Middleweight operator Station Casinos has unveiled plans to develop a major casino resort in Las Vegas that is not only the most ambitious in the company's history, but also the most expensive project in the state of Nevada.
Station’s big vision is to build what would be Las Vegas’ fourth mega-resort - a mixed-use combination of hotels, condominiums, casinos, restaurants and retail space - under the working title of Viva.
President Lorenzo Fertitta said the project, which has been under development for the past year, would carry a price tag of US$10bn - $2bn more than MGM Mirage’s CityCenter development, making it the most expensive casino project ever.
Viva would be built on the huge 110-acre parcel of land it owns on and around the site where the Wild Wild West casino currently stands at the corner of West Tropicana Avenue and Dean Martin Drive, approximately one mile west of the Las Vegas Strip.
"As we started looking at the site, originally we were talking about one hotel-casino," Fertitta said. "But as we got more property we decided we have the ability to put multiple properties on there and create a whole development."
The complex will and feature at least three casinos and three hotels with as many as 10,000 rooms. The first phase of the project would open with three hotels and 5,200 rooms, accompanied by one large casino.
"It takes years to get a design completed," added Station’s chairman and CEO Frank Fertitta III. "Point of fact is we’re going to be in a position where CityCenter is going to be open. We’re going to have some visibility on how they’re doing before a project like this is even going to be in the ground."
The news comes as Las Vegas operators continue to suffer from a downturn in the US economy. Station itself recently reported an 83 per cent drop in first-quarter earnings to $6.7m, driven by a decrease in revenue and increased operating expenses.
