Disgraced former Providence mayor Vincent “Buddy” Cianci , long known for his panache and flamboyance, plans to make his return to public life in similar fashion: When he gets out of federal prison next week, a front office job at the ultra swank Fifteen Beacon hotel awaits.

Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian already owns a controlling 56 percent stake of MGM Mirage, one of the world’s largest hotel and gaming companies.

Which is why investors found the enigmatic Los Angeles investor’s latest move all the more puzzling: He wants to carve out for himself two of the company’s prized landmarks on the Las Vegas Strip.

Kerkorian’s Tracinda Corp. disclosed Monday in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it wants to start negotiations to purchase the upscale Bellagio casino resort and the CityCenter property, where work is under way for the nation’s largest privately financed project.

Kerkorian’s investment arm said the purchase would be part of a strategic restructuring of its holdings in MGM Mirage, which owns roughly half of the Strip, including the MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, the Mirage and New York New York.

Kerkorian, who turns 90 in June, long has bedeviled investors with his moves on his way to earning a fortune Forbes estimates at $15 billion.

Speculation about the motives for his overtures included wanting to put MGM Mirage in play or prodding it to go private.

MGM Mirage said Tuesday that its board had formed an independent committee to study Tracindas plan to enter talks to buy the properties and perhaps restructure the company.

The board committee, comprised of non-management directors not affiliated with Tracinda, will study the matter and consider strategic alternatives, the company said.

The bid follows Kerkorian’s failed effort to boost his stake in MGM.

It also comes a week after Kerkorian’s Tracinda lost a bid to purchase DaimlerChrysler AG Chrysler Group.

The $7 billion CityCenter project is particularly attractive, said one executive familiar with the strategy.

The resort, when it opens in 2009, will include a hotel-casino, convention center, retail and entertainment space, condos and two boutique hotels, all nestled between the Bellagio and Monte Carlo hotel-casinos on the site of the old Boardwalk Hotel and Casino.

The Bellagio was opened in 1998 by gaming mogul Steve Wynn’s Mirage Resorts, which MGM Grand acquired for $4.4 billion in 2000.

MGM shares soared 27 percent to $79.98 Tuesday.

Kerkorian operates through Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Tracinda, a meshing of the names of daughters Tracy and Linda. He is not likely to hold on to the properties for long.

He has made a fortune buying and selling assets, including the Desert Inn and the Sands casino resorts in Las Vegas.

Information from: www.chicagotribune.com

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 23rd, 2007 at 5:07 pm and is filed under Hotel, Real Estate. Tags: Beverly Hills Boutique Hotel boutique hotels Casinos Chicago Condo Convention Center DaimlerChrysler DaimlerChrysler AG Federal prison finance Front Office Hotels Lagi Las Vegas Los Angeles Mandalay Bay MGM Mirage Nestle New York New York New Property Providence Resort retail Securities and Exchange Commission Steve Wynn Tribune . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.