The Bellagio Fountains, Fremont Street, and the Strat are all famous Las Vegas landmarks. When people visit town, they want to see things like the Mirage Volcano and the Sphere in all it’s glory. But not all attractions garner so much attention, and one is famous for all the wrong reasons: The Skyvue observation wheel towers.
These infamous Las Vegas landmarks are just two monolithic concrete structures that stand in a vacant lot across from Mandalay Bay. They are reminders of a grand idea that began in 2011 but never made it. And while many projects in Sin City are doomed to failure, few have such obvious memorials left over of what could have been.
They stand in the heart of what London Las Vegas would have been, if not for a lack of money. A resort planned to cover 40 acres, with a hotel hosting 1,300 rooms and over half a million square feet of restaurants and shops. It never came together, and by 2015 the owners had given up and listed the property for sale. So much for Las Vegas landmarks.
There are plans to take down these pillars and make way for a magic show, of all things. Jay Owenhouse is a magician known for his work with big cats, and recently there’s been a lot of activity at the abandoned site. What the owners plan to develop there now is anyone’s guess.
Las Vegas landmarks come and go, as the city is always changing. Countless casinos have passed into history, and soon the Mirage volcano will be gone. Perhaps the Skyvue observation wheel has been one of the saddest, but it certainly will not be the last.
