Houston-based entrepreneur, casino magnate and TV personality Tilman Fertitta is expected to close a deal to acquire a six-acre lot on Las Vegas Strip sometime in the near future, and although exact details have yet to be released, the price is estimated to be around $200 million.
The lot sits near the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Harmon Avenue, and features a Travelodge motel and other spaces that are expected to be torn down in lieu of a new, ground-up resort.
While a new resort project on the Strip would certainly be costly and difficult to complete, the opportunity is certainly there, as the property is within walking distance of the high-end CityCenter complex, which features the Shops at Crystals retail center as well the Waldorf Astoria, Vdara and Aria resorts.
Neither Fertitta nor Spectrum Group Management, the current owner of the property, have commented on the reported deal. Details of the transaction were first reported anonymously by the Vital Vegas website, and later by the Las Vegas Review Journal.
The deal is rumored to be finalized sometime in the next two to three months.
This wouldn’t be Fertitta’s first Las Vegas venture, as the billionaire businessman already purchased the Golden Nugget back in 2005. A new project on the Strip, however, would substantially increase the mogul’s footprint in the Las Vegas Valley.
Brett Torino, a local developer with multiple retail construction projects on the Strip near Fertitta’s proposed site, told the Review-Journal that the area is “begging” to be further developed. Torino said that Fertitta would have “a massive amount” of different construction opportunities at his disposal.
Another lot of about 10 acres is also in close proximity–that site is expected to be developed into more retail space by New York firm Gindi Capital.
Fertitta has an expansive portfolio of corporate holdings, including various restaurant chains, resorts and casinos, and most recently, the Houston Rockets NBA franchise. His net worth, according to Forbes, is valued at over $5 billion.
