Construction and Expansion Update

"The site of the new Verona Beach SaVon is quickly taking shape. The store's trademark green, yello wan dwhite canopies are in place over the gas and deisel pump stations, and the parking lot and driveways have been blacktopped. Work also has begun on the founsation of the new building. The new store is slated to open sometime next spring. Landscapers have been hard at work around the resort grounds. Floodlights have been installed in front of the new stone monument wall at the main entrance off Route 365 to show off the wall, the pine trees behind it, and the holiday decorations. Smaller monument walls, made from the same Pennsylvania stone have been built at the corner of the main boulevard and the access road leading to Shenendoah Clubhouse and The Lodge, and at the driveway entrance to the Tower and Winter Garden. The areas behind and around both those walls also have been landscaped with pines, grass and plants. The main revovling door at the center of the Winter Garden has been installed, but that area remains closed to the public as crews continue working on various features. Last week, there was water in the under-floor 'river' leading from the main door to a small rotunda just off the gaming floor. The water flows from a fountain in the rotunda, which eventually will have a glass sculpture in the center. Work also continues in the new buffet restaurant on the Winter Garden's main floor. Carpet installation began last week, and crews were assembling dramatic light fixtures for the terrace seating area. The lights consist of wood and metal bases with neutral colored canvas-draped cones directing the light from the bulbs. There will be six of these light fixtures on the terrace. Up on the mezzanine level, workers have installed a stained-glass-like light panel outside the entrance to the new Brazillian steakhouse. Inside the restaurant, most of the flooring has been installed, and crews were working on wood and glass partitions and planters last week. The Event Center will host its first public concert when it welcomes Tim McGraw Thursday, after a special employee preview concert by Benny MArdonnes last week. Workers have been ading the finishing touches to the center, installing permanent light fixtures in the stairwells and on the upper level and placing covers on the heating/cooling system upstairs. Crews also installed light fixtures ion the corridor near the new box office last week, consisting of several blue glass plates that give the impression of a cluster of flowers."