Land Next to MGM Casino Listed for Sale at Jaw-Dropping Price of $595M

Coveted land next to a forthcoming MGM casino resort has hit the market, but only developers with deep pockets need apply.

MGM Resorts International and Japanese financial services conglomerate Orix Corporation continue to build the more than $8 billion MGM Osaka on Yumeshima Island. Set to open in late 2030, the integrated resort (IR) casino will feature 2,500 hotel rooms, culinary and retail districts, a 3,500-seat entertainment venue, wellness facilities, over 700,000 square feet of convention and exhibition space, and a casino with more than 6,000 slot machines and 400 live dealer table games.

Yumeshima, an artificial man-made island, has been targeted by the Osaka government to become Japan’s premier destination for international tourism and business events.

Phase 1 of the island’s overhaul is MGM Osaka. Phase 2 involves developing the more than 100 acres adjacent to the casino complex into the “IR Collaboration Zone,” an area where the Osaka City Council hopes a developer will build “large-scale entertainment and recreation facilities,” such as a theme park or sports stadium.

Land Offered at $595M

Yumeshima Island, which hosted Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai, continues to transform into an international tourism hub anchored by MGM Osaka. For Phase 2, the Osaka City Council is offering 424,074 square meters (104.8 acres), but the government is seeking top dollar for the development rights.

Osaka has listed the Phase 2 development property at ¥92.1 billion (US$595 million). That equates to more than $5.6 million per acre.

Osaka intends to sell the Phase 2 site, unlike the 121-acre MGM site, which is being leased to the casino developers. MGM Osaka has a 35-year lease with the city to operate the resort on the government-owned parcel that includes an annual rent of approximately $16.1 million.

To minimize initial land investment, the MGM Osaka developers asked the city to lease, instead of sell, the land in which the resort is being built. Still, the resort would pay over $563 million for the land lease, should the 35-year term be fulfilled.

By maintaining ownership of the land, Ichiro Matsui, the mayor of Osaka in 2019 when the land lease was struck, said the city secured itself against business difficulties should they arise.

“We think renting is the way to go,” the mayor concluded.

Casinos and Theme Parks

In Asia, complementing casino resorts with family-friendly theme parks is common.

Genting Highlands in Malaysia features SkyWorlds Theme Park, while Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore has a Universal Studios amusement park.  

In Macau, Studio City, Galaxy, and The Venetian have theme parks and rides, while South Korea’s Paradise City and Inspire resorts offer indoor water parks. In the Philippines, City of Dreams Manila has an indoor theme park that was developed with the movie studio DreamWorks.