Report: A little bit of Detroit has landed downtown in form of The D
A little bit of Detroit has landed on Fremont Street.
That was the assessment of the Detroit Free Press after touring the renamed The D Las Vegas in downtown. Michigan resident Derek Stevens headed a group that purchased the 638-room Fitzgeralds last September from the estate of the late cable mogul Don Barden.
Stevens’ ownership group is spending $20 million to remodel the property and is adding some touches of Detroit. Grace Keros, owner of the iconic Detroit landmark American Coney Island, signed an agreement with Stevens this month to open a branch of the restaurant at the hotel. It will be the first one outside Michigan.
"If you are from Detroit, you are from the D, and I think it’s a very popular name that people are proud of," said Stevens, 44, who is also part-owner of the Golden Gate.
Stevens told the Free Press Michigan friends and backers will be flown into Las Vegas in October for the hotel’s grand opening. The new Longbar, the longest bar in Nevada, will have its bank of 15 televisions tuned to Detroit sports.
"Anybody from Detroit who comes to Vegas will always know that there is a Wings or Pistons or Tigers or Wolverines or Spartans game on," Stevens said.