Native’s gaming know-how earns him spot at top of Aria

The career path followed by Bill McBeath made him the natural choice to oversee Aria.

Who else would MGM Mirage entrust with the centerpiece of its $8.5 billion CityCenter development but a poker-loving Las Vegas kid who cut his teeth under the tutelage of Steve Wynn and Bobby Baldwin?

McBeath, 46, has been living and breathing CityCenter since he first saw the project on paper.

Baldwin, CityCenter's chief executive officer, brought him aboard early. McBeath actually held two jobs, serving for two years as president of Bellagio, MGM Mirage's flagship.

"Instead of taking over a property that someone else designed and built, Bobby gave me a chance to do (Aria) from the ground up," McBeath said. "I was in all the presentations for the selection of the architect. That helped us in terms of design and operational support."

McBeath was born and raised in Las Vegas. He is a graduate of Clark High School and a 1986 graduate of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

After school, he entered a yearlong casino management-training program with Michael Gaughan in which he learned aspects of casino life including dealing cards, the cashiers' cage, and the race and sports book.

A year later, he joined Wynn's Golden Nugget Corp., where he met Baldwin, one of the company's top executives. McBeath and Baldwin connected, beginning a 23-year working association. The pair also shared a love of poker. Baldwin is the 1978 World Series of Poker champion.

McBeath was director of marketing for the 1989 opening of The Mirage. Nearly a decade later, he helped Baldwin open Bellagio. Now, 20 years after The Mirage, McBeath oversees the 4,004-room Aria.

"Since The Mirage opened, tens of billions of dollars have been spent on development and growth in Las Vegas," McBeath said. "Even with all those openings, CityCenter and Aria have clearly created the greatest amount of excitement and anticipation."

As the 60-story Aria took shape over the last five years, McBeath found himself working outside of his area of expertise. He's a gaming guy, yet, he was thinking about all the aspects of Aria.

"I was pushed out of my comfort zone to think outside of the box," McBeath said. "We had to consider how all these different elements were going to complement one another and how they had to be integrated seamlessly."

Question: What was different about building Aria compared with other projects?

Answer: Most of my design expertise had been in room remodels, restaurant change-outs or adding nightclubs. I guess I was becoming an expert at re-creating or rebranding existing space.

I had to push myself to not be caught doing something we've already done. That was really our core design development principle. If we've seen it already, we didn't want to do it.

Question: What do you think will surprise customers about Aria?

Answer: I think people look at the exterior with its architecture, curvilinear design, its glass and its steel and they think they are coming into a very sterile, ultramodern environment. We've created a very warm and contemporary environment using organic colors and fabrics and finishes. This allows the architectural design to create a sense of space and place.

Question: How did MGM Mirage's and CityCenter's financial troubles last spring affect people working on the project?

Answer: There was tremendous excitement to be associated with a project of this scale and magnitude. Then, in the middle of everything, the economy collapses. It was a really bumpy road and we didn't know what the final outcome would be. It took a great emotional toll on a lot of us. We could see the finish line but we realized we might not get there.

Question: What changed when CityCenter was fully funded?

Answer: Going through those gyrations wasn't productive as they related to a preopening program. All of sudden, we had less time and less money than we had two months before, yet we never changed the opening date. It was a little hectic. Now, I'm looking forward to people seeing the finished product with all the colors and textures and space planning. I want to see the look on people's faces when they see that it isn't just developerspeak hyperbole. We truly created something unique and different.

Question: Were there opportunities when you joined the gaming industry after graduating UNLV?

Answer: I came in at a time when the industry was very receptive to new talent and different perspectives. We were becoming much more of a Wall Street-respected industry and profession. The industry started going after college graduates and I was one of the first people to have the opportunity.

Question: Who wins a game of heads-up, no limit hold 'em poker, you or Bobby?

Answer: Bobby. I know him pretty well and he's a great study of people. He knows me better than anybody but my wife. I've learned a lot from Bobby about life. He brings a very distinct and unique perspective.

Contact reporter Howard Stutz at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871.