History
The Westward Ho was built and operated by siblings Dean Peterson, Faye Johnson and Murray Petersen, natives of Hyrum, Utah. For 40 years it was managed by Hans Dorweiller, President. It officially opened on April 1, 1971, and closed on November 25, 2005 following the sale of the property. Marketed as the friendliest casino in Vegas, it operated for 42 years, and was known as the world's largest motor inn.
In January 2005 the Westward Ho opened an expansion casino simply called The Ho located at 2920 South Industrial Road, but unlike its parent property The Ho was strictly a gambling hall, convenience store and gas station geared primarily towards truck drivers and other transient travelers using the I-15 corridor. On November 25, 2005, eight days after the Westward Ho permanently closed their doors, The Ho also permanently shut their doors.
According to the Clark County Assessors Office, the property was sold to a Denver, Colorado company named C D P W H Acquisition, LLC (Centex Destination Properties a subsidiary of Centex Corporation) who reportedly intended to build high-rise condominiums. Voyager Entertainment had plans to build a large observation wheel on the property together with Centex Destination Properties but those plans have been canceled.
In October 2006, Harrah's Entertainment purchased the site of the Westward Ho and then traded it with Boyd Gaming for the Barbary Coast Casino further south on the Strip in Las Vegas. This transaction valued the land at over $15 million per acre. Boyd Gaming planned on building its massive Echelon Place on the former Stardust site. The former Westward Ho site is currently a McDonald's restaurant. It was planned that the land where the previous McDonald's was located would be used for the Echelon resort, which would eliminate the need for the Echelon to wrap around the existing McDonald's. Construction on Echelon was suspended in 2008 and remains suspended as of 2013.
Read more about this topic: Westward Ho Hotel And Casino
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