Hi, I am new here.
Just saw this in Business Time... personally I think this case
truelly reflect our official style/ways of doing things....
By Vikram Khanna
May 14, 2005
The Business Times
(SINGAPORE) Too much direction and control by officials managing
the bidding process for Singapore's integrated resorts (IRs) is
counter-productive and could compromise the quality of the final
product, says Las Vegas casino mogul Steve Wynn.
Mr Wynn, creator of some of the best-known IRs in Las Vegas, has
praise for Singapore's fundamental strengths of good governance,
safety, a world-class airport and laissez-faire economic policies -
as well as the choice of the Marina Bayfront site for an IR.
But he is critical of what he sees as micro-management by
'bureaucrats' on several issues leading up to the submission of
bids, particularly design-related issues. 'There's an awful lot of
control and direction in the documents we've received which,
frankly speaking, is unsophisticated,' he told BT in an exclusive
interview in Las Vegas.
'It's control and direction given by people who've never done this
before. I don't think it's appropriate to tell someone: Give us an
attraction that's irresistible, that will reach into India and
China - but we'll tell you how to design it.'
According to Mr Wynn, for instance, the requirement to submit line
drawings by Sept 30 won't serve a useful purpose. 'By definition,
anything done by Sept 30 will be a partially finished product,' he
said. 'Everybody will make big promises and have fancy drawings.
But you can't tell from a drawing or a rendering what space moves
the human spirit. You have to be in it to understand.'
Mr Wynn's resorts in Las Vegas include The Mirage, Treasure Island,
The Bellagio and, most recently, the US$2.7 billion Wynn Las Vegas
- billed as the world's most expensive and up-scale resort. He also
has a gaming licence in Macau, where he is constructing a resort
due for completion next year. His company, Wynn Resorts is among
the 12 remaining bidders for one of the proposed IRs in
Singapore.
Mr Wynn told BT that Singapore government officials also want to
know 'exactly what the show (in the resort) will be'. But it took
more than three years to create shows such as the sellout O show,
currently running at The Bellagio, and Le Reve, showing at Wynn Las
Vegas, he said. The creation of such shows involves intricate
choreography, music and lighting effects and is often an organic
process over a period of time and perfected after audience feedback
'If I'd ever tried to describe the O show on a piece of paper to
someone, they'd have laughed at me,' he said.
Rather than trying to specify detailed design requirements in
documents, Mr Wynn suggested that Singapore officials visit Las
Vegas and see the work done in the resorts there. 'Infer from what
you see what you like,' he said. 'Don't issue thunderbolts of
wisdom from the top of Mount Olympus. You're talking about the
people of the world and what makes them go. That's the ballpark we
play in. Running the government is the ballpark they play in. Those
are two different games. Both sides have to be open and flexible.
'Telling us to go get a world-class architect with no specific name
is not the way to go about it. On the other hand, telling us 'show
us your work' and then asking us how to create something in
Singapore as best we know and in a way that's not repugnant or
antithetical to the sensibilities of the city is a perfectly valid
instruction.
'And if someone does something that's offensive, you reject it,
plain and simple. But you don't tell an expert how to do an
expert's job. You ask.'
Mr Wynn said he accepts the rules governing the bidding for IRs.
But according to him: 'The question is, do the rules interfere with
the creative process? The question is, can we keep the promise to
Singapore? There's a very definite agenda on the table here: We
want to change Singapore's tourism profile from 5 per cent of GDP
to closer to 15. Ultimately, this is not between me and the
government, it's between me and the public'.
