El Rancho Vegas- Today

	The El Rancho Vegas Site Today
	Today, the El Rancho Vegas is nearly forgotten. The site of the Strip's first casino is a vacant lot, a desolate wasteland at the corner of Sahara and the Strip. There are no signs of the site's former glory. Absent the bustle of activity around it, the land looks a great deal like it did in 1940-unimproved desert scrub. Of course, it didn't have as many porn handouts or broken bottles then. At the southern end of the property, Hilton is building a Grand Vacations timeshare project. Besides this activity, there is not much else planned for this space. When the north end of the Strip picks up after Steve Wynn opens Le Reve, this land should become prime casino property, though. For all of the lip service paid to the history of Las Vegas and the gaming industry, placing a simple marker on the sidewalk in front of the El Rancho Vegas site would be a great way to commomorate this Strip pioneer.		This is an aerial shot of the El Rancho Vegas site. Note the Stratosphere to the north and the Sahara to the east. The shadow is the Skyrise Tower of Circus Circus. The photos below are ground-level shots of the former home of "Western America's Finest Hotel." _____________________________ Thanks to Secuity Officers L. Provenzano and Jerry Marek and Chief of Security Ken Bennett of Circus Circus for their help.

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