Marriott to impact convention traffic

Convention traffic and regular visitors to Las Vegas are anticipating the arrival of the Las Vegas Renaissance Marriott because of what it is not going to offer them.

Construction on the $100 million facility is under way at its prime location adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center's South Hall expansion, 3400 Paradise Road. Although the budget is that of any semi-large hotel, what it will not have is a casino.

Deemed the largest non-casino in Nevada with nearly 550 rooms, it will provide 15 stories of amenities, such as 20,000 square feet of banquet rooms and meeting facilities.

Lewis W. Shaw II, chairman and chief executive officer of Jackson-Shaw Co., the property developer, said the facility will be a sort of adjunct to the convention center in terms of meeting places. He doesn't believe the hotel stands to lose money because it doesn't have a casino.

"It might be considered a risk, but I don't think that people go into the convention center to play machines," Shaw said. "It's a place of business. What has grown the most in Las Vegas over the last 10 years is not the square footage of the casinos, but the number of rooms."

Shaw said that the need for business amenities legitimizes this type of hotel, which offers an ideal spot for a corporate retreat or small business meeting. Building it next door to the Las Vegas Convention Center was intentional.

"It's a very purposeful decision," he said. "I would be much more hesitant to build without the synergy of the convention center. I think that Las Vegas has a tremendous attraction for associations and groups that want to host a convention.

"Las Vegas is probably the most professionally run place at helping people host meetings or conventions. It's always going to be a good price to bring people to Las Vegas as opposed to places such as Los Angeles. And in addition to it being an ideal destination, there are rooms. Now we don't have to bus people 30 miles away."

Slated to open in 2005, the hotel also possessed another attractive addition for convention traffic; it is located on a monorail stop.

"Because we're on a monorail stop, people can whiz through the Strip," Shaw said.

Shaw said ultimately, the hotel will offer corporate clients the flexibility of hosting a large group of people easily and conveniently during convention times.

"I am not really a hotel for the attendees, I am a hotel for the corporations," Shaw said. "I consider it to be a wonderful extension of the convention floor. There's lots of convention hotels here, but no corporate hotels where a corporation has almost total possession of it. There's one restaurant, a distinct architectural presence, a unique theme, and it's geared toward offering privacy.

"You're not going to hear 'ching, ching' as you check in. It's not that there's anything wrong with that, but now there's an opportunity for an alternative."


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