The award-winning MGM Grand Conference Center celebrated topping out its 250,000-square-foot expansion on Jan. 30. More than 100 construction workers along with MGM Resorts and MGM Grand executives were on-site to sign the last of nearly 2,700 individual steel beams before it was lifted into place by a 270-foot-tall, 125-ton crane.
The $130 million project, opening at the end of 2018, allows MGM Grand to grow with the needs of its clients and drive new and expanded business to Las Vegas. When completed, the conference center will total more than 850,000 square feet including a 22,000-square-foot expansion of Stay Well Meetings, the industry’s first-ever wellness meetings experience.
EXPANSION FAST FACTS
- Groundbreaking: June 20, 2017
- Topping out: January 30, 2018
- Opening: December 2018
- Cost: $130 million
- Expansion: 250,000 square feet
- Total upon completion: 850,000 square feet
- Owner & General Contractor: MGM Resorts International
- Construction Manager: THOR Construction
- Architect of Record: YWS Design & Architecture
- Interior Design: MGM Resorts Design / YWS Design & Architecture
- New space seamlessly connects to the existing conference center on all three levels
- Expansion includes:
- 5,500-square-foot outdoor courtyard available for private events
- 49,000-square-foot ballroom
- 32,000-square-foot ballroom
- three junior ballrooms
- 11 breakout rooms
- Stay Well Meetings is expanding its footprint by 22,000 square feet, encompassing the conference center’s entire second floor
CONSTRUCTION FAST FACTS
- 2,680 steel beams; 571 columns & hangers; 185-foot-widespan trussed ballroom
- 2,520 tons of steel
- 577 workers
- 9,650 cu. yards of concrete
MGM Grand’s new space comes on the heels of expansions at sister properties Mandalay Bay and ARIA. Mandalay Bay completed a 350,000-square-foot expansion totaling over two million square feet while ARIA is currently adding 200,000 square feet to create more than 500,000 square feet at the resort (opening Feb. 15). Upon completion of these projects, MGM Resorts International will offer a total of four million square feet of leading meeting and convention space within a two-mile stretch on the Las Vegas Strip.
The widespread development of new meeting space in Las Vegas is a solid indicator of the city’s position as the number one trade show destination in the U.S. for 23 consecutive years, as determined by Trade Show News Network.
MGM Grand Hotel & Casino is “The Entertainment Authority,” creating the ultimate Las Vegas experience. The hotel features the astonishing KÀ by Cirque du Soleil; world-famous dance crew Jabbawockeez; Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club; master illusionist David Copperfield; a flagship Topgolf location; and world-class entertainment at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. MGM Grand offers signature restaurants by celebrated chefs including Tom Colicchio, Michael Mina, Masaharu Morimoto, Emeril Lagasse, Wolfgang Puck and Joël Robuchon. MGM Grand is home to many of today’s hottest DJs including Tiësto, Calvin Harris and Steve Aoki who share residencies between Hakkasan Las Vegas restaurant and nightclub and Wet Republic, The Strip’s hottest day life destination. The hotel also features a state-of-the-art, non-smoking Five Green Key conference center, the Grand Spa and an inviting six-acre pool complex. Upscale accommodations include Skylofts at MGM Grand, an exclusive boutique luxury hotel within the hotel and The Signature at MGM Grand, a luxury all-suite, non-gaming hotel located adjacent to the main resort. MGM Grand is a wholly owned subsidiary of MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM). For more info, visit www.mgmgrand.com.
