Harrah’s Atlantic City recently engaged in a dramatic $550 million upgrade and expansion of its property. Atlantic City’s largest indoor pool is Harrah’s Pool & Spa, which is a quarter-acre entertainment complex within Harrah’s property.

Creating an Indoor Oasis

Harrah’s Atlantic City recently engaged in a dramatic $550 million upgrade and expansion of its property. Atlantic City’s largest indoor pool is Harrah’s Pool & Spa, which is a quarter-acre entertainment complex within Harrah’s property.


“We wanted to transform this indoor pool area into a tropical oasis with an arboretum atmosphere complete with a dazzling array of gorgeous plants and trees,” said Nick Moore, general contractor for Harrah’s Pool & Spa from TN Ward, one of the nation’s leading construction management firms.


“Harrah’s Pool & Spa features a dramatic 90-foot high glass dome, so it was important that the plants we installed complemented this dramatic architecture,” said Mark Hawry, senior project foreman for Initial Tropical Plants, the firm that performed all of the planting and irrigation installation for both the interior and exterior sun deck gardens.


“We had only five weeks to transform this space with 257 specimen plants ranging in height from 12 to 50 feet,” said David Pelham, project foreman, Initial Tropical Plants.  Hawry and Pelham ran two shifts of crews from five different trade unions simultaneously for seven days a week for five weeks to get the project completed.


“We had 21 semi-trailers of interior plants and trees off-loaded and installed within this short time window,” said Hawry. “All of the larger pieces had to be installed with a crane. Trees were hoisted over cabanas, Jacuzzis and various elevation changes to get them into position within the planter beds. Simultaneous with the plant installation, we installed over 1,700 yards of specialty mix soils and an elaborate drip line irrigation system with separate zones, control valves and timers for each area.”


For this nearly $1 million plantscaping installation, Initial Tropical Plants utilized a tropical and floral design that complements the luxurious compound. Plant species installed include Washingtonia robusta ‘Tornado Palms,’ Strelitzia nicoli ‘Bird of Paradise,’ Bambusa and Phyllostachys species of Bamboo, Howeia forsteriana ‘Kentia Palms,’ Ptychosperma elegans ‘Alexander Palms,’ and Veitchia merrilli ‘Adonida Palms.’


“Thousands of Orchids, Bromeliads, Anthuriums, Marantas, Alocasia, Asplenium and Philodendrons make up the understory of the plant palette,” said Denise Eichmann, director of project management, project development for Initial Tropical Plants.


The Pool at Harrah’s is now a dome-enshrined pool and spa that features 12 cabanas, 6 Jacuzzi hot tubs, a bar, a giant pool — all within a 172,000-square-foot, tree-lined, indoor paradise.


“Harrah’s guests are captivated by the lush greenery,” said Moore. “The dramatic plantscaping has made a distinctive contribution to the space and visitors are always pleasantly surprised.


 


Article provided by Initial Tropical Plants. For more information, visit www.initialplants.com.