The new D Casino Hotel in downtown Las Vegas is the result of a major renovation and renaming of the old Fitzgeralds Casino at the eastern end of the Freemont Street Experience, a canopied pedestrian mall and entertainment attraction. The unique two-level casino offers a high-energy environment on the first floor and a retro, old-school Vegas experience on the second floor.

The D stands for “downtown” and is also a reference to the nickname of the property’s majority owner, Derek Stevens. The owners completed a $22 million renovation and modernization of the 34-story hotel and casino.

The design for the main entrance incorporates approximately 2,000 square feet of PAC-CLAD Flush Panels in a bold application. The 12-inch, 24-gauge panels were finished in Matte Black and offer a strong contrast to the brightly illuminated “D” signage that marks the entrance. The 28-foot panels were installed in a segmented radius application as an integral part of the signage design concept. The panels were fabricated with stiffening beads, which Petersen recommends for longer panel lengths. In addition, 600 square feet of PAC-CLAD flat stock were used for flashing and trim.

Installation of the PAC-CLAD material was done by A.R.J. Incorporated, Las Vegas. According to Owner Andy Russo Jr., “The flush panels were a key component of the sign feature. The large, illuminated ‘D’ really pops out of the Matte Black panels.”

A.R.J. does a considerable amount of casino work in Las Vegas and has been using PAC-CLAD products for more than 20 years. “The name of the game here is on-time delivery,” Russo said. “With casinos, everything is a push. They believe customers won’t come into a place that appears to be under construction. So they want things done fast with no delays. Petersen has always been great about reliable delivery.”

In order to minimize disruption, the majority of the installation work was done between 2 a.m. and noon. “The site was a challenge because we had to work around the structures used in the Freemont Street Experience including large overhead speakers and a zipline,” Russo said. “And with the long panels, we were working 50 feet in the air. But the job turned out great. It delivers a great look in a very competitive environment.”
Design for the project was provided by Gensler, Las Vegas.

 For more information, visit www.pac-clad.com.