The famed Tropicana Las Vegas resort, which houses the city’s longest-running cabaret and is known for its opulent midcentury decor, will close Tuesday as it prepares for demolition to make way for a new Major League Baseball stadium.
The resort’s gaming floor closes at 3 a.m. on Tuesdays, and the last hotel guests are required to check out by noon, according to the website for the resortowned by Bally’s Corporation, the gambling, betting and entertainment company.
After the demolition, about nine hectares of the 35-acre parcel will be given to the Athletics baseball team for the construction of a 30,000-seat stadium, the resort said. The stadium is expected to host the team, which will relocate to Las Vegas from Oakland, Calif., starting in 2028.
There was discussion last year that the Tropicana would be redeveloped to make room for a combined resort, casino and ballpark complex. Specific designs are still being finalized, according to the resort.
The Tropicana has had a storied run on the Las Vegas Strip since it opened in 1957 as the city’s most luxurious hotel and casino, with a cascading 60-foot fountain and a shimmering pool that piped Muzak underwater.
Longtime magicians Siegfried and Roy debuted there. to Sean Connery James Bond spent the night Feathered showgirls danced in its Folies Bergère cabaret. A photo taken in 1980 captured dancers playfully carrying comedian Joan Rivers for an awards show at the hotel.
But years have passed since the resort’s heyday, and the casino has become a relic as the city has thrived by offering entertainment found in other large metro markets: major professional sports teams.
Over the years, the NFL, the NHL, the WNBA and the NCAA men’s basketball tournament have all had teams and marquee events move to the city.
Last summer, Nevada’s governor signed on a fee agree to finance up to $380 million of the baseball stadium’s estimated $1.5 billion cost to lure the Athletics to a site on the Las Vegas Strip.
In November, Major League Baseball approved the Athletics’ move to Las Vegas, where the organization is set to open its new ballpark at the site of the Tropicana, according to the league.
The team will play its 2024 season at the Oakland Coliseum in California and is working with the league to explore options for an interim venue after that season.
“We are excited to begin this next chapter in Las Vegas,” John Fisher, the Athletics’ managing partner and owner, said in a statement.
The new ballpark will feature a roof with five overlapping layers inspired by a traditional baseball pennant and views of the city skyline, according to the league. Plans for the outfield include a large cable-net glass window facing the corner of Tropicana Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard and an 18,000-square-foot Jumbotron.
The Culinary Workers Union Local 226, which represents about 350 Tropicana workers, said it will help employees find new jobs, apply for unemployment and upgrade their skills.
“The goal is to make sure the Tropicana workers are protected,” Ted Pappageorge, the union’s secretary-treasurer, said in an interview.
He said union employees will receive a severance of $2,000 for each year of work and six months of health insurance coverage. He added that he hopes Tropicana workers will be offered jobs at the stadium complex once it is completed.
On the resort’s Instagram accountlongtime guests expressed bittersweet feelings about the resort’s closing and reminisced about the “red midcentury inspired decor,” their memories of the casino, the magic shows they enjoyed and the staff they came to know.
