Where I Stand: Fremont Street a unique redevelopment project

Tuesday, Sept. 3, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

TEAMWORK PLAYS an important role in the success of a project like the Fremont Street Experience, writes Mark Paris, president and chief executive officer of FSE, in today's guest column. He stresses the necessity of teamwork in future rebuilding and rejuvenation efforts in the Las Vegas Valley.

STUDY THE HISTORY of world-class cities and you'll discover an intriguing fact: The great metropolises never stop redesigning, rebuilding and rejuvenating themselves. Interestingly, the great cities are at their best when transforming themselves.

By this definition, Las Vegas is indisputably a great city.

Ask any of our city's 30 million annual visitors, and they will express their amazement at how quickly and dramatically Las Vegas transforms itself. Scores of tourists, returning to our city after only a few months, can't believe their eyes.

I'm pleased to head a relatively new effort that is bringing vitality and excitement to downtown Las Vegas. It is a redevelopment project like no other in the nation and, in fact, where other major downtown projects have stumbled and struggled, the Fremont Street Experience has been fortunate to successfully speed ahead.

Located between Main Street and Las Vegas Boulevard, the Fremont Street Experience is five city blocks that have been transformed into a world-class pedestrian mall, beautifully landscaped and paved into inviting pathways that will soon be misted. Suspended 90 feet overhead is the space frame, a 1,500-foot-long steel structure that shields guests from sun and at night serves as the stage and screen for our unique multi-sensory entertainment attraction.

With 2 million lights, half a million watts of sound power and plenty of Las Vegas-style action, this is the world's largest "stage" and most sophisticated computer-driven light and sound show. If you've visited downtown recently, you know firsthand there's nothing like it anywhere in the world. If you haven't seen it yet, come on down, park free with validation, enjoy some fine dining and gaming ... and get ready to be amazed by the light and sound show.

To the general public, "growth" projects like FSE seem to sprout overnight, but, months of planning go into mega-redevelopment projects before the shovels hit the dirt. FSE began in 1992 when the city of Las Vegas assembled the land for the project and a group of downtown hotels had the foresight to band together and join the city in spurring on the project. Funding came from various private and public sources, and everyone agreed the annual operating expenses will be underwritten by the member hotels so that FSE will never be a burden on the public.

All the hard work paid off when the Fremont Street Experience became a reality on Dec. 14, 1995, opening with the colorful "Holiday Light and Sound Show." Since then, we have launched four new shows: "Country Western Nights," a special New Year's Eve Show, "Odyssey: An Illuminating Journey" and "Viva Las Vegas."

The project has been a catalyst spurring downtown growth. At last count, the downtown hotels have committed to spend more than $200 million to renovate and refurbish their properties -- and this is just the start of more great things to come. FSE's success will rub off on the rest of downtown, and we will see more new restaurants, retail shops, office buildings and residential projects developed in the near future.

The Fremont Street Experience is about entertainment, but it's also a wonderful symbol of our city's talent for pulling together to accomplish great things. Moreover, the project illustrates just how diverse public and private entities team up to rebuild and rejuvenate Las Vegas.

Without question, the best example of Las Vegas as a "rebuilding metropolis" has taken place along the world-famous Strip for the past decade, as thousands of new hotel rooms have attracted millions of new visitors and created thousands of new jobs.

Lately, this fantastic growth has caused some Las Vegans to ask whether the pace of growth should be slowed. I don't think so.

On the contrary, as a "metropolis in the making," Las Vegas must continue growing, rebuilding and rejuvenating in a manageable fashion that relies on the classic market concept of supply and demand. We must avoid growth for growth's sake and instead ensure that there is demand for the planned hotel rooms, casino space, commercial malls and residential housing. Moreover, we need to keep in mind that new developments, whether gaming or nongaming, should be compatible with their particular neighborhood.

As Las Vegas continues to transform itself into a world-class metropolis, keep in mind the following:

* Whenever appropriate and feasible, major development projects should encourage input from the private and public sectors. This way, everyone's interests are heard and respected. This doesn't mean everyone gets their way, but it does result in the best ideas being considered.

* Growth is an important business affecting all of our lives and, therefore, the best people in our city should be involved in the growth projects. Ideally, they should be high-energy visionaries who are not intimidated by "big picture" ideas, yet are also experts managing the many details inherent in every major development project.

* It's been proven that organizations produce the best results when they harness the power of teamwork.

As Las Vegas grows in a managed fashion, we need to carefully protect our unique past by taking the best of yesterday, including buildings, institutions and customs, and blending it with the best of tomorrow.

This is a wonderfully exciting time to live, work and raise a family in the Las Vegas Valley. Our community's can-do attitude is the envy of other cities across the country. Let's continue pulling together to keep Las Vegas the best-managed "fastest-growing city in America."