Caesars Palace in Las Vegas getting $1 Billion LEED Expansion

Harrah’s $1 billion expansion of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas is pursuing a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. According to Eric Dominguez, Director of Energy and Environmental Services for Harrah’s, the LEED initiative is just one of many of the company’s efforts to build and operate [...]

Harrah’s $1 billion expansion of Caesars Palace in Las Vegas is pursuing a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. According to Eric Dominguez, Director of Energy and Environmental Services for Harrah’s, the LEED initiative is just one of many of the company’s efforts to build and operate in an environmentally responsible fashion.

The addition to the resort by Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc., named Octavius Tower, will include a new 665-room hotel tower and 263,000-square-foot meeting and convention center. The project will not be completed until early next year.
Each building will be constructed with USGBC’s LEED criteria in mind: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.

“We are trying to build on our past success in regard to new construction,” says Dominguez, who adds that Harrah’s has not yet determined the LEED certification level it will pursue. “We are using materials that have recycled content, and will be incorporating energy-efficient lighting, window glazing, and chillers and boilers. We will also include low-flow fixtures and construct a shell with high-quality insulation.”

Gwen Migita, Director of Social Responsibility with Harrah’s, says the company has plans to “green its growth” and within the communities where its casinos are located.

“We have really been focusing on our code of commitments—what drives what we do in our communities,” Migita says. “We are moving toward uniformity with our strong regional environmental programs. All of Harrah’s properties have a level of activity around energy conservation and recycling. We are also currently looking at the efforts of our suppliers and requiring a certain level of certification where appropriate.”

Over the past five years, Harrah’s has been working to reduce energy and water consumption, reducing electricity usage by more than 100 million kilowatt-hours per year, while natural gas consumption has decreased by more than 1.6 million therms per year. The Rio Hotel, also one of Harrah’s properties, is home to a 5-megawatt cogeneration facility, one of the cleanest natural gas-powered facilities in the United States. The company is also incorporating compact fluorescents in guestrooms, linear fluorescents in parking areas, lighting controls to control perimeter lighting and low-flow shower heads, while most water-intensive landscaping has been removed (outdoor fountains).

Yet even with all these changes, customer satisfaction is still goal number one. The new Octavius Tower will include many different types of suites, several swimming pools, and spacious guestrooms and will offer entertainment amenities such as large, flat-panel televisions and bedside clock radios with iPod docking stations. Guestroom entry doors will be customized with Greek key patterns, where electronic doorbells and electronic “do not disturb” features will ensure guest privacy. Floors 21 through 23 will be comprised exclusively of suites; special key cards will be required to access these levels.

For more information, visit Harrah’s online.