Page 27 - South Mississippi Living - Ocotber, 2022

Remodeled Hotel Room
Beau Rivage’s scheduled charter air program formally launched in 2009 following a post-Hurricane Katrina $550 million resort renovation, and has been partnered with Sun Country Airlines since 2014. Since its inception, the program has flown more than 8,000 flights from 90 cities nationwide, from Minneapolis to Miami and New Hampshire to West Texas.
“MGM Resorts International guests from around the country love to visit the Gulf Coast and our goal with this program has always been to make that travel as easy as possible,” said Beau Rivage President and COO Brandon Dardeau. “The charter program has elevated all of Coastal Mississippi, including
our AAA Four Diamond resort on the beach in Biloxi, from a regional destination to a national market.”
Beau Rivage opened in 1999 and at $750 million was the largest construction project in Mississippi’s history. Local business
Yates Construction, another key community partner, built the property and continues to oversee all of its construction projects, including the just completed $55 million room remodel. This remodel encompassed the resort’s guest rooms, providing new designs with upgraded amenities and state-of-the-art technology set in Beau Rivage’s signature sophisticated Southern style. It was part of a nearly $100 million capital projects budget that included adding and remodeling the Buffalo Zone, Jia, Atrium Café and Fallen Oak, along with property infrastructure and upgrades.
William Yates, president and CEO of Yates Construction, said, “MGM is a great partner to the Mississippi Gulf Coast and to Yates Construction. Having been personally involved in the original construction of Beau Rivage, I have seen them consistently and continuously reinvest in the local community.
Jia
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Buffalo Zone
Beau Rivage Team and Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport Team
This room refresh project is another example of their commitment and we are proud to be a part of it.”
In addition to its relationships with the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport and Yates Construction, Beau Rivage
has economic and community partnerships with many other businesses along the Gulf Coast and across the state. Tonya Spiers, president of Knight Abbey Printing and Direct Mail, said her company really took off thanks to her partnership with Beau Rivage starting back in 1999.
“Had Beau Rivage not partnered with me and trusted me,” Spiers said, “we wouldn’t have become the largest manufacturer in Biloxi.” Starting with a handful of employees, Knight Abbey now has 70 employees with work being done around the clock in their new, state-of-the-art printing facility that also has its own onsite post office because of the number of mail pieces it sends out. “Because we started with Beau Rivage, casinos became our niche and now we do work for 90-plus casinos throughout the U.S. and are one of the largest printers in the South.”
Another business that has grown over the past several decades is Mary Mahoney’s Old French House restaurant. Located across from Beau Rivage, the restaurant is a favorite of visitors to the Gulf Coast and locals, alike. Owner Bobby Mahoney said his business has tripled since the onset of gaming, more specifically since Beau Rivage opened. “I can’t pull people out of Atlanta, Memphis or Chicago,” he said with his trademark smile, “but guess what I can do? I can pull them out of Beau Rivage. And once they come here, I got ’em hooked.”
With partnerships as good as Mahoney’s gumbo, Beau Rivage certainly continues to have an impactful role in the community.