Paris resort a hit on the Strip

Sunday, Oct. 31, 1999 | 10:37 a.m.

Two months after the Paris-Las Vegas hotel-casino opened, the resort's boss says the Strip property has had more business than ever expected.

Paris-Las Vegas President Paul Pusateri said Friday his $760 million resort has had to add 600 workers to its original 4,200.

The resort generates a better than 17 percent return on investment, topping the projected 15 to 17 percent, he said in a speech to the Business and Professional Division of the Jewish Federation of Las Vegas.

Pusateri said 4,000 visitors a day tour the resort's half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower.

"It's a big winner," said Anthony Curtis, publisher of Las Vegas Advisor, a newsletter that covers the top casino values. "It's one of the best properties to open in 30 years."

Curtis cited Paris' authentic touches, such as the original artwork in the high-roller gambling salon or the bona fide French roulette wheel as things that set the resort apart.

Hotel officials already are planning to upgrade some of Paris' 300 suites, Pusateri said, and its entertainment bookers are looking for ways to better the property's lounge offerings.

"We need to take it past brick and mortar," he said.