Boyd Gaming Unveils Las Vegas Strip Development Plan

LAS VEGAS, January 4 /PRNewswire/ --

- Four Hotels, ExpoCenter and Retail Promenade Will Anchor Extensive Complex

- Bob Boughner to Lead Experienced Development Team -

Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) today announced that it will develop a multi-faceted, world-class resort complex on its 63-acre site on the Las Vegas Strip. The development, scheduled to open in early 2010, is expected to be among the most significant projects in Las Vegas' ongoing evolution, which continues to transform the city into one of the leading resort destinations in the world. The Company expects that the development will be a significant leader in Las Vegas' key growth centers of casino gaming, luxury hospitality including world-class dining and nightlife experiences, shopping, meetings and conventions, and entertainment.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030219/BOYDLOGO)

The US$4.0 billion development, to be named Echelon Place, will combine the US$2.9 billion wholly-owned Echelon Resort with hotel and retail joint ventures between the Company and key strategic partners. The wholly-owned Echelon Resort will be operated principally by the Company, but include operating arrangements with leaders in the hotel, restaurant, nightlife and entertainment industries who will bring unique brands and industry-leading reputations and relationships to the project.

The development master plan, Echelon Place, is expected to be fully developed in one phase and integrate several elements:

- Four distinctive hotels featuring 5,300 guest rooms and suites

-Echelon Resort

The Company will own and operate the 3,300-room Echelon Resort, encompassing two upscale hotels, a 2,600-room Resort Tower and a 700-room Suite Tower, each containing its own luxurious spa. Both hotels will connect directly to Echelon's extensive public areas containing a 140,000 square foot casino, 25 restaurants and bars, and lushly landscaped pool and garden areas. Echelon will be a contemporary and upscale resort, complemented by extensive, high quality and innovative business and meeting facilities. Echelon will include an expansive 4,000-seat theater with a large stage and stadium seating designed to accommodate major concerts and production shows. In addition, a more intimate 1,500-seat theater will house smaller shows and touring acts.

-Shangri-La Hotel, Las Vegas

The Company announced it has entered into a management agreement with Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Asia Pacific's leading luxury hotel group, to include a Shangri-La Hotel within Echelon Place. Synonymous in Asia with luxurious and comfortable hotel accommodations, fine food and caring service, the distinct nature of each Shangri-La upscale property demonstrates an exclusive charm and personality that large chains cannot approximate. The Shangri-La Hotel, Las Vegas, which will be owned by the Company and operated by Shangri-La, will include 400 guest rooms and suites, a 20,000 square foot CHI spa, well appointed premium meeting space and two restaurants. Shangri-La will have its own porte cochere and lobby.

-Delano Hotel and Mondrian Hotel

The Company has entered into a 50/50 joint venture agreement with the Morgans Hotel Group, an innovator and continuing leader in the lifestyle/boutique hotel sector, for the development of two signature hotels within Echelon Place, Delano and Mondrian, at a cost of approximately US$700 million. During the first half of 2007, the Company will contribute 6.5 acres of land and Morgans Hotel Group, which will manage both hotels, will contribute US$97.5 million in cash to the venture, and the venture will arrange non-recourse project financing to develop the properties.

Delano in South Beach Miami has been an international destination for glamour, entertainment, and sophisticated nightlife for over a decade, and played a catalyzing role in the revival of South Beach. Delano Hotel Las Vegas will include 600 guest rooms and suites, a destination nightclub, lobby bar and Asia de Cuba restaurant. It will also feature an Agua Spa with fitness center, private pool and recreation area, and a separate porte cochere and lobby.

Today, Mondrian's elegant urban resort is a Hollywood haven for both business and nightlife. Mondrian Hotel Las Vegas, accommodating equally the refined business traveler and the leisure escapee, will include 1,000 guest rooms and suites, a distinctive bar and restaurant, meeting and conference space, private pool and recreation area with Skybar, and a separate porte cochere and lobby.

- Las Vegas ExpoCenter

The Company will develop, own, and operate the Las Vegas ExpoCenter at Echelon Place to meet the growing demand for convention and exhibition space integrated into large luxury resorts on the Las Vegas Strip. Las Vegas ExpoCenter will feature 650,000 square feet of exhibition and pre-function space and 175,000 square feet of meeting and conference space. Combined with the meeting space within Echelon Resort, the total meeting and exhibition space at Echelon Place is expected to exceed one million square feet, highlighted by over 200 meeting rooms.

- Retail Promenade

The Company is in discussions with potential strategic partners for a 50/50 joint venture development of a retail promenade at Echelon Place. Plans call for over 350,000 square feet of unique shopping, including a mix of luxury, affordable luxury and bridge retailers, as well as a variety of dining, nightlife, and cultural experiences.

- Other Master Plan Elements

Echelon Place is master-planned and designed to optimize access and parking. Entry into Echelon Place will be from three of the four sides of the property. Valet parking and parking structures will be located conveniently to all major components of Echelon Place and will provide covered parking for nearly 8,000 cars. In addition, the master plan includes a three-acre parcel reserved for future development.

Development Team

The Company announced that Bob Boughner will leave his position at Borgata in Atlantic City and return to Las Vegas to lead the development of Echelon Place as President and Chief Executive Officer of Echelon Resorts.

William S. Boyd, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Boyd Gaming, commented, "We are very pleased to have Bob return to reprise our success at Borgata and lead the development of Echelon Place. From concept to design to construction to opening to operating, Bob's outstanding performance at Borgata, one of our industry's finest success stories, is widely acclaimed. In my opinion, there is nobody better for this job."

Joining Bob Boughner from Borgata will be Kevin Sullivan, who after having managed several key development and administrative areas at Borgata, will serve as Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer for Echelon Resorts. Many of the design and construction firms involved in the development of Borgata are expected to play major roles in the Echelon Place development, including Tishman Construction Corporation, who will serve as construction manager.

Bob Boughner commented, "True to the evolution of Las Vegas as a world class destination, Echelon Place will integrate a compelling collection of brands and environments in a single and auspicious development. We are assembling an internationally distinguished group of strategic partners in the hotel, restaurant, retail, entertainment and nightlife arenas to complement our Company's own skills and resources. We will draw upon our highly successful Borgata experience and are committed to developing a resort destination that can be counted among the best Las Vegas has seen."

The Company also announced that, subject to regulatory approval, Larry Mullin has been promoted to President and Chief Operating Officer of Borgata and will be responsible for all day-to-day operations of the property. Bob Boughner continued, "Larry Mullin has had a distinguished 20 year career in the gaming industry and has played a vital role in the success of Borgata. We are extremely confident in his abilities." Bob Boughner will continue to oversee Borgata's public space expansion project that is scheduled to open in the second quarter of 2006.

The Company's 63-acre Las Vegas site is currently occupied by the Stardust Hotel and Casino. The Company expects to operate the Stardust through 2006 as it advances the Echelon Place planning, design and permitting process. In connection with the announced intention to discontinue operations at the Stardust, the Company will record an impairment charge in the first quarter of 2006 in the approximate range of US$50 million to US$60 million pre-tax.

For additional information and to follow the progress of the development of Echelon Place, the Company today launched the Echelon Place website, located at www.echelonresort.com .

The Company will host a conference call and webcast on Wednesday,

January 4, 2006 at 12:30 p.m. EST regarding Echelon Place. The conference call number is 800.435.1261 and the reservation number is 48893436. Participants should call up to 15 minutes in advance to ensure a connection prior to the call's initiation.

The conference call will also be available live on the Internet at www.boydgaming.com or http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?p=irol-eventDetails&c=95703&eventID =1189405 .

Following the call's completion, a replay will be available by dialing +1-888-286-8010 on Wednesday, January 4, beginning two hours after the completion of the call and continuing through Wednesday, January 11. The passcode for the replay will be 88873940. The replay will also be available on the Internet at www.boydgaming.com .

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by their use of words such as "scheduled," "expects," "will," "believe," "plan," and "potential," as well as variations of those words and other comparable words and phrases referencing the future. Such statements include information regarding the Company's plans, expectations, goals or intentions regarding the future, including but not limited to statements regarding the Company's planned Echelon Place development project and the individual hotel, casino, retail, entertainment, meeting and other components of the project which are expected to be part of the Echelon Place resort complex. Forward-looking statements also include statements regarding the anticipated cost and timing of construction and completion of Echelon Place and its individual components, the expected size, scope, branding, management, designs, features (including, but not limited to, the number of rooms and slots) and various amenities of Echelon Place and its constituent parts, the anticipated capital contributions in connection with the joint ventures the Company has entered into or may enter into with respect to Echelon Place, the Company's expectation that Echelon Place will lead Las Vegas in certain growth centers, the Company's beliefs regarding demand for convention and exhibition space integrated into large luxury resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, and the amount of the impairment charge that the Company anticipates recording in the first quarter of 2006 in connection with the announced intention to discontinue operations at the Stardust Hotel and Casino. Forward-looking statements involve certain risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those discussed in any such statement. The Company can provide no assurances that Echelon Place will be completed within the Company's current timing or cost estimates, commence operations when expected, include all of the anticipated amenities, features, facilities or strategic partners, or that it will achieve market acceptance. All references to cost estimates, expected size, scope, branding, management, designs, features (including, but not limited to, the number of anticipated rooms and slots) and the various amenities of Echelon Place and its constituent parts are based on the Company's current estimates and plans, and are all subject to change. In addition, the Echelon Place development project is subject to those risks inherent in the development and operation of a new business enterprise, including unanticipated design, construction, regulatory, environmental and operating problems and lack of demand for the project. If the Echelon Place development project does not become operational within the time frame or project cost currently contemplated or does not successfully compete in its market, it could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition and results of operations. Once Echelon Place becomes operational, it will face many of the same risks that the Company's current properties face. The Company's anticipated costs and construction period for the Echelon Place development project are based upon budgets, conceptual design documents and construction schedule estimates prepared by the Company in consultation with its architects and contractors. The cost of any project, including Echelon Place, may vary significantly from the Company's expectations, and the Company may have a limited amount of capital resources to fund cost overruns on any project. If the Company cannot finance cost overruns on a timely basis, the completion of one or more projects, including Echelon Place and some or all of its constituent parts, may be delayed until adequate funding is available or may be discontinued. In addition to the ability to obtain necessary permits, competition, increased costs (including marketing costs), financial community and rating agency perceptions of the Company, changes in laws and regulations, including increased taxes, the availability and price of energy and fuel, weather, economic, credit and capital market conditions and the effects of war, terrorist or similar activity, additional factors that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed in forward-looking statements are discussed under the heading "Investment Considerations" and in other sections of the Company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2004 on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and in its other current and periodic reports filed from time to time with the Commission. All forward- looking statements in this document are made as of the date hereof, based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement.

Headquartered in Las Vegas, Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) is a leading diversified owner and operator of 19 gaming entertainment properties, located in Nevada, New Jersey, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana and Louisiana. The Company recently opened the South Coast Hotel and Casino, a US$600 million development located in the growing southern part of the Las Vegas valley. The Company was also recently recognized by Forbes Magazine as the best managed company in the category of Hotels, Restaurant and Leisure. Boyd Gaming press releases are available at www.prnewswire.com. Additional news and information on Boyd Gaming can be found at www.boydgaming.com .

- Press Contacts Rob Stillwell Vice President Corporate Communications Boyd Gaming Corporation Tel. +1-702-792-7353 direct line Email: robstillwell@boydgaming.com Website: www.boydgaming.com Wendy Watson Senior Vice President Porter Novelli Direct Line: +1-310-444-7087 Email: wendy.watson@porternovelli.com Website: www.porternovelli.com Lori Lincoln Director of Public Relations, North America Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts Tel: +1-212-382-3155 E-mail: lori.lincoln@shangri-la.com Website: www.shangri-la.com Web site: http://www.porternovelli.com Web site: http://www.echelonresort.com Web site: http://www.shangri-la.com Web site: http://www.boydgaming.com