Four, by the current reckoning. The city has put its backing (and wants to put its money) into Arena/Live!, a joint venture with Cordish Cos. This project doesn’t sit well with downtown casinos, who would see their Fremont Street Experience taxes -- about to ‘sunset’ -- extended to help pay the tab. A proposed tax on downtown businesses also went over like a lead balloon.
There is currently a $52 million shortfall between what would be raised by city-backed bonds and Cordish’s equity contribution. Cordish also owns a very successful casino in Maryland and the specter of a new gaming operator sitting on the fringe of downtown causes some uneasiness among existing casinos. Said a Boyd Gaming lobbyist, "don’t ask the public and the people in this community to fund it when we are trying to figure out how to fund more cops." (The Cordish/Las Vegas relationship was extended recently during a contentious City Council session.)
There’s also skepticism that Cordish could book the number of events necessary for the ledger to balance. The nearby Smith Center for the Performing Arts is already cutting back on its schedule in its second year of operation, having been unable to draw the audience numbers it expected.
Both outgoing UNLV President Neal Smatresk and his interim replacement, Don Snyder, are backers of the on-campus stadium concept, which is thought to have a 50/50 chance of success. However, they are unwilling to cap the price they’re willing to pay for the arena, even though runaway costs ($900 million) doomed a previous endeavor, dubbed UNLV Now. Mystical powers have been attributed to an on-campus stadium, with regent Cedric Crear saying it would "revolutionize our football program. This city wants a winning, big-time football team. I don’t want to be shy about saying that." A feasibility, scope, cost and funding report is due to the Legislature by Sept. 30.
A football stadium that held more appeal for network television would improve UNLV’s visibility and its TV income, currently $636,000. Reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Alan Snel, "power football conferences usually like stadiums to hold at least 50,000 fans. They also require flexibility in game times to accommodate TV network schedules, which is a factor why Arizona State University of the Pac-12 is looking at installing a canopy over its stadium to reduce the impact of heat in football games during the afternoon in the early part of the season."
The weirdest of the four proposals on the table is All Net Arena & Resort, a $1.3 billion project planned for the old Wet ‘n Wild site next to the SLS Las Vegas at the north end of the Strip. Primarily intended for basketball, the All Net would have a retractable roof, 75 luxury boxes and 75 suites, plus seating for 22,000. Other amenities would include retail, nightlife, a wedding chapel, a spa – and maybe hotel rooms, too. Given the price tag alone, we rate the prospects for the All Net as poor.
If there’s a sure thing (or close to one) among arena projects, it’s the one planned by MGM Resorts International. It would be entirely funded by MGM, on MGM land, so the company is spared having to placate various factions. It will seat 20,000 spectators and is projected to cost $350 million. Anschutz Entertainment Group will program the entertainment seen in the venue. The Clark County Commission has already signed off on the project and groundbreaking is expected in April.
