...but not for baseball.
As MGM Mirage's CEO Jimmy Murren sat in his self-important, expensive, elegant, and grandiose private office (from where he governs the 20 properties that MGM Mirage manages), he pondered and ponificated...
Jimmy recently bragged to Business Week about how it was HIS idea to bring in six "celebrity architects" to design CityCenter, and that it was Jim Murren's huge blunder "brainchild" to build this Magic Kingdom. (Walt Disney would have been so proud!)
The 67-Acre Albatross of Heavy Debt in the Middle of a Deep Recession
The MGM's CityCenter's sleek and glistening buildings were supposed to entice the fat-cat big-spending "whales" necessary to save MGM Mirage from it's $13 billion of debt.
Evidently, like most MGM properties, the local population was not considered important enough to cater to, and were only necessary for the job pool...to clean the rooms, park the cars, mop the floors, and polish the door knobs. The younger and less experienced (but more hip and cool) among the local population were treated to the much better jobs, such as bartenders and cocktail waitresses. (MGM might have thought that the older people most likely weren't considered important enough to inhale CityCenter's "green" air.)
Jimmy Murren told Business Week how "big-name" architects figured into a city defined by fantasy and spectacle... and magic dreams.
"In 2004, we were looking at how to develop the 67 prime acres we had between the Bellagio and Monte Carlo resorts. We were seeing designs for one theme hotel after another."
Master Jim Murren (who himself once considered a career in architecture) insulted their designs, calling them "a big yawn". (Not near grand enough for the almighty Jimmy Murren, who had envisioned far much more for his personal dream...and by using Kirk Kerkorian and the stockholder's money to achieve this.)
Murren told Business Week that while attending Trinity College in the slummy "troubled and decaying" city of Hartford, Connecticut, he swooned over Rome during a college-sponsored sojourn.
And almost as Michael Jackson might haved explained it, Jim said, "That was a magical time."
Invoking the Heart-breaking Memories of 911?
Mister Murren said he drew inspiration from the design competitions for the World Trade Center. The area devastated on 9/11 was known to Jim Murren because he briefly worked on Wall Street - he had once held the title of director of research and managing director at Deutsche Bank before joining MGM Mirage in 1998. (And while this blogger lived in NYC, he once had cocktails at The Top of the World in 1980. And he too, was greatly inspired!)
Jim Murren also took personal credit for generously adding $40 million in art. "I overlaid a significant public-art program to appeal both to tourists and [wealthy] people who live here," he said.
Sir Murren also demanded "green" design and management techniques. Referring to the large international architecture and consulting firm he hired to deal with all the inflated egos involved: "They all took us to places we couldn't imagine."
Wow! A magical time!
How does Jim Murren hope CityCenter will survive in this lousy Las Vegas economy where unemployment is around 14%? "It's been a really rugged year, but 35 million tourists will still come. CityCenter will act as a catalyst. Visitation has grown 10 to 20 percent after a significant project opens up. International tourists are coming because America is on sale. We have a larger share of the Asian market in our portfolio."
Yes! A very magical time!
Asked about the future for Las Vegas, Murren says, "There's unlikely to be any major new development in the next five years. Everyone needs to lick their wounds, heal, and reduce leverage."
In other words (without the BULL)...cut expenses, hunker down, lay low, tighten the slots, and pray like hell!
Good luck pal!
The Magic Kingdom:
"You can get things done here at a speed that other places can't imagine. Eight years after 9/11, New York hasn't got the 11 million square feet of Ground Zero rebuilding done. Here we proposed 18 million square feet in 2004 and we opened it in 2009."
A very magical time indeed, Jimmy my boy! Now tell us again about how you once played baseball!
Other MGM Mirage Posts
MGM MIrage - Illegal Hiring Practices?
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2010/03/12/mgm-mirage-illegal-hiring-practices
MGM MIRAGE (NYSE: MGM) - Living on a Prayer in 2010 (Despite "Upgrade")
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2010/01/13/mgm-mirage-nyse-mgm-living-on-a-prayer-i
Casinos Won't Recover - What it Means for MGM Mirage
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2010/01/11/casinos-won-t-recover-what-it-means-for
MGM Mirage on Life Support - 2010 Not a Happy New Year
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2010/01/07/mgm-mirage-on-life-support-2010-not-a-ha
MGM Mirage - City Center is Doomed in 2010 to Cannibalism
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/31/mgm-mirage-city-center-is-doomed-to-cann
James "Jimmy" Murren - CEO MGM Mirage, Has A Magic Dream
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/29/james-jimmy-murren-ceo-mgm-mirage-has-a
MGM's Kirk Kerkorian's CEO (Jim Murren) - A Con Artist?
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/21/james-j-murren-chairman-of-the-board-and
MGM's Mister Kerkorian is a Very Wise Man
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/21/mgm-s-mister-kerkorian-is-a-very-wise-ma
Also see > CityCenter, Infinity World Development, MGM Mirage, Tracinda, Kerkorian
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