I read this today on lasvegasadvisor.com Now it does say not confirmed, but all but confirmed but it looks like MGM may have sold off the Mirage. If it did, and I'll wait to hear the official word, I wonder if new owners would continue the silver strike program. I guess the good news is these deals usually take forever to complete, so The Mirage will probably run out of strike ideas before the deal is done. Any locals out there in Vegas hear anything about this?

July 27, 2015 16:25 Breaking News -- Iconic Mirage Hotel-Casino Has Been Sold: The official announcement isn't set to come for another three weeks, we understand, but we have it on very good authority that the hotel responsible for introducing Steve Wynn's vision of a new Las Vegas, back in 1989, has been sold to Starwood Capital Group, the investment company which in recent years was responsible for first rescuing, and then liquidating, the Riviera. The word is that Las Vegas-based Paragon Gaming, which oversaw casino operations in the latter days of the Riv and now manages the Westgate Las Vegas, together with other casino interests in Vancouver, will take on the same role at the Mirage in a joint venture with a major hotel brand.

While at first blush this is some pretty seismic news emanating from the direction of the volcano, it totally ties in with MGM Resorts' ongoing program of consolidation that's seen outlying properties in Reno recently offloaded, not to mention the Railroad Pass and Gold Strike properties closer to home. But this latest move, featuring such an iconic original component of the brand, (albeit already foreshadowed, in hindsight, by the re-branding of the group itself from MGM Mirage to MGM Resorts International back in 2010) seems now to underline the increasing north-south polarization of the Strip. It will be interesting to see what will happen to Circus Circus, if anything, and the less-than-successful Rock in Rio venue, which is not only geographically isolated but seems increasingly superfluous to requirements, in light of the Las Vegas Arena, MGM Resorts Village, and "Monte Carlo theater" developments located in the bosom of MRI's south-Strip core. Watch this space for developments!