Oak View Group hires two executives to drive $3B Las Vegas Strip casino complex and NBA-ready arena project
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Details of a planned $3 billion entertainment district, spanning 25 acres south of the Las Vegas Strip, have now been unveiled by Oak View Group. The project is set to include an 850,000-square-foot arena, casino, hotel and amphitheater. The arena could eventually be home to a Las Vegas professional basketball franchise.
The project, which was, will be located near the intersection of Interstates 15 and 215. The arena, included in the plans, will host upwards of 20,000 seats and will offer amenities such as suites and premium hospitality clubs.
Earlier this year, Oak View Group bought about 66 acres of land near Blue Diamond Road and Las Vegas Boulevard for just under $100 million, according to Clark County records.
Oak View Group’s Tim Leiweke and partner Irving Azoff named the executives that will drive the development of the 2,000-room OVG Las Vegas Hotel & Casino and its adjacent 20,000-seat arena.
These are Randy Morton, former co-CEO of the Foley Entertainment Group and a four-decade hospitality executive with experience as president and chief operating officer of Bellagio; and Marc Badain, former president of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, who was also one of the most publicly visible point people for the planning of Allegiant Stadium, the $2 billion, 65,000-seat, domed stadium west of the Strip.
Groundbreaking on the project, which is designed by architecture firms Gensler and Populous, is scheduled for 2023, and is expected to open in 2026.
As reported by the Review-Journal, Badain explained the idea isto build “the greatest arena on Earth," which he deemed as a necessary feature in Las Vegas, as it has been 10 years since the T-Mobile Arena opened. “The market has shown its ability to absorb new venues and has enough capacity and enough programming to do it”, he stated.
Morton added that the project is at its early stages of master-planning and design, and that the aim is to build a luxury boutique casino-resort. He also pointed out the benefits of the property’s integration to the arena and the connectivity to the site.
When it comes to attracting a major sports tenant to the arena, Badain also stated that, even though they will build an NBA-ready venue, the decision to expand will depend on the league. “There are 30 owners and they’ll decide where they want to expand, if they want to expand," he explained.
Las Vegas and Seattle have long been rumored to be on a short list for potential expansion of the NBA’s current lineup of 30 teams. Earlier this month, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stated in a news conference that both markets “are wonderful," but also stressed that the league will at some point expand “but it’s not at this moment that we are discussing it”. Badain assured that the arena will be built to NBA standards, and that they will be ready for that option if they want it.
As Allegiant Stadium prepares to host the Super Bowl in 2024, the idea of Las Vegas becoming a sports mecca has been a possibility for the city’s tourism officials in recent years. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has spent heavily on ad campaigns that aim to brand the city as the “Sports Capital of the World” and “The Greatest Arena on Earth."
Governor Steve Sisolak has already expressed his view on this new Oak View Group endeavor and said: “We are proud Oak View Group has chosen Nevada for its next and largest project. This newly proposed entertainment district in Las Vegas will help continue the state’s economic momentum and create thousands of jobs and greater prosperity for Nevadans."
Leiweke has also commented on the project, stating: “South of the Las Vegas Strip represents one of the few areas of potential future growth of the gaming and entertainment corridors. This project is an industry game-changer and we will usher in the evolution of Las Vegas as the new entertainment and sports capital of the world”.
The development is the latest large-scale arena project by Oak View Group, which recently opened a $1.2 billion arena for Seattle’s NHL team, the Seattle Kraken, and a $1.1 billion arena for the New York Islanders in Elmont. Construction is also underway on arenas in Austin, Texas; Coachella Valley, California; and Baltimore.
