The sagging economy takes its toll on a major construction project on the Strip. It was intended to be built on the former site of the Stardust, but now it just stands as a skeleton of a building.

News 3's Katherine Whaley reports that construction at the Echelon Resort in Las Vegas has been put on hold for eight months. Boyd Gaming announced during its second quarter meeting Friday that they are halting construction on their $3 billion Echelon project. Boyd Gaming President and CEO Keith Smith says they hope to resume construction within the next three to four quarters. The project will remain at a standstill until Spring of 2009, at the earliest.

Up until this point, Echelon was on schedule to open in 2010, but Boyd Gaming says the weak economy is to blame for their shutdown. "It's not a reflection of the merits of the development, nor the accomplishments, but rather the challenges we and many other businesses face in today's uncertain business climate," says Boyd Gaming President and CEO Kevin Smith.

Echelon was designed to open in one single, dramatic phase. They are currently speaking with investors in order to hopefully receive more funding. In the meantime, the project will be delayed until the credit market improves. Employees will be working to find other construction sites here in Las Vegas - Friday is their last day.

Echelon Place was a multi-resort hotel project. It carries a $4 billion price tag. Plans included a 3,300 room resort with two upscale towers, a 140,000-square-foot casino, 25 restaurants and bars, 350,000 square feet of retail space, and 650,000 square feet of meeting and convention space in its Las Vegas Expo Center. It was going to encompass an entire 63 acres on The Strip.

Las Vegas, Nevada - Today, Boyd Gaming announced a financial reorganization of Echelon which will have the effect of delaying the construction timeline of the project by about a year.

Boyd contacted me to inform me that due to the difficult environment in today's capital markets, as well as weak economic conditions, that they have decided to delay their Echelon project on the Las Vegas Strip. They relayed to me an expectation to resume construction in three to four quarters, assuming credit market conditions and the economic outlook improves.

The credit crisis on Wall Street continues to have devastating ramifications on Main Street. Working families in Southern Nevada are facing the biggest housing crisis in a generation, at the same time that energy and food costs are skyrocketing, and now, thousands of good paying jobs with benefits are in jeopardy.

We will be spending the next couple of weeks looking to find new jobs for displaced workers in Southern Nevada. If any displaced worker has any questions, I urge them to contact their union halls directly, or to call the Southern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council at (702) 452-8799.