Tuesday was an exciting but sad day in Las Vegas as thousands of onlookers watched the Stardust Casino Resort come crashing down, only to leave behind a billowing cloud of...well, Stardust. Demolished by a controlled implosion using 428 pounds of dynamite, both the main 32-story tower and the smaller nine-story tower came down in just a matter of seconds. Preceding the implosion, the casinos owners, Boyd Gaming, hosted a magnificent fireworks display and lightshow.

The occasion was bittersweet for some, especially Boyd Gaming Executive, Robert Boughner, who was in charge of overseeing the construction of the main tower in 1988. In fact, Boyd Gaming has been the only casino operator since the early nineties to have both built and demolished a Las Vegas resort property. At least ten other demolished casino properties had exchanged ownership at least one time or another. And while the Stardust had been doing business for 49 years, and was at one point managed by the Mob itself, Boyd Gaming essentially made the resort what it was since the time of its purchase in 1985.

Boyd Gaming President Keith Smith and Boyd himself were sad to see the casino go. However, Boyd cheered up at the thought of what will be replacing the Stardust. Known as the Echelon Project, over eighty-seven acres will be built up with a 3,400 room resort, five smaller boutique hotels (5,000 rooms total), a 140,000 square foot casino and convention center, all amidst a vast selection of entertainment and dining options. Much like the MGM Project City Center, the Echelon Project will begin construction in June, 2007, and will tentatively open its doors some time in 2010.

As for the Stardust Casino Resort, its doors were closed to business in November of last year. The insides of the Stardust were soon thereafter gutted out and put on auction. Employees, who now work at other Boyd casino properties, as well as three busloads of Boyd VIP gamblers attended a farewell party in a protected shelter in parking lot of the nearby New Frontier Resort. More onlookers lined the Strip and gathered in casino parking garages to get a firsthand view of the lightshow (over 3,000 aerial shells) and join in the ten-second countdown leading up to the powerful explosion.