The Montage Reno is a high-rise residential building in
Reno
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the c ...
,
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
. It previously operated as a hotel and casino from 1978 to 2005, under various names, including Sahara Reno, Reno Hilton, Flamingo Hilton Reno, Flamingo Reno, and Golden Phoenix Reno.
The building was converted into a condominium tower from 2006 to 2008. It was formerly connected to
Fitzgeralds Reno by a sky bridge.
It is owned and operated by ST Residential LLC.
History
Sahara Reno (1978–81)
![ENTERTAINMENT ROUND-THE-CLOCK IS A RENO ATTRACTION - NARA - 553119](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/ENTERTAINMENT_ROUND-THE-CLOCK_IS_A_RENO_ATTRACTION_-_NARA_-_553119.jpg)
The main hotel/casino, on North Sierra Street, was originally opened in 1978 as Sahara Reno. It was owned by the
Del E. Webb Corporation, which also owned the
Sahara
, photo = Sahara real color.jpg
, photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972
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resort in Las Vegas. The Sahara Reno was designed by David Jacobson Associates and constructed by the Del E. Webb Corporation.
A separate casino building, located on Virginia Street, had previously operated from 1955 until 1978 as the Primadonna, before becoming part of the Sahara. The Virginia Street building was later reopened as
Siri's Casino in 2014.
Hilton/Flamingo (1981–2001)
![Reno Hilton logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1c/Reno_Hilton_logo.gif)
In 1981, the Sahara Reno became the Reno Hilton, then was renovated in 1992 and became the Flamingo Hilton Reno.
![The Flamingo Reno logo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/The_Flamingo_Reno_logo.gif)
In 2000, Hilton declined to renew its licensing agreement with the Flamingo brand, and the Flamingo Hilton Reno became simply the Flamingo Reno, returning to the original
brand
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...
formed in the 1940s in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
.
The 602 room hotel-casino made a profit until its corporate owner
Park Place Entertainment
Park Place Entertainment, later named Caesars Entertainment, Inc., was a casino company based in Paradise, Nevada. For a time it was the largest casino operator in the world. It was formed in 1998 as a corporate spin-off of the gaming division of ...
, owned by a subsidiary of
Hilton Hotels
Hilton Hotels & Resorts (formerly known as Hilton Hotels) is a global brand of full-service hotels and resorts and the flagship brand of American multinational hospitality company Hilton.
The original company was founded by Conrad Hilton. As ...
, decided the resort was no longer profitable in a declining gaming market. They decided to close the property on October 21, 2001. The property was sold soon after closing to Vista Hospitality LLC of New York who pledged to renovate and reopen the hotel-casino.
Golden Phoenix Reno (2002–05)
![Golden Phoenix Reno](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Golden_Phoenix_Reno.jpg)
The new name—Golden Phoenix Reno—was announced in early 2002. The property's hotel reopened on April 2, 2002. It included 604 rooms, a
Benihana
is an American restaurant company founded by Hiroaki Aoki in New York City in 1964 and currently based in Aventura, Florida. It owns or franchises 116 Japanese-influenced restaurants around the world, including its flagship Benihana Teppanya ...
steakhouse, a coffee shop, and a nightclub.
The property's casino area opened in summer 2003, with an official grand opening. Prior to the casino's grand opening, the movie ''
The Cooler
''The Cooler'' is a 2003 American crime drama film directed by Wayne Kramer, from a screenplay by Frank Hannah and Kramer. The film stars William H. Macy, Maria Bello, Shawn Hatosy, Ron Livingston, Estella Warren, Paul Sorvino, and Alec Baldw ...
'' was filmed at the Golden Phoenix.
Chicago real estate developer Fernando Leal put a bid in to buy the hotel-casino. Leal won his bid, and announced plans to convert the hotel-casino property into "The Montage" following a $170 million investment that would take the hotel property down to its concrete support columns, and rebuild condominiums based on the original platform.
Leal closed the Golden Phoenix on December 6, 2005 and his crews began gutting the hotel building in spring 2006.
The Montage Reno (2008–present)
![Condos in Reno](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Condos_in_Reno.JPG)
The Montage Reno was completed in April 2008. Originally, Leal envisioned The Montage Reno as a flourishing condominium resort with a signed lease for Ruth's Chris Steakhouse and the other retail pad planned for the high-profile Cafe Med. Both would fall out. And as a result, Leal would hand the completed project back to its lender to avert a foreclosure disaster in December 2008.
The Montage is now owned by Chicago-based ST Residential, a subsidiary of Starwood Assets and Holdings, a global company. The property is still marketed as a condominium resort with Reno's most exclusive condo amenities such as a 24-hour doorman, resort style pool deck, owners lounge and top grade finishes.
See also
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References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Montage Reno
1978 establishments in Nevada
Casino hotels
Casinos in Reno, Nevada
Defunct casinos in Nevada
Defunct hotels in Nevada
Hotel buildings completed in 1978
Hotels established in 1978
Hotels disestablished in 2005
Residential skyscrapers in Nevada
Del E. Webb buildings