Moulin Rouge Sign Removed For “Safekeeping?”

Amy Kingsley atCityLife Blog is reporting that they’ve taken down the sign at the Moulin Rouge on Bonanza, and placed it in the boneyard of the Neon Museum.

Amy says:

Early, and I mean early, on Wednesday morning, a construction crew began removing the iconic sign from the husk of the Moulin Rouge hotel-casino. According to spokesman Jace Radke, the operation began at 4 a.m. and was paid for with $11,000 from the city’s Centennial Fund. Right now, the sign is in safekeeping at the Neon Boneyard.

Representatives from the Moulin Rouge haven’t returned calls for comment. But the removal of the sign certainly means something is afoot. Investors who hoped to revive the troubled property filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November. On Monday, the lenders, Olympic Coast, began foreclosure proceedings.

The sign was removed for its protection. What we don’t know yet is what it’s being protected from. The property owners need to demolish the apartments and portions of the casino that were damaged by fire in 2003 in order to move forward with construction. Right now, however, it’s not at all clear whether any new construction is in the cards.

So the sign will take its place alongside others from the Frontier, The Silver Slipper and the Stardust. As for the building, which is the only hotel in Vegas on the National Register of Historic Places, here’s to hoping it doesn’t end up like all the others.