The D Las Vegas

The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel (formerly Fitzgeralds) is a 34-story, 639-room hotel and casino in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, owned and operated by Derek and Greg Stevens.

The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel
The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel is located in Downtown Las Vegas
The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel
The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel is located in Nevada
The D Las Vegas Casino Hotel
Location Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada
Address 301 Fremont Street
Opening dateJuly 2, 1980 (July 2, 1980)
No. of rooms638
Total gaming space42,000 sq ft (3,900 m2)
Permanent showsMarriage Can Be Murder[1][2]
Defending the Caveman[3]
Notable restaurantsJoe Vicari's Andiamo Steakhouse
Bacon Nation
American Coney Island
Casino typeLand
OwnerDerek Stevens (78%)
Greg Stevens (22%)
Previous namesSundance Hotel
Fitzgeralds Hotel & Casino
Renovated in2012
Coordinates36°10′11″N 115°8′34″W
WebsiteThe D Las Vegas

The D is located at the eastern end of the Fremont Street Experience. It has a 42,000-square-foot (3,900 m2) casino, several restaurants, a business center, and a pool. The casino has more than 1,000 slot machines and 22 table games located on two floors. It is the second tallest building in downtown Las Vegas and the third-tallest inside the city limits, having been surpassed by Allure Las Vegas in 2007 and Circa Resort & Casino in 2020.

As Fitzgeralds, it had a "luck of the Irish" theme, with shamrocks and a leprechaun. In fall 2012, The D completed a property-wide renovation and rebranding to replace the Irish theme.[7][8]

History

Sundance Hotel (1980–1987)

The Sundance Hotel opened on July 2, 1980 on land owned by Moe Dalitz. Dalitz, an organized crime figure, faced difficulty from the Gaming Commission, so the casino was nominally run by his associates, Al Sachs and Herb Tobman, who also owned the Stardust and Fremont casinos.[9]

In 1983, Sachs and Tobman faced suspension of their gaming licenses due to charges of skimming. Dalitz applied to manage the Sundance himself, but the Gaming Commission stalled on his application, until July 1984, when he agreed to surrender management to Jackie Gaughan until the casino could be sold.

Fitzgeralds Hotel and Casino (1987–2012)
Former casino façade under the Fitzgeralds name.

Finally, in 1987, the Sundance was sold to Lincoln Management Group (later Fitzgeralds Gaming) and renamed as Fitzgeralds Las Vegas.[9]

In December 2001, with Fitzgeralds Gaming in bankruptcy, The Majestic Star Casino, LLC, owned by Don Barden, bought the property, along with two other Fitzgeralds casinos in Colorado and Mississippi, for a total of $149 million.[10] At that point, Barden became the first African American casino owner in Las Vegas.[11] Barden separated Fitzgeralds Las Vegas from the Majestic Star umbrella two years later, to free it from restrictions imposed by the company's lenders.[12]

Barden began a multimillion-dollar renovation of the property, including the buffet, steakhouse, and showroom. New exterior paint was also applied. The renovations were successful and resulted in increased customer visitation. In February 2006, Barden announced that a nearby office building had been purchased for relocation of his company, Barden Nevada Gaming, which had been operating on the 12th floor of Fitzgeralds. The move would free up space in Fitzgeralds that could be redeveloped.[13]

In May 2008, it was reported that Barden was pledging the property to generate a $35-million equity stake in a slots-only casino in Pittsburgh, making a sale likely for Fitzgeralds Las Vegas.[14] It was subsequently reported, however, that Barden had no need to sell Fitzgeralds to maintain a stake in the slots-only casino in Pittsburgh and that it would remain an asset which he could use to generate cash for his struggling gambling portfolio.[15]

In October 2011, several months after Barden's death, his estate sold Fitzgeralds to brothers Derek and Greg Stevens, majority owners of the Golden Gate casino.[16] Derek took a 78% ownership share, with 22% for Greg.[17]

The D Las Vegas (2012–present)

The new owners completed a $22 million renovation and rebranding to become the D Las Vegas in Fall 2012.[18] The letter D stands for "downtown", and also refers to Derek Stevens' nickname, and the Stevens' hometown of Detroit.[19] The remodel gave the property a more modern feel, including the addition of dancing dealers in table games. The second-floor casino has a "Vintage Vegas" theme featuring the only operational Sigma Derby game in Las Vegas.[20]

The multimillion-dollar renovation upgraded all of the guest rooms and created luxury suites. The D also added a fine Italian steakhouse, Joe Vicari's Andiamo Italian Steakhouse,[20] and opened the first American Coney Island[21] outside of Michigan on the building's Fremont Street frontage. The property also features three distinct bars: Longbar,[22] said to be the longest bar in Nevada at just fewer than 100 feet long; D Bar – a permanent outdoor bar on Fremont Street Experience featuring flair bartenders as well as dancing bartenders;[23] and Vue Bar inside the second floor casino.[24] The property's Fremont Street façade was enhanced with the addition of an exterior escalator and interactive video exhibition created by former Cirque du Soleil producer Roger Parent, which together feature more than 40 giant flat-screen monitors combined with hundreds of feet of LED signage.[25] Parent is also responsible for the casino's interior escalator which uses LED technology and music depicting vintage imagery to transport guests to the vintage second-floor casino.[26]

In 2013, the D expanded into hosting martial arts events as the venue hosted Lion Fight 11, a Muay Thai Tournament. The main event featured a match between Tetsuya Yamato, former WBC Muay Thai Japan Champion, and Kevin Ross, an American Muay Thai boxer. In addition, Lion Fight 11 was featured on AXS TV, a company founded by Mark Cuban.

In late 2013, the D became the first casino in the world to accept bitcoin for hotel rooms, restaurants, and gift shop items. Additionally, a bitcoin ATM was installed next to the gaming floor where customers can buy and sell bitcoin instantly for cash.[27]

In February 2017, The D added an exterior video wall promoted as the "World's Largest Keno Board", displaying a live feed of keno numbers as they're drawn inside the casino.[28]

References
  1. 'Marriage Can Be Murder' a funny, interactive affair
  2. "Murder" moves
  3. DEFENDING THE CAVEMAN Returning to Las Vegas
  4. "The D Las Vegas". CTBUH Skyscraper Center.
  5. "Emporis building ID 122233". Emporis. Archived from the original on 2016-03-12.
  6. "The D Las Vegas". SkyscraperPage.
  7. Archived October 13, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  8. "Renovations at the D Las Vegas". Las Vegas Sun. 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  9. Michael Newton (2009). Mr. Mob: The Life and Crimes of Moe Dalitz. McFarland. pp. 259–260. ISBN 978-0-7864-3516-6. Retrieved 14 March 2012.
  10. "Detroiter Builds Out-Of-State Casino Empire". Casino City Times. 21 April 2002. Retrieved 9 October 2011.
  11. "Don Barden, The New Black Face Of Vegas". Archived from the original on December 10, 2007. Retrieved 2008-03-05.
  12. Benston, Liz (13 November 2003). "Fitzgeralds' loss widens on occupancy weakness". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  13. Robison, Jennifer (February 24, 2006). "Fitzgeralds' owner has strong belief in downtown LV; Company plans expansion after acquisition". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012.
  14. Benjamin Spillman (7 May 2008). "'For sale' sign could be headed for Fitzgeralds". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  15. Benjamin Spillman (12 July 2008). "Fitz off the market for now". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  16. McGarry, Caitlin (29 October 2011). "Fitzgerald's new owners plan makeover, new name". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  17. Ryan, Cy (20 October 2011). "Stevens brothers get approval of Fitzgeralds purchase, say they're planning upgrades". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  18. Stutzlas, Howard (2013-05-20). "Derek Stevens integral to downtown revival | Las Vegas Review-Journal". Reviewjournal.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  19. "Fitzgeralds in downtown Vegas to become the D". CBS News. March 13, 2012. Retrieved March 13, 2012.
  20. "The D imports new steakhouse from Detroit". Vegas Inc. 2013-01-23. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  21. "Original American Coney Island dog stand coming to Las Vegas - Las Vegas Sun News". Lasvegassun.com. 3 October 2012. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  22. Stapleton, Susan (2012-03-13). "Fitzgerald's Converts to D Las Vegas with One Longbar - Eater Vegas". Vegas.eater.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  23. "Properties on Fremont Street turn to permanent bars | Las Vegas Review-Journal". Reviewjournal.com. 2012-06-15. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  24. "downtown-vegas.com". downtown-vegas.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  25. "A resort is reborn under new ownership in downtown Las Vegas | Las Vegas Blogs". Blog.vegas.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  26. Sylvester, Ron (7 March 2013). "Elevating the senses: Escalator at D Las Vegas features touch of Cirque - Las Vegas Sun News". Lasvegassun.com. Retrieved 2015-09-25.
  27. "Why Bitcoin is Poised to Win Big in Las Vegas". 17 September 2014.
  28. "Eight of the World's Largest Things Can Be Found in Downtown Las Vegas". VegasExperience.com. 6 May 2020. Retrieved 2022-09-04.
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