The Neonopolis Saga Continues
May 6, 2009
Go ahead and laugh at the title. It’s been a local punchline for years.
Obviously, the name is a blend of some exalted Greek word like “Acropolis” with “Neon”, but it has never quite delivered on the hype.
While Downtown has been making a lot of good moves lately, and stands poised to win over a larger percentage of Vegas visitors, there is one thing about Downtown that appears perpetually doomed to … weirdness. That thing is Neonopolis itself.
Neonopolis
Neonopolis
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Neonopolis
In theory, Neonopolis is cool. It’s a large, 250,000 sqft, multi-level complex with 3 full miles of neon lights ringing the inside and outside of the building. Sitting at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street, the location is about as good as it gets north of Sahara Avenue.
For some reason, though, it has just never caught on.
Perhaps I am not being 100% honest. I am well aware of the reason that it has yet to catch on.
Tenants.
It never had any. At least none that were terribly compelling.
I remember going to Neonopolis in the middle of the decade, walking inside, seeing nothing, hopping in an elevator, and spotting a restaurant/bowling alley called Jillian’s. While I did, indeed, eat and bowl in the place (hell, I was already there), myself and my companions were the only people inside of the joint. Jillian’s did have a minor music scene on some nights, but it toiled in obscurity for most of its run, and it is no longer open for business.
Jillian's in Neonopolis
Back in 2006, Neonopolis was purchased for $25 million, and the new owners intended to re-name it “Fremont Square”. That renaming never happened. Frankly, I think this was a good decision because “Neonopolis” sounds a whole lot cooler than “Fremont Square”. The former sounds like a bona-fide Las Vegas property whereas the latter sounds like a Civil War museum.
Unfortunately, the name has been irrelevant because throngs of tenants for the complex have just never materialized.
As if the current state of the mostly vacant property were not bad enough, the 14 screen Galaxy Theatres will close after their final film showings tomorrow night (Thursday, April 7th). When that happens, they will take with them the fourteen reasons that currently exist to go to Neonopolis.
Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
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Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
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Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
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Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
Neonopolis Galaxy Theatres
Seriously, the entire thing has been an unmitigated clusterfornication since day number one, and given the potential of the place, it’s a real shame. If the Gold Spike can do a complete 180, the question begs to be asked … why can’t anybody turn Neonopolis into a successful venture?
Fortunately (maybe, I’ll believe it when I see it), another major tenant plans to call Neop home in 2010. The tenant will be the wildly raunchy, controversial, and Sin City envelope-pushing endeavor known as … wait for it … Star Trek: The Experience.
Apparently, the bowling alley and the theater didn’t pack teenage virgins into Neonopolis, so they are reaching for the brass ring this time and are gunning for the 39 year old virgins.
I have nothing against the Star Trek Experience, but I am slightly confused about this. People don’t come Downtown for good, clean fun. They come Downtown for cheap booze, cheap gambling, and cheap women. They want to see the Fremont light show and listen to live music. I’ve never heard anyone say “I want to go Downtown to pay my respects to Spock”.
To be fair, Neonopolis does have some other tenants lined up. They have a museum, a lounge, and a few restaurants which are planned, but only time will tell whether or not they will materialize.
Future Tenants of Neonopolis
Neonopolis
Neonopolis
As if potential restaurants weren’t enough, Neonopolis is getting another big tenant later this year. A major television station will be leasing 18,000 square feet of space to use as a broadcast studio. (As a matter of fact they supposedly already have begun moving in as of February.)
What major television station? Telemundo. 
Telemundo in Neonopolis
Telemundo in Neonopolis
I honestly really have no idea what Neonopolis is going for. What demographic are they catering to? Mexicans who yearn to speak Klingon? Talk about a battle of the aliens.
I want to see Downtown succeed, but Neonopolis has the mother of all identity crises. They have prime real estate on the most prominent intersection within the city limits of Las Vegas, and their main tenants are going to be Captain Kirk and a Speedy Gonzales?
Really?
I mean … really?
Jesus tapdancing Christ … anyone with a modicum of neuronal capacity will tell you that if you plop down something called “Neonopolis” in the middle of Downtown Las F’ing Vegas, you need to make good with the goods.
Nobody ever wanted to go to such a grandiose-sounding place to watch the latest Hugh Grant romantic comedy. This is evidence by the closing of the theaters this week.
They want to get their drink on, and their smoke, then go back with … something to poke on. My blatant plagiarism of Dr. Dre aside, Neonopolis is a great name, but they need to deliver.
In my opinion, it is obvious what Neonopolis needs.
Gambling.
And gambling is a minimum. In addition to a modern casino with superior odds … throw a massage parlor in there, a sex club, a head shop, two strip clubs, and an ultra-lounge … and then you have a true Las Vegas NEONOPOLIS.
Not a goddamn bowling alley and movie theater. I can go bowling and see a movie at the Elm Street Strip Mall in South Dicknock, Ohio.
Neonopolis, however, conjures up images of great things. Exciting things. Neon things.
I hope the owners of this property realize before it’s too late that they have an insane amount of potential with Neonopolis, yet to date, it has been squandered.
When the place finally gets an owner who understands what Downtown is, what Downtown visitors want, and want a name like “Neonopolis” implies … then it may very well be a property to be reckoned with.
In my opinion, the schizophrenic identity of the place has far and away been its biggest Achilles’ heel.
While the closure of the Galaxy is going to be a major blow to an already suffering property, it does represent an opportunity for Neonopolis to re-evaluate where they are, and what they are trying to accomplish.
Until then, I can’t wait to see how the Mexican/Star Trek thing works out.
“Captain, we are approaching an enemy ship. It appears to be bouncing up and down while playing some kind of unidentifiable, annoying sounds … and there is a chihuahua hanging out the starboard side.”
“Make contact.”
“Yo’ holmes, jer on our side of the galaxy, essay. Ju better turn around before me and my homies bus a phaser in yo’ azz!”
Oh yeah, I’m going to have fun with this combination.
Written by Disco Stu on May 6, 2009 at 6:16 pm
“39 year old virgins.” I’m 39. Hey!
Written by blueboar on May 6, 2009 at 6:43 pm
I’ve said it before. The Neonopolis solution is easy.
Make prostitution legal within the city limits of Las Vegas itself. Put girls in neon lit windows. Add some of the other stuff Rex mentioned. Also put a couple of Amsterdam style “coffee shops” in there. 3 nightclubs: 1 gay, 2 straight.
Turn it into a mini-Amsterdam red light district. People will flock downtown, even if they don’t partake in the girls or smoke or other things. Same thing happens in Amsterdam, plenty of gawkers, decent number of participants. Even the gawkers will drop some cash while downtown.
Written by thomas coe on May 6, 2009 at 6:48 pm
isn’t a 360 turning a full circle so that you are back where you started? if so, the gold spike did a 180. a complete and opposite turnaround. yes i’m nitpicking, but i got nothing else!
Written by catherine on May 6, 2009 at 8:12 pm
your post made me lol so much my tummy ached! i like that red light district idea, it would be perfect there and draw tons of people, tourists and locals alike. although I remember rex wanting all of vegas to become like amsterdam’s red light district. we can always dream. lol
Written by Alberta on May 6, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Yawn….tell us how Binions is going to make the rent.
Written by Rex on May 7, 2009 at 7:17 am
Stu, at least 100 of our local masseuses would vouch for the fact that you are most certainly not a virgin
Written by chance on May 7, 2009 at 7:28 am
Yeah, I saw that 360 thing also and thought the same thing. He must’ve corrected it. What the heck are they thinking w/ the types of tenants they are acquiring? They sound more like a generic strip mall. Not sure if they need more casinos, since there are so many to already choose from nearby, but the other ideas are good. I don’t recall seeing any massage parlors in that area.
Written by Carlos on May 7, 2009 at 7:35 am
Hell yeah, legalizing prostitution is definitely a step in the right direction!
Written by Jinx on May 7, 2009 at 8:24 am
While I don’t think Rex’s or the other posters ideas are bad for Neonopolis, at the very least, they’ve never been able to fillt he damn place. I do recognize that people go downtown for cheap booze and gambling, but in truth if they put retailers, clubs, attractions in Neonopolis it would help as people who don’t go downtown might venture down there if there was something to do. Should it be a standard strip mall, no, but Star Trek is a good start, Jillians while not a big crowd did draw and should have been kept. But they pulled the plug on Jillians once Star Trek was announced, who in the world is deciding that the place needs just one attraction, especially since they have nothing else. Fill the damn place up and see what happens and then work from there.
A damn nightclub would be nice for downtown as well as an alternative or a HOB style venue, hell make it an indoor Bourbon street. Based on Star Trek’s new announcement (nothing until 2010) I’m going to go on record as saying that attraction is not getting moved to Neonopolis.
Written by BigVinnie on May 7, 2009 at 9:20 am
OK, so Neonopolis is a dud, but why doesn’t VegasRex check out a true Las Vegas attraction at the Main Street Station Casino. According to an article in this months AAA magazine (Via), “the Main Street Station casino installed urinals in an authentic section of the Berlin Wall”. Now that’s entertainment! Can’t wait to see his photo essay in this blog soon. lol
Written by dorkyvirgin on May 7, 2009 at 9:36 am
Cool, Mexican Star Trek at Neonopolis.
Kirk: “Open hailing frequencies”
Kirk: “This is Capt. Kirl, of the Federation Starship Enterprise, Ahoy Mexican alien ship”
Mexican Aliens: “Hola gringo! Que paso?”
Kirk: “Prior to transporting, we require you bring your alien badges”
Mexican Aliens: “Badges??…Badges??..we don’t need no stinkin’ badges”.
Written by wally on May 7, 2009 at 12:37 pm
I’m sorry but you can no longer see a movie
in South Dicknock, Ohio. They had to close
the theater last week. It’s the economy thing.
Wally (Mayor of South Dicknock, Ohio)
Written by Rex on May 7, 2009 at 4:42 pm
I was back at Neonopolis today (I am adding some shots to this post). I went up to the Theaters, and there was this rotund, Guido-looking dude running around and acting irate.
don’t know if he had anything to do with the Galaxy Theaters or not (he didn’t identify himself), but he was hating life. I argued with him for a few minutes because he was being an asshat, then moved on.
There’s not a lot of joy in the place right now. It’s a sound, attractive structure.
I would really like to see it become something.
I agree that the Star Trek Experience is not a good fit, and also agree that the more they delay the move, the less likely it is to happen at all.
Time will tell.
Written by shoedogbob on May 7, 2009 at 7:12 pm
red light district? Vegas is one big red light district.
Written by Alberta on May 7, 2009 at 8:29 pm
This is why I love Vegas. One day after the Rouge gets put into new ownership by the courts it goes up in smoke. Then neopolooza gets a whipping because they don”t have refrigerted air. On a side note no one was shot here today. Yet. Rex keep the stories coming!
Paul
Written by Thomas Coe Thanker (subbing for Rex) on May 8, 2009 at 8:36 am
Thank you for noticing my “360″ error.
It has been corrected now and I have acknowledged same.
I guess that means I have made a 180 on my 360.
Best regards.
Written by Rex on May 8, 2009 at 8:52 am
I had typed up an elaborate response about how 360 was correct because the Gold Spike was so great that it made your head spin, then I hit a particular key combination and nuked it.
Instead of re-typing it, I screamed at the monitor and threw something across the room. I figured that was sufficient.
Yes, thank you for the correction.
Although if the Gold Spike goes back downhill …
Written by Robert on May 8, 2009 at 9:47 am
Cool topic! I stay downtown several times per year. I like Rex’s idea that adding gaming would bring people in. Everybody has a lot of great ideas — if they were only legal! The Amsterdam idea is a hoot, but don’t hold your breath. My idea would be to put together a collection of old coin-dropper type slots and decorate the room with memorabilia from places like the Desert Inn, Stardust, Sands, etc. You could make it “smoker friendly” ( with very good ventilation ). You could even have promotions like the Main Street Station’s “score with four”. But instead of a scratch card, present the winner of a 4 of a kind with 4 cigarettes. I bet that there would be all sorts of people going in there and then telling others how many cigarettes they won that day! By the time that they smoked those first 4 cigs, they might win another 4, and keep on playing, and playing, and playing! Okay, if that works out okay, put in a mardis gras bar in a separate room aimed at the 21 to 49 crowd. Every time somebody hits a jackpot, the well-endowed female bartender throws beads to the patrons and “shows her tits”. Talk about draw a crowd! Surround the bar area with slots that return about 85%, and they will be crowded with 23 year old guys just waiting for somebody to hit a jackpot. She could even do an encore for tips. There’s nothing like it in Vegas, and if the “show your tits” girls were hot, there would be lots of groups of guys cabbing it over from the strip just to see what was going on. For every guy who goes to the “gentlemen’s clubs”, there must be ten of us who don’t want to blow $100 bucks on “bottle service”, etc. But, we’d sure like to see some chick pull her top up every once in a while! Then start a rumor that the chicks in the crowd were getting drunk and rowdy and showing their tits. Then you’d have so many people wanting in that you’d have to do a cover charge!
Written by kendog80 on May 8, 2009 at 10:31 am
Robert that’s a hilarious idea with the mardi gras slots. (might actually work) Hey who does’nt love tits. Also I think Jillians has went under nationwide. The one’s near me (Maryland) have all become Dave and Busters as did one our freinds knew of in Florida. It could be that witht the new management they just decided to shut it down.
Written by roger on May 8, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Awesome ideas Robert! Downtown should hire you for PR and marketing. The Tit Bar would be the most rockin place in Las Vegas Baby!
Written by mad dog on May 9, 2009 at 9:23 am
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There is your next million, Rex.
One free draft is all I ask