Fremont Street Experience
Encyclopedia
The Fremont Street Experience (FSE) is a pedestrian mall
and attraction in downtown Las Vegas
, Nevada
. The FSE occupies the westernmost 5 blocks of Fremont Street
, including the area known for years as "Glitter Gulch," and portions of some other adjacent streets.
The attraction is a barrel vault
canopy
, 90 ft (27.4 m) high at the peak and four blocks, or approximately 1500 ft (457.2 m), in length.
While Las Vegas is known for never turning the outside casino lights off, each show begins by turning off the lights on all of the buildings, including the casinos, under the canopy. Before each show, one bidirectional street that crosses the Experience is blocked off for safety reasons.
Concerts, usually free, are also held on two sound stages. The venue has become a major tourist attraction for downtown Las Vegas, and is also the location of the Neon Museum at the Fremont Street Experience
and the city's annual New Year's Eve
party, complete with fireworks on the display screen.
Fremont Street is rich in history. It held many Las Vegas "firsts," including first hotel (the Hotel Nevada in 1906, present day Golden Gate
), first telephone (1907), first paved street (1925), first Nevada gaming license — issued to the Northern Club at 15 E. Fremont St, first traffic light, first elevator (the Apache Hotel in 1932), and the first high-rise (the Fremont Hotel in 1956). The Horseshoe
was the first casino to install carpeting, while the Golden Nugget
was the first structure designed from the ground up to be a casino.
For many years, the western end of Fremont Street was the area most commonly portrayed whenever producers wanted to display the lights of Las Vegas. The large number of neon
signs earned the area the nickname "Glitter Gulch."
The Fremont Street Experience was conceived in the 1990s as a way to draw more people to the ailing downtown gambling area, which had been losing business to the casinos and resorts of the Strip
. FSE, LLC is a cooperative venture, owned and operated by a group of downtown hotel/casino companies (comprising 10 hotel/casinos) as a separate corporation, responsible for financing, developing, and managing the Fremont Street Experience.
Commissioned to revive downtown Las Vegas’ historic Glitter Gulch, which was experiencing a downward revenue trend, The Jerde Partnership designed an “urban theater” that transformed five downtrodden city blocks into a dynamic covered walkway. The result is Fremont Street Experience, a $70-million investment that not only reversed the area’s downward revenue trend, but spurred revenue growth that outpaced the $2.3 billion invested at the same time in “mega resorts” along the Strip. Today, Fremont Street Experience remains downtown Las Vegas’ biggest draw, attracting more than 60 percent of visitors.
Since the 1940s, Fremont Street had been the heart of Las Vegas, popularly known as “the street of light.” In the 1980s Fremont Street fell out of favor as developers built up the Strip with huge casino resorts, focusing financial growth and continued expansion there rather than the historic downtown. The flight of retail and office tenants into the suburbs contributed to Fremont Street’s decline. Owners of Fremont Street’s casinos and hotels, led by Steve Wynn, joined forces in 1992, creating Fremont Street Experience Limited Liability Co., LLC. After unsuccessful attempts to revitalize the downtown core, with proposals including a new office tower and a new casino, the developer brought in The Jerde Partnership to reactivate the area. Jerde’s successful design offered a solution that salvaged stakeholders’ $1.5 billion combined investment and helped preserve 22,000 jobs.
Permanent stages were added in the early 2000s, eliminating the need to bring in temporary stages for every event. The sound system was upgraded in June 2001.
On June 14, 2004, a $17 million upgrade was unveiled that would feature a 12.5-million LED
display and more color combinations than the original display, which was composed of incandescent lighting.
A section comprising one fiftieth of the total canopy equals the size of the world’s current largest electric sign. Originally, nearly 2.1 million incandescent lights were housed in the canopy. With the completion of the $17 million upgrade, more than 12 million LED
lamps illuminate the overhead canopy. The new LED upgrade was designed and engineered by LG Electronics, who is also the primary corporate sponsor of the canopy. Within the canopy itself are 220 speakers powered by 550,000 watt
s of amplification.
while "The Drop" takes visitors on a journey that begins with one drop of water.
, forming the east end of the pedestrian mall, where Las Vegas Boulevard South meets Fremont Street.
The initial display contained about 2.1 million lightbulbs controlled by 32 computers located in kiosk
s on the mall. The sound system, using speakers suspended over the mall, was rated at 350,000 watt
s. Strobe light
s were added at some point to provide additional entertainment options on Disco Nights.
Displaying images that looked "real" took some innovation. New techniques were developed to make these curved, low-resolution images viewable from the ground. One adjustment was to move images slowly across the display to prevent blurring.
The 2001 upgrade to the sound system raised the power to 555,000 watts.
The 2004 upgrade features a 12.5-million LED
display and more color combinations than the original display. The old control system was replaced by a central control room using 10 computers.
Pedestrian mall
Pedestrian malls in the United States are also known as pedestrian streets and are the most common form of pedestrian zone in large cities in the United States. It is a street lined with storefronts and closed off to most automobile traffic...
and attraction in downtown Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. The FSE occupies the westernmost 5 blocks of Fremont Street
Fremont Street
Fremont Street is a street in Las Vegas, Nevada, and is the second most famous street in the Las Vegas metropolitan area after the Las Vegas Strip...
, including the area known for years as "Glitter Gulch," and portions of some other adjacent streets.
The attraction is a barrel vault
Barrel vault
A barrel vault, also known as a tunnel vault or a wagon vault, is an architectural element formed by the extrusion of a single curve along a given distance. The curves are typically circular in shape, lending a semi-cylindrical appearance to the total design...
canopy
Canopy (building)
A canopy is an overhead roof or else a structure over which a fabric or metal covering is attached, able to provide shade or shelter. A canopy can also be a tent, generally without a floor....
, 90 ft (27.4 m) high at the peak and four blocks, or approximately 1500 ft (457.2 m), in length.
While Las Vegas is known for never turning the outside casino lights off, each show begins by turning off the lights on all of the buildings, including the casinos, under the canopy. Before each show, one bidirectional street that crosses the Experience is blocked off for safety reasons.
Concerts, usually free, are also held on two sound stages. The venue has become a major tourist attraction for downtown Las Vegas, and is also the location of the Neon Museum at the Fremont Street Experience
Neon Museum at the Fremont Street Experience
The Neon Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, features signs from old casinos and other businesses displayed outdoors on over . The museum is restoring the La Concha Motel lobby as its visitor center....
and the city's annual New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
party, complete with fireworks on the display screen.
History
Golden Gate Hotel and Casino
The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino is located at One Fremont Street in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the United States. A part of the Fremont Street Experience, it is the oldest and smallest hotel on the Fremont Street Experience.-History:...
), first telephone (1907), first paved street (1925), first Nevada gaming license — issued to the Northern Club at 15 E. Fremont St, first traffic light, first elevator (the Apache Hotel in 1932), and the first high-rise (the Fremont Hotel in 1956). The Horseshoe
Binion's Horseshoe
Binion's Horseshoe, also known as the Horseshoe Casino or simply The Horseshoe, was a hotel and casino located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada on what is now the Fremont Street Experience. The casino was named for its founder, Benny Binion and had 366 rooms, three restaurants and a rooftop pool.The...
was the first casino to install carpeting, while the Golden Nugget
Golden Nugget Las Vegas
The Golden Nugget Las Vegas is a luxury casino-hotel located in Las Vegas, Nevada on the Fremont Street Experience. The property is owned and operated by Landry's Restaurants....
was the first structure designed from the ground up to be a casino.
For many years, the western end of Fremont Street was the area most commonly portrayed whenever producers wanted to display the lights of Las Vegas. The large number of neon
Neon
Neon is the chemical element that has the symbol Ne and an atomic number of 10. Although a very common element in the universe, it is rare on Earth. A colorless, inert noble gas under standard conditions, neon gives a distinct reddish-orange glow when used in either low-voltage neon glow lamps or...
signs earned the area the nickname "Glitter Gulch."
The Fremont Street Experience was conceived in the 1990s as a way to draw more people to the ailing downtown gambling area, which had been losing business to the casinos and resorts of the Strip
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
. FSE, LLC is a cooperative venture, owned and operated by a group of downtown hotel/casino companies (comprising 10 hotel/casinos) as a separate corporation, responsible for financing, developing, and managing the Fremont Street Experience.
Commissioned to revive downtown Las Vegas’ historic Glitter Gulch, which was experiencing a downward revenue trend, The Jerde Partnership designed an “urban theater” that transformed five downtrodden city blocks into a dynamic covered walkway. The result is Fremont Street Experience, a $70-million investment that not only reversed the area’s downward revenue trend, but spurred revenue growth that outpaced the $2.3 billion invested at the same time in “mega resorts” along the Strip. Today, Fremont Street Experience remains downtown Las Vegas’ biggest draw, attracting more than 60 percent of visitors.
Since the 1940s, Fremont Street had been the heart of Las Vegas, popularly known as “the street of light.” In the 1980s Fremont Street fell out of favor as developers built up the Strip with huge casino resorts, focusing financial growth and continued expansion there rather than the historic downtown. The flight of retail and office tenants into the suburbs contributed to Fremont Street’s decline. Owners of Fremont Street’s casinos and hotels, led by Steve Wynn, joined forces in 1992, creating Fremont Street Experience Limited Liability Co., LLC. After unsuccessful attempts to revitalize the downtown core, with proposals including a new office tower and a new casino, the developer brought in The Jerde Partnership to reactivate the area. Jerde’s successful design offered a solution that salvaged stakeholders’ $1.5 billion combined investment and helped preserve 22,000 jobs.
Permanent stages were added in the early 2000s, eliminating the need to bring in temporary stages for every event. The sound system was upgraded in June 2001.
On June 14, 2004, a $17 million upgrade was unveiled that would feature a 12.5-million LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
display and more color combinations than the original display, which was composed of incandescent lighting.
Viva Vision
The LED display "canopy", runs along the Fremont Street Experience promenade from Main Street to Fourth Street. Holding the canopy aloft are 16 columns, each weighing 26,000 pounds and can hold up 400,000 pounds, and 43,000 struts.A section comprising one fiftieth of the total canopy equals the size of the world’s current largest electric sign. Originally, nearly 2.1 million incandescent lights were housed in the canopy. With the completion of the $17 million upgrade, more than 12 million LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
lamps illuminate the overhead canopy. The new LED upgrade was designed and engineered by LG Electronics, who is also the primary corporate sponsor of the canopy. Within the canopy itself are 220 speakers powered by 550,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s of amplification.
Light and sound shows
Light & Sound Shows are presented nightly beginning at dusk. The number of nightly shows was increased during the 2004 upgrade. Some of the most popular shows include the "Lucky Vegas" show which pays tribute to some of the most well known Vegas icons. "Smoke, Speed and Spinning Wheels" gives visitors an inside look at the sport of race car driving. "Area 51" is a show that pits humans against a swarm of alien invaders. "American Freedom" serves as tribute to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
while "The Drop" takes visitors on a journey that begins with one drop of water.
Pedestrian mall
Created when Fremont Street was closed permanently to vehicular traffic in September 1994. When the light and sound shows are not being presented, music is played throughout the mall.The parking plaza
The parking plaza is located at the eastern end of Fremont Street. It is a 1,430-space parking structure built to accommodate an increase in visitors to downtown.Neonopolis
NeonopolisNeonopolis
Neonopolis, a shopping mall, is a $100 million entertainment complex in Las Vegas, Nevada located on top of a $15 million city parking garage. It is located on the Fremont Street Experience, at the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard...
, forming the east end of the pedestrian mall, where Las Vegas Boulevard South meets Fremont Street.
Technical details
Kiosk
Kiosk is a small, separated garden pavilion open on some or all sides. Kiosks were common in Persia, India, Pakistan, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward...
s on the mall. The sound system, using speakers suspended over the mall, was rated at 350,000 watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
s. Strobe light
Strobe light
A strobe light or stroboscopic lamp, commonly called a strobe, is a device used to produce regular flashes of light. It is one of a number of devices that can be used as a stroboscope...
s were added at some point to provide additional entertainment options on Disco Nights.
Displaying images that looked "real" took some innovation. New techniques were developed to make these curved, low-resolution images viewable from the ground. One adjustment was to move images slowly across the display to prevent blurring.
The 2001 upgrade to the sound system raised the power to 555,000 watts.
The 2004 upgrade features a 12.5-million LED
LEd
LEd is a TeX/LaTeX editing software working under Microsoft Windows. It is a freeware product....
display and more color combinations than the original display. The old control system was replaced by a central control room using 10 computers.
FSE casino/hotel companies
- Binion's Gambling Hall & Hotel
- Boyd Gaming Corporation:
- Fremont Hotel and CasinoFremont Hotel and CasinoThe Fremont Hotel & Casino is located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, on the Fremont Street Experience. The casino is operated by the Boyd Gaming Corporation.-History:...
- California Hotel and CasinoCalifornia Hotel and CasinoThe California Hotel and Casino, also known as The Cal opened in 1975 at a cost of $10 million with a hotel and casino located in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada near the Fremont Street Experience. When it opened it had 325 rooms which has since been expanded to 781.The California has been owned by...
- Main Street StationMain Street Station Hotel and Casino and BreweryThe Main Street Station Hotel and Casino and Brewery is a hotel and casino located in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned by Boyd Gaming Corporation...
- Fremont Hotel and Casino
- Fitzgerald's Casino Hotel
- Four Queens Hotel & Casino
- Golden Gate Hotel and CasinoGolden Gate Hotel and CasinoThe Golden Gate Hotel & Casino is located at One Fremont Street in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the United States. A part of the Fremont Street Experience, it is the oldest and smallest hotel on the Fremont Street Experience.-History:...
- Golden Nugget Las VegasGolden Nugget Las VegasThe Golden Nugget Las Vegas is a luxury casino-hotel located in Las Vegas, Nevada on the Fremont Street Experience. The property is owned and operated by Landry's Restaurants....
- Las Vegas Club Hotel & CasinoLas Vegas ClubThe Las Vegas Club is a casino-hotel located in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada owned by the Tamares Group and operated by Navegante along with the Plaza Hotel & Casino across Main street.-History:...
- Lady Luck Hotel CasinoLady Luck Hotel & CasinoThe Lady Luck was a hotel and casino in the downtown area of Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned by the Los Angeles based CIM Group. Some of the rooms are owned as timeshares. The Lady Luck Hotel and Casino has been closed since early 2006 and the interior spaces largely demolished in preparation for...
(closed) (associate member)