Another Las Vegas legend is not long for this world, as Boyd Gaming announces plans for its answer to MGM Mirage’s Project City Center. The new complex will sit on the 63-acre site currently home to the Stardust, which will remain open through 2006.

Echelon Place will include the Echelon Resort, two towers managed by Boyd; the Shangri-La Hotel; the Delano Hotel; the Mondrian Hotel; the Las Vegas ExpoCenter at Echelon Place; and 350,000 square feet of retail space.

In January, those cute little African penguins that make their home in the Flamingo’s wildlife habitat are moving back to the Dallas Zoo, which has loaned them to the Flamingo for the past many years. No word on what Harrahs, which owns the Flamingo (and Paris, Ballys, O’Sheas, Caesars Palace and Imperial Palace), has planned for the space currently inhabited by the penguins. I’m not sure whether this should be considered a sign of other changes ahead for the Flamingo or not. Either way, this sucks. We always make sure to see the penguins at least once during each trip. They’ll be missed.

San Remo, that little casino that sits next to the Tropicana, just off the Strip, is closing on Jan. 2 for a little more than a month. It will reopen on Feb. 6 as the long-awaited Hooters Casino Hotel. Visitors will flock to Hooters for the one thing they are known for—chicken wings.

The Strat is permanently closing its rollercoaster on Friday, according to KLAS TV. The deconstruction will take three months. A new ride is planned for the space the coaster now occupies.