Neonopolis, a shopping mall, is a $100 million entertainment complex in

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

located on top of a $15 million city parking garage. It is located on

Fremont Street Fremont Street is a street in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada that is the second most famous street in the Las Vegas Valley – and Nevada – besides the Las Vegas Strip. Named in honor of explorer and politician John C. Frémont and located in the h ...

, at the corner of

Las Vegas Boulevard Las Vegas Boulevard is a major road in Clark County, Nevada, United States, best known for the Las Vegas Strip portion of the road and its casinos. Formerly carrying U.S. Route 91 (US 91), which had been the main highway between Los Angel ...

. In keeping with the complex's name, it contains three miles of

neon light Neon lighting consists of brightly glowing, electrified glass tubes or bulbs that contain rarefied neon or other gases. Neon lights are a type of cold cathode gas-discharge light. A neon tube is a sealed glass tube with a metal electrode a ...

s. Three open-air levels surround an outdoor center courtyard with stage, sound and seating. Bands and concerts were scheduled during the summer months during its heyday.

History

Plans for Neonopolis were announced in December 1997. It opened on May 3, 2002. In 2006, Prudential Real Estate sold Neonopolis to a development group led by Rohit Joshi for $25 million. Joshi undertook an abortive rebranding of the center as Fremont Square, but ultimately the Neonopolis name was retained. After temporarily closing in 2010 for redevelopment, Neonopolis underwent renovations in 2011 and reopened with new tenants.

Current tenants

*Axehole ― An

axe throwing The modern sport of axe throwing involves a competitor throwing an axe at a target, attempting to hit the bullseye as near as possible. Axe throwing has historically been an event in lumberjack competitions. As of the fall of 2020 there are comme ...

range, opened in 2017. *Banger Brewing ― A pub and

microbrewery Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis o ...

, opened in 2013 on the ground floor. *Cat's Meow ― A

karaoke Karaoke (; ; , clipped compound of Japanese ''kara'' "empty" and ''ōkesutora'' "orchestra") is a type of interactive entertainment usually offered in clubs and bars, where people sing along to recorded music using a microphone. The music is ...

club located on the second floor, opened in 2019. It is the second location of a popular, long-established club in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

. *

Denny's Denny's (also known as Denny's Diner on some of the locations' signage) is an American table service diner-style restaurant chain. It operates over 1,700 restaurants in many countries. Description Originally opened as a coffee shop under t ...

― A flagship location for the diner chain, featuring a wedding chapel. Opened in 2012. *Don't Tell Mama ― A

piano bar A piano bar (also known as a piano lounge) consists of a piano or electronic keyboard played by a professional musician. Piano bars can be located in a cocktail lounge, bar, hotel lobby, office building lobby, restaurant, or on a cruise ship. Usu ...

located on the mall's ground floor. It moved to Neonopolis in 2019 from its previous location on

Fremont East Fremont Street is a street in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada that is the second most famous street in the Las Vegas Valley – and Nevada – besides the Las Vegas Strip. Named in honor of explorer and politician John C. Frémont and located in the h ...

. *Fat Tuesday ― A frozen daiquiri shop, opened in 2020. *Fremont Arcade ― A

video arcade An amusement arcade (often referred to as a video arcade, amusements or simply arcade) is a venue where people play arcade games, including arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers (such a ...

, opened in 2016 on the ground floor. *Gene Woods Racing Experience ― An indoor

go-kart A go-kart, also written as go-cart (often referred to as simply a kart), is a type of sports car, close wheeled car, open-wheel car or quadracycle. Go-karts come in all shapes and forms, from non-motorised models to high-performance racing ...

track, opened in 2019. *

Heart Attack Grill The Heart Attack Grill is an American hamburger restaurant in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, (formerly located in Chandler, Arizona). It makes a point of serving food that is very unhealthy and high in fat, sugar, and cholesterol; in other words, fo ...

― A hamburger restaurant, known for its medical theme and for offering the world's highest-calorie burger, opened in 2011. *House of Selfies ― An "

Instagram museum A "selfie museum" or "Instagram museum" is a type of art gallery or installation designed to provide a setting for visitors to pose in photographs to be posted on social media sites such as Instagram. Typical features of exhibits in a selfie mu ...

", opened in 2019. *International Eatery ― A

food court A food court (in Asia-Pacific also called food hall or hawker centre) is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food vendors and provides a common area for self-serve dinner. ...

with three outlets, opened in 2013 in the ground-floor former Luna Rossa Ristorante space, by HIG Management, a major operator of mall eateries. *Little Neon Wedding Chapel ― A wedding chapel opened in 2016. *The Nerd ― A nightclub and bowling alley themed around comic books and video games, opened in 2017 in the second-floor former Drink & Drag space. *Notoriety ― An entertainment venue and lounge, with several rooms hosting concerts, comedy nights, and other events. Opened in 2019, in the former movie theater space on the third floor. *

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is owned by Comcast. It provides content nationally with pr ...

― KBLR, the Las Vegas affiliate of the Spanish-language television network, moved its studios to a space on the third floor in 2009. *Toy Shack ― A seller of vintage collectible toys. It moved to the shopping center in 2011 to capitalize on visitors familiar with its owner's frequent appearances on the television series ''

Pawn Stars ''Pawn Stars'' is an American reality television series shown on History and produced by Leftfield Pictures. The series is filmed in Las Vegas, Nevada, where it chronicles the daily activities at the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, a 24 ...

''. *Ultimate Sports Cards & Memorabilia ― A sports memorabilia shop, which moved to Neonopolis in 2012, like the Toy Shack, because of its owner's appearances on ''Pawn Stars''.

Previous tenants

*Cannabition ― A

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various t ...

-themed museum, opened in 2018. Among the exhibits was Bongzilla, billed as the world's largest

bong A bong (also known as a water pipe) is a filtration device generally used for smoking cannabis, tobacco, or other herbal substances. In the bong shown in the photo, the gas flows from the lower port on the left to the upper port on the right. ...

. Closed in 2019. *Del Prado Jewelers ― A jewelry store that moved to the second floor of Neonopolis in 2006. Closed in 2021. *Drink and Drag ― A bowling alley and drag club, opened in 2012. Closed in 2013 because of legal and financial issues. *Evapor8 ― An

e-cigarette An electronic cigarette is an electronic device that simulates tobacco smoking. It consists of an atomizer, a power source such as a battery, and a container such as a cartridge or tank. Instead of smoke, the user inhales vapor. As such ...

shop, opened in 2013. * Galaxy Theatres ― An 11-screen movie theater. Opened in 2002 as Crown Theatres, the center's original anchor tenant, with 14 screens. Later reduced to 11 screens, and then taken over by Galaxy in 2006. Closed in 2009. * Jillian's ― A two-story restaurant, bar, and entertainment complex. Opened in 2002 as one of the complex's anchor tenants. Closed in 2008. *Krave Massive ― A gay nightclub, sister property of Drink and Drag, moved to the former Galaxy movie theater space from its previous location on the

Las Vegas Strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas cit ...

in June 2013. It was planned to be the largest gay club in the world, but never fully opened. Closed after several months because of a tax dispute. *Las Vegas Rocks Cafe ― A restaurant and lounge themed around the history of Las Vegas. Opened in 2009 in the former Jillian's space. Closed in 2011. *Metropolitan Gallery of Las Vegas ― An art museum and gallery. Previously named the Southern Nevada Museum of Fine Art, it moved to Neonopolis in 2008. The name was changed in 2017. *Millennial Esports ― A venue for

competitive video gaming Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...

, opened in 2017 on the third floor. * Poker Dome ― A studio for nationally televised poker events. Opened in 2006 on the third floor, in space previously occupied by three of the movie theaters. Closed in 2007. *Southern Nevada Center for the Arts ― An

arts center An art centre or arts center is distinct from an art gallery or art museum. An arts centre is a functional community centre with a specific remit to encourage arts practice and to provide facilities such as theatre space, gallery space, venues for ...

providing studio and gallery space for local artists. Opened in 2009 and closed later that year.

References

External links

*
Southern Nevada Museum of Fine Art
{{Downtown Las Vegas Downtown Las Vegas Shopping malls in Las Vegas Neon lighting Shopping malls established in 2002