Tropicana implosion road closures to keep the public at bay

Those hoping to catch a glimpse of the Tropicana implosion next week will have limited views from nearby sites thanks to road and sidewalk closures.

A safety boundary zone will be set up near the Rat Pack-Era resort, as nearly 2,100 pounds of explosives will bring down the two hotel towers in 22 seconds. A seven-minute drone and fireworks show is scheduled for 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, leading up to the implosion.

Roads around the Tropicana will be shut down at 11 p.m. Tuesday, with the general boundaries being between Park Avenue to the north and Mandalay Bay Road to the south, and Koval Lane to the east and Frank Sinatra Drive to the west, according to Clark County. Reno Avenue and from Frank Sinatra to Koval will also be closed. All closure will be in place by 12:30 a.m. Wednesday.

The affected roads will be closed until 6 a.m. Wednesday, well after the resort is brought down.

“Uniformed officers will be on site to keep pedestrian and vehicular traffic out of the area,” Clark County spokeswoman Stacey Welling said in an email.

There are no designated public viewing areas for the implosion, Welling added.

The event will start with a ceremony featuring representatives from Tropicana owner Bally’s Corp., the Athletics, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and Clark County, ahead of the aerial show, featuring 555 drones and a fireworks display by the famed Fireworks by Grucci. That seven-minute display will lead into the main event, when Controlled Demolition drops the Trop in less than half a minute.

The Tropicana is being demolished to make way for the Athletics’ planned $1.5 billion, 33,000 fan capacity ballpark. After the resort is reduced to rubble and crews clear the site, plans are for construction on the A’s Las Vegas home to begin in the second quarter of next year and to be ready to host games for the 2028 Major League Baseball season.

The stadium will be constructed on 9 acres of the 35-acre site. Bally’s Corp. plans to build a new resort surrounding the ballpark on the remaining acreage.

Clark County Commissioner, Jim Gibson told the Review-Journal last month that the event will be the last of its kind in Las Vegas for some time.

“It’s been years since we did the last one, and it will likely be many, many years before we do another,” Gibson said of the implosion.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.