Aladdin life safety tests delayed

David Strow

Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2000 | 10:57 a.m.

Crucial safety tests required before the Aladdin resort can open were delayed Monday at the hotel-casino's request, a spokeswoman for the Clark County Building Department said.

Tests on the fire safety systems were supposed to begin Monday afternoon at the Desert Passage mall, but those tests have now been rescheduled for this afternoon, said Rita Mincavage of the Building Department.

"The owners determined they were not ready to have these tests on the mall at that time," Mincavage said.

Because of the delay in testing Desert Passage, fire safety tests on the Aladdin casino floor have been delayed until Wednesday, Mincavage said -- just one day before the Aladdin's scheduled opening. Both the mall and casino floor cannot be opened to the public until they have passed these tests and received certificates of occupancy from the county.

Since these tests can be completed in one day, Mincavage said the Aladdin could open as scheduled Thursday if the systems pass.

"Nobody is making any big predictions at this time, because things are coming together," Mincavage said. "If it passes, it passes. That's why no one has any predictions right now. It could all go just fine."

Aladdin Chief Executive Richard Goeglein said this morning he does not expect the delays will result in a change in the Thursday opening date.

"We do not believe so," Goeglein said.

The Aladdin has received certificates of occupancy for its back-of-house operations, office areas and kitchen areas. Approvals have also been received for all of the hotel rooms except the suites at the top of the hotel tower, Goeglein said.

Meanwhile, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman says he plans to stay away from the Aladdin's grand opening as a result of protests planned by the Culinary Union.

The Culinary Union plans to protest at Thursday's grand opening against Aladdin management's decision to open the property nonunion, and sent out letters to local elected officials asking them not to attend the Thursday opening. Aladdin officials say they will only accept the union if a majority of workers vote for the union in a National Labor Relations Board-supervised election.

Goodman, who stayed away from the Venetian's grand opening in 1999 because of a similar dispute, will also heed the union's request to stay away from the Aladdin, said City Hall spokeswoman Elaine Sanchez.

"He's a great believer in unions and the rights of working people," Sanchez said.