It is no news the owner of the New Frontier Casino in Las Vegas, Phil Ruffin, has been talking about bringing his own unique contribution to the The Strip - by the likes of builders like Steve Wynn.  Therefore, when Ruffin announced his plans to start construction by the end of 2006 of a modern casino that would replace the New Frontier, all eyes were watching to see what he would come up with.

There is no doubt that Ruffin has the capital for putting up his proposed $2 billion casino named after the small town of Montreux in Switzerland.  He has made a fortune building moderately priced hotels and selling gasoline.  After putting up $200 million for the New Frontier back in 1998, Ruffin says he is prepared to begin construction on the Montreux Casino, which he will be funding by himself.

However, Ruffin is not without any help whatsoever.  Much of what will contribute to Ruffin getting noticed for a personal touch on Las Vegas is the guidance of veteran casino architect Paul Steelman, who is known for his work on The Mirage and The Sands Macau, which he designed with principles of feng shui and Las Vegas glamour.  With Steelman's design of Montreux already in place, it is only a matter of obtaining demolition and construction permits.

When Ruffin first announced his idea of Montreux, which will be themed after the world-famous jazz festival in Montreux, it was hard for people not to envision a casino resort with Swiss cottages, backdrop sets of the Swiss Alps and yodeling in a "Disney meets Vegas" atmosphere.  However, Steelman says that will not be the case.  Taking the same approach of Steve Wynn, the Montreux is designed more like a hip New York hotel.  With numerous indoor waterfalls and glasswork (including a giant chandelier that dips into an even more giant water-filled glass vase), the Montreux does indeed sound like it may be unique and stylish enough to draw a buzz, not to mention a name for both Ruffin and Steelman in Las Vegas.

The Montreux is going to actually be geared more towards resort activities than casino gambling.  In fact, the casino will only take up less than 2% of the 6 million square feet of property the Montreux will sit upon.

Everything else is going to put emphasis on rest and relaxation.  For instance, the spa and pool will take up 50,000 square feet, and will be directly connected to hundreds of rooms so that visitors will not have to walk through the casino (as is the case with most other casino resorts).  The pool will be situated on the third floor, directly above the street lined boutique stores that will be located on both sides of Fashion Show Drive, creating a Las Vegas Rodeo Drive, if you will.  And the icing on the cake will be Las Vegas' largest ballroom and convertible stadium, as well as a 450-foot observation wheel that will give onlookers a south-side view of the entire Strip.