As reported in the March issue of the Las Vegas Advisor, the owner of the Tropicana, Aztar Corporation, has revealed the basic details of a $1.2 billion project it’s considering to replace the Tropicana.
Aztar has suspended renting hotel rooms in the past, only to reinstate the reservations process, but this time, the redevelopment of the Tropicana seems more likely, since Aztar is going to all the trouble to plan a new resort. What we know so far is that the Trop's 34-acre property would be divided into two 17-acre parcels. The north parcel would host a 2,725-room megaresort with a 100,000-square-foot casino, a 3,800-space parking garage, and a four-acre rooftop recreation deck. The Tropicana would be demolished to make room for the new hotel.
No plans have been announced for the south 17-acre parcel. But with vacant Strip selling for upwards of $15 million to $20 million an acre, with a premium on large lots, Aztar could go part way to paying for its new hotel-casino by selling off the other lot. Or it could hang onto it, see what happens with its first new property, and make a futher determination for the second piece then.
But to date, the Tropicana is taking no room reservations past April 15. Beyond that, as you say, no one knows what's to happen. So far, the whole thing seems like a moving target.
If the Trop's imploded, along with the Stardust later this year, that would leave only the Sahara and the Riviera standing on the Strip from the 1950s.
