Checking in On Downtown’s New Gateway Arch

By Scott Roeben, on October 07 2020
2 min read 8 comments
Downtown Las Vegas Things to Do in Las Vegas

We haven’t shared an update on downtown’s new welcome arch in, oh, several minutes, so let’s do that.

Downtown’s $6.5 million gateway arch is nearing completion. You can tell by the funny look on its face.

Downtown archway
Vegas loves it some giant parabolas. For the newcomers, that was a boob joke.

The arch has been delayed a bit (it was supposed to be done in Sep. 2020), and now we know why.

There are a metric hell-ton of bulbs to install!

The thousands of bulbs are likely to give downtown some eye-catching bling, but holy crap, somebody at YESCO’s going to get carpal tunnel.

Downtown archway
So. Much. Screwing.

YESCO, of course, is the legendary Las Vegas sign company tasked with building the arch.

We get the feeling YESCO didn’t discourage the City of Las Vegas from using the aforementioned metric hell-ton of bulbs, as they’re the ones who will be maintaining the sign.

YESCO Tweet
Why do you always have to make things awkward? And by “you,” we mean “we.”

On the bright side, literally, bulbs add a flair LEDs just can’t replicate. (Just as LEDs can’t outshine the visual appeal of neon.)

Downtown archway
We tried counting all the bulbs, got to four trillion and quit to drink at Strat’s View Lounge.

The archway sits at the foot of The Strat on Las Vegas Boulevard.

Actually, drivers must go through the legs of the archway to get into The Strat’s porte cochere.

The arch should be completed in mid-to-late November 2020, because, beyond the bulb installation, there’s still quite a bit of electrical work to be done, per the City of Las Vegas.

Downtown archway
Our favorite part of any Las Vegas sign? Googie stars!

We’re still trying to get a sense of where people might want to stand for a photo op with the new archway.

It’s not a stellar part of town, but doesn’t feel dangerous. Because the northern side of the sign will be in the shade during daylight hours, you’ll want to park at The Strat and walk to just south of the sign for your photos.

Downtown Vegas arch
As with most things in Vegas, this will look much sexier after dark.

Here’s a closer look at the dangling part.

Vegas archway
The sign features the City’s abandoned logo. Also, pretty sure we’re using the word “abandoned” wrong.

You can also stroll a bit north to another welcome display featuring larger-than-life chips, dice and showgirls.

Fun fact: Showgirls don’t like being referred to as “larger-than-life.”

Downtown gateway display
We’d have bet against it, but this photo op has actually become a thing.

You know we’ll be there when the downtown archway is lit. We’re pretty much guaranteed to be the same, if you get our drift.