The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, (commonly referred to simply as The Cosmopolitan or The Cosmo) is a luxury resort casino and hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. The resort opened on December 15, 2010, and is located just south of the Bellagio on the west side of Las Vegas Boulevard, and consists of two highrise towers. The $3.9 billion project features 2,995 rooms, a 110,000 sq ft (10,000 m2) casino, 300,000 sq ft (28,000 m2) of retail and restaurant space, a 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m2) spa and fitness facility, a 1,800 seat theater, and 150,000 sq ft (14,000 m2) of meeting/convention space. In 2013, the hotel was rated "The Best Hotel in the World" by Gogobot. In 2015, the resort was named to the Condé Nast Traveller Gold List as one of the "Top Hotels in the World".
Amenities
Cosmopolitan features 2,995 hotel rooms, many of which feature their own private terrace; a 110,000 sq ft (10,000 m2) casino; 300,000 sq ft (28,000 m2) of retail and restaurant space; a 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m2) spa and fitness facility; an 1,800 seat theater; and 150,000 sq ft (14,000 m2) of meeting/convention space. The Cosmopolitan's 100,000 sq ft (9,300 m2) casino features views of the Las Vegas Strip. The Pools at the Cosmopolitan features three different types: a relaxing pool, day club pool and nightclub pool.
The Cosmopolitan is also home to the Marquee Nightclub & Dayclub, which was the top grossing nightclub in the United States. In January 2014, the Cosmopolitan added a new nightclub concept, Rose. Rabbit. Lie.
Construction
The Cosmopolitan's design team is led by Friedmutter Group as executive architect, with Arquitectonica as the design architect for the building's themed exterior. The building is engineered by DeSimone Consulting Engineers. The Interior design team includes Prophet, the Friedmutter Group, The Rockwell Group, Jeffrey Beers, Adam Tihany, and Bentel & Bentel.
The resort was built on what used to be a small parking lot for a nearby midrise timeshare building called the Jockey Club. Because the Cosmopolitan occupies much of the parking lot, it was agreed that the Club residents could use part of the Cosmopolitan's parking garage.
The project was begun by developer 3700 Associates, LLC, headed by Ian Bruce Eichner. The Cosmopolitan is the second Las Vegas hotel, after The Palazzo, to feature an underground parking garage underneath the hotel. As a result, the parking garage was built first. In December 2007, work finished on the 70-foot (21 m) hole for the parking structure, while other foundation work remained in progress. The hotel was originally planned to open and be operated by Hyatt as the Grand Hyatt Las Vegas.
Original plans called for the casino to be on the second floor, but this was later changed and the casino was built on ground level, like most other Las Vegas hotel-casinos. Planned condo units were cancelled and replaced with studios and other hotel rooms.
In January 2008, it was reported that the $3.9 billion project faced financial complications, as Eichner's company defaulted on a $760 million construction loan from Deutsche Bank when the developer missed a payment after failing to secure refinancing for the project. Construction moved forward as the developers searched for new financing. In late February 2008, Global Hyatt Corporation and New York-based Marathon Asset Management agreed to recapitalize the condominium-hotel project. however, one month later the developer said Deutsche Bank AG would begin foreclosure proceedings. They bought the hotel for $1 billion during the summer and hired The Related Cos., developers of Time Warner Center in New York, to re-position the asset, manage the development process and assist in leasing the retail and restaurant collection. Related recommended many revisions, including bringing the casino entrance onto the strip.
In June 2008, Hearst Corp filed a trademark suit against the owners of the casino. Hearst owns the trademark to Cosmopolitan magazine. In March 2010, the suit was settled, and the resort was renamed Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.
In August 2008, it was announced that MGM Mirage, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Hyatt and Hilton were in talks to acquire the property. It was speculated that MGM Mirage would integrate the project into Bellagio and CityCenter; Starwood were to establish its W and St Regis brands; and Hyatt would have continued with its plans to operate a Grand Hyatt. In April 2009, the Sun reported that the hotel would be managed by Hilton and would become the Hilton's first in their new Denizen hotel line. Later that month, however, those plans changed; Starwood sued Hilton, claiming trade-secret theft and essentially killing the Denizen brand.
In June 2009, 400 homeowners filed a lawsuit against the developers, claiming breach of contract and seeking refunds for their deposits. They believed that the projected finish date of June 2010 was unrealistic and expressed fear that the developers might turn the condo rooms into hotel rooms only or "finish the building as a shell and not do any interior work.
In April 2010, it was announced that the Cosmopolitan would open in stages, beginning in December and ending in July 2011. It was the only hotel-casino to open on the Strip in 2010. The project officially opened on December 15, 2010, and became part of Marriott International's Autograph Collection, a collection of independent hotels with access to Marriott's enormous reservation and rewards system. In January 2014, the Cosmopolitan announced that points through their Identity rewards program could be redeemed at 3,800 of Marriott's properties. Cosmopolitan is also partnered with the Ritz-Carlton, which is Ritz's first presence on the Las Vegas Strip and their second property in the Las Vegas area.
On May 15 2014, The Cosmopolitan was sold by sole owner Deutsche Bank to Blackstone Group for $1.73 billion.
Restaurants
In March 2010, the casino announced several celebrity chefs and restaurants that would open there. Included were Bruce and Eric Bromberg's Blue Ribbon, Costas Spiliadis' Estiatorio Milos, Scott Conant's Scarpetta, and David Myers' Comme Ça.
On May 2, the resort announced that José Andrés would be joining the resort with three restaurants - creating his namesake restaurant, "é by José Andrés", and one based on his tapas restaurant, Jaleo. Another restaurant, China Poblano, is a new concept combining Mexican and Chinese cuisine.
Additional restaurants include: D.O.C.G. a restaurant and wine bar by Scott Conant; Holstein's, a specialty burger restaurant. Also, STK, a steakhouse by Todd Mark Miller; along with The Henry, Va Bene Caffè, and Wicked Spoon.
Controversy
In April 2011, Cosmopolitan security staff allegedly removed a transgendered guest named Stephanie from a women's restroom, photographed her, and said that she would be banned for life if she didn't leave the premises. Shortly after the incident, the hotel-casino was flooded with complaints on its Facebook page, which prompted the hotel-casino to issue an apology to the transgender community and to Stephanie that they would "welcome her back to the resort anytime." The incident also prompted the hotel-casino to train its staff on awareness initiatives involving the sensitive issue.
In popular culture
- The Cosmopolitan was the setting for The Killers music video for "Shot at the Night".
- The Cosmopolitan was the setting for Top Chef Masters Season 4.
- The Cosmopolitan is mentioned several times in Sofia Coppola's 2013 film, The Bling Ring, as being a hotspot for celebrities.
Gallery
References
ArraySources
- 'Cosmo says hello: Guests see model of condo-hotel', Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal, October 26, 2005.
External links
- The Cosmopolitan Official Site
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