Ned Baldwin, who also worked on the CN Tower, designed the tower for the developer Bob Stupak, who said the design drew on the Sydney Tower. Grand Casinos, led by Lyle Berman, later took a 43% stake and completed the project. Groundbreaking was on November 5, 1991, the tower topped out on November 4, 1995, and it opened on April 30, 1996.
The final height is 1,149 feet (350 m), the city's maximum approved height, against an original proposal of 1,012 feet (308 m). The pod begins at about 775 feet (236 m) and has 12 stories, with a revolving restaurant on the 106th floor and an outdoor deck on the 109th.
The tower weighs about 50,000 tons. A fire during construction on August 29, 1993 caused no structural damage. Elevators run through the Tower Shops mall, and the stairs are closed except for the annual Scale the Strat race.
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