The Smith Center for the Performing Arts completed construction of its highest point with 50 tons of steel for the Carillon Bell Tower on February 25.  The event was marked in style with a Topping Out ceremony attended by more than 300 invited guests.  “The dream of bringing a world-class stage to Las Vegas inches closer to reality every day,” said Myron Martin, president and CEO of The Smith Center for the Performing Arts.  “It’s both gratifying and exhilarating to watch construction workers make such significant progress on this magnificent facility that will soon enhance the cultural landscape of our city.”

The Smith Center’s remarkable success doesn’t stop at its impressive construction progress. At the ceremony, Martin presented the names of six new $1 million founders: Charles L. Atwood; Las Vegas Review Journal; Whiting-Turner Contracting Company; the Knauss Family; Dennis and Carol Troesh; and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. These individuals and entities join 39 other founders who pledged support to The Smith Center prior to the commencement of construction.

The ceremony included an announcement by Mayor Goodman that Discovery Drive, which runs through Symphony Park and frames The Smith Center, is getting a new name:  Symphony Park Avenue.  The Smith Center’s future street address is 361 Symphony Park Avenue and commemorates the March 1961 wedding anniversary of the center’s namesakes, Fred W. and Mary B. Smith.

Photo Courtesy of Laguna Productions