The shift taking place in Las Vegas is a notable transition from a showy tourist trap targeted toward the middle-aged to a luxury destination geared toward the young, affluent and hip - or at least the growing number of individuals that would like to appear that way. This is, after all, the draw of casinos; The chance of getting rich quick and attempting to live the fantasy while trying. It isn't just casino players that clamoring to make that gamble on the Las Vegas casino dream. The developers themselves are looking to achieve their dream by building high-end casino hotels that master the art of selling that dream to others. The latest luxury development to join the burgeoning Las Vegas ranks is the Elad Group owned Plaza Hotel.

Billionaire, Yitzhak Tshuua, has made a strategic property acquisition from fellow billionaire, Phil Ruffin, who currently owns the thirty-four plus acre site opposite the Wynn Casino Resort, which currently houses the increasingly passé New Frontier Casino. He has already begun moving forward in the development partnership with Donald Trump to build two 1,283 unit condominium and hotel casino towers on a portion of adjacent property that is also currently in his possession. Ruffin is now looking forward to the sale of the New Frontier parcel to the Tshuua owned Elad Group.

Tshuua plans on demolishing the present Frontier Casino, which he bought for $1.2 billion, and building a 3,500 room hotel and casino that will also share the space with private residences and retail establishments. Ruffin has expressed how he feels that he is really benefiting from the deal, given he is nearly doubling his worth with the New Frontier sale and simultaneously getting rid of the establishment that had become more and more synonymous with bikini mud wrestling and topless mechanical bull riding contests.

Tsuua bought the Plaza in New York back in 2004 for $650 million, and immediately put it through rigorous renovation in order to prepare it for its new position as the flagship property for his plan to expand the new and improved brand to multiple high-powered cities.  The Las Vegas Plaza is still slated to open in 2011. It will represent a booming market in Las Vegas for high-end luxury hotel casinos. The Plaza's other neighbor, The Wynn, is already beginning the process of expanding with an addition of a $2.1 billion hotel casino by the name of Encore Resort - slated for completion in 2009. The Boyd Gaming Group is also constructing a resort casino/residence next to the Plaza. This is the much talked about Echelon Complex - a $4.4 billion development opening in 2010.