Clark County Commissioners have approved permits for a wide-ranging project on the Las Vegas Strip that will include an 18,000-seat NBA-ready arena.
The project, which will also feature hotels and a 6,000-seat theatre, is being developed by real estate development company LVXP. In May, AECOM was appointed to provide architectural and engineering services for the arena.
Plans for the arena were first unveiled in April, and the venue is being developed with a potential Las Vegas NBA franchise in mind. The arena would sit on an area of land between the Sahara and Fontainebleau hotels.
The site had previously been targeted by former NBA player Jackie Robinson’s Dribble Dunk company, which had been seeking to build a 23,000-capacity facility known as All Net Resort & Arena. It was hoped that the arena could attract an NBA franchise, but in November last year the $5bn (£3.9bn/€4.7bn) project was dealt a potentially fatal blow as Clark County Commission refused to grant another extension to its land use permit.
Clark County Commission has now approved permits for the LVXP project. Initial renderings have also been released, courtesy of LVXP and Las Vegas-based Steelman Partners, which is designing the project’s architectural plans.
Representatives from LVXP are liaising with locals about concerns they may have on the project, but chief construction officer Nick Tomasino is encouraged by the approval. Tomasino previously worked as senior vice-president of construction at Madison Square Garden Entertainment, where he managed construction of The Sphere in Las Vegas.
After the meeting with Clark County Commission, Tomasino told the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper: “I think every large project is going to have its adversity to be able to make its way through public opinion.
“I think it’s an absolute win-win for the community and for the development itself. And bottom line, the commission unanimously approved it going forward. Based on today’s vote, the commission also shares our opinion. We think it’s going to have a great economic impact and at the end of the day we’re going to all stand back several years from now looking back to this day and enjoy the beautiful new development.”
Oak View Group, the global venue development, advisory and investment company, has also detailed plans for a new district in Las Vegas that would be anchored by a 20,000-seat arena. The plans were announced in March 2022 but OVG is yet to break ground amid reports that it is planning to move the project to a new site in the city.
