Spain's capital may build a huge casino, but many fear that the facility will flounder in the way similar mega-projects have in the past.
A casino and resort built on 330 acres outside Spain's capital, with a Broadway-style theater, a 4,000 bed hotel and, of course, gambling, will bring 1.6 million new tourists to the area, its proponents claim. "The regional government suggests, the project could create 56,443 jobs, a real windfall for a region that has never quite found its feet again after the 2008 financial crisis," reports Feargus O'Sullivan in CityLab. The size of this entertainment complex and its Las Vegas-style concept, called Live! Resorts, would make it unique in Europe.
Some are suspicious of the promised gains of this mega-project, especially when similar projects have not taken off. "There was the €170 million ghost airport whose first flight took off five years after it was completed—a disaster project that still did better than another unused air terminal, which cost €1 billion to build but ended up being sold for €10,000," Sullivan writes. There was even a €30 billion casino project planned called Eurovegas which fell apart when developers were unable to secure an exemption to the country's indoor smoking ban.
Read the full story: A New Plan to Turn Madrid Into Europe's Las Vegas
Spain's Colossal Casino Project Dealt a Bad Hand
Las Vegas Sands and its billionaire owner Sheldon G. Adelson have cancelled outlandish plans to build a $30 billion megacasino near Madrid.
Madrid Uses Transit System for Parcel Delivery to Cut Emissions
A new pilot program uses trains to deliver packages at off-peak hours, lowering emissions from trucks.
Madrid Has the Bike Infrastructure Model the U.S. Needs
A happy accident, Madrid may have stumbled onto a bike infrastructure program with great results. Only time will tell if "slow" lanes yield long-term positive results.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Colorado’s Largest Data Center Could Rise Next to Homes — Without a Public Hearing
The proposed campus would consume 11 times the power of Denver International Airport; as it has across the country, opposition mounts.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
'This is going to be painful:’ Virginia stares down $1.7 billion funding gap for highway maintenance
The state may address the deficit by shifting $290 million from its construction budget to maintenance projects.
Judges permit Denver to divert 77,000 acre feet from the Colorado River for reservoir expansion
Overuse and climate change have caused the Colorado River’s water levels to plummet.
Amtrak, CN end decades-long dispute with eight-year agreement
The new operating agreement establishes an updated framework for the companies to work together, including processes to resolve disputes.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
KFH Group Inc.
Greater Baltimore Committee
Eagle County Government
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello