"It represents significant growth opportunities for our company and for Atlantic City," says Boyd Co. chairman William Boyd, whose company owns or operates 11 casino properties in Nevada, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana and Louisiana. "This property will create a fun and energetic atmosphere. It will be the first casino resort built under the new, more customer-friendly regulations affecting casino design in Atlantic City."

MGM Mirage chairman Terry Lanni says the project heralds the next round of development in AC: "We believe Atlantic City has a bright future." His company is the result of the merger earlier this year of MGM Grand and Mirage Resorts. Its signature properties are the MGM Grand, Bellagio, Mirage, Treasure Island, Golden Nugget and New York New York, all in Las Vegas, and its portfolio of holdings covers three continents.

By the numbers, the $1-billion, 40-story property will have 2,010 guest rooms, the city's largest, plus 120,000 sf of gaming space. It will have 10 restaurants, retail shops, a spa, meeting and banquet facilities, 120 gaming tables, 3,650 slot machines and 6,500 parking spaces. Altogether, it will have more than four million sf of building space, according to Boyd.