It’s always a thrill to experience a performance by the rock group, The Killers.  Even better for me, though, was seeing them kick off the grand opening of the new T-Mobile Arena in their home town of Las Vegas on April 6th.

I was happy to be invited to attend the celebration for the opening of this structure that can hold up to 20,000 concert and sports attendees. The arena was built to meet the U.S. Green Building’s Council’s standards for LEED Gold certification and this area’s environmentally conscious officials are in the process of getting it certified. After two years of construction that was totally funded with private money, it was time for the fun to begin.

This was a  joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz Entertainment Group, so Jim Murren, Chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International and leaders from AEG, Toshiba, and T-Mobile as well as city officials were on hand to provide welcoming speeches on that very sunny day.

It was noted that T-Mobile customers would receive unique benefits like a dedicated fast-track VIP venue entrance at every event. At select events, they can access event tickets and premium VIP experiences reserved exclusively for T-Mobile customers, pre-sales and seat upgrade opportunities.

And to top it all off, The Killers lead singer Brandon Flowers and drummer Ronnie Vannucci, Jr proudly received the keys to the Strip. Flowers stated that the ceremony was something that he and Vannucci would never forget. They were proud to be from Las Vegas and they took a little piece of this city with them where ever they went. He went on to explain that both their families and they all had backgrounds in the service industry and that the two of them had worked at several casinos including the Aladdin before it became the Hard Rock. “This was a proud day for us,” Flowers said.

Because the capacity of the arena is so much larger than other venues in the city, requests to perform there have been flowing in and top acts including Billy Joel, Guns N’ Roses, George Strait, and Garth Brooks have been already been scheduled to perform. While the inside is comprised of regular seating sections as well as private luxury boxes, its crowning glory is the hip Hyde Lounge that curves around high above the concert. The lounge can hold up to 400 people and portions can be sectioned off for private parties.

It was from this lounge that I enjoyed watching the band perform to a sold out crowd.

After the concert, the city was treated to a great display of fireworks.

 

This was great, but during my visit I also enjoyed experiencing for the first time The Park  a retail and dining space between New York-New York and the Monte Carlo casino hotels. It is through The Park that you can gain access to the T-Mobile arena.

 

Next: The Park and its restaurants.