if we decide not to go with a western theme, then it wouldn't fit in."
Because of safety concerns, Old Vegas was torn down in 1997. The sign was left standing for several years. In 1997, Focus 2000 put the Old Vegas property up for sale for $30 million. It was offered as a possible site for a future casino project. However, real estate agents and gaming experts thought the location was not good for such a project. Anthony Marnell II, who owned the Rio and Focus 2000, had plans in 1998 to build a casino on 20 acres of the land. He also planned a gas and convenience store on another three acres. The casino would have between 75 and 199 slot machines and up to nine table games. Flying J was interested in building the truck stop. Nearby residents were against this, believing it would cause problems. In 2001, the Henderson planning commission and city council approved D. R. Horton to build a 631-home housing subdivision on the site. The new neighborhood kept the Old Vegas name. Building of the Old Vegas housing project began in 2002.
