Mirage turns 20 in November

This may be hard to believe for us Las Vegas old timers, but The Mirage turns 20 years old in November.

Opened in 1989 by Steve Wynn and the Golden Nugget Corp. at a then-unheard-of cost of $630 million, The Mirage was the first new Strip development in almost two decades.

Writers from national and local publications toured the property prior to its opening and authored glowing accounts of the white Y-shaped building, lush decor, expensive palm trees, faux volcano and plans to bring dolphins to what once was mostly vacant desert land.

The Mirage kicked off Las Vegas’ unprecedented 20-year building boom that many analysts believe will end next year because of the sinking economy.

MGM Mirage acquired the resort (and added the name) when the then-MGM Grand Corp. spent $6.4 billion to purchase Mirage Resorts in 2000.

MGM Mirage, which spent more than $100 million in the past few years to upgrade the property’s 2,765 hotel rooms, add new restaurants and attractions and upgrade its signature volcano feature, is celebrating the 20-year milestone with several events.

The property is tagging all of its communications this year with a 20-year commemorative logo.