Tilman Fertitta Unveils Plans for New Las Vegas Strip Casino Resort

Posted on: October 6, 2022, 09:40h. 

Last updated on: October 6, 2022, 10:22h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

Tilman Fertitta has revealed plans for a new casino hotel on the Las Vegas Strip — the billionaire’s first on the most prime stretch of US gaming real estate.

Fertitta
The old Travelodge at Las Vegas Boulevard and Harmon Avenue. Tilman Fertitta filed plans for a casino resort there. (Image: Las Vegas Review-Journal)

In a filing with the Clark County Commission, Fertitta Entertainment indicates the venue will include many of the amenities of comparable Sin City properties — bars, convention space, dining options, a spa, a wedding chapel, and even an auto showroom.

It’s not yet clear what restaurants will be featured at the integrated resort. But dining is a Fertitta’s forte, as his company owns more than 600 restaurants across numerous brands, including Bubba Gump’s, Chart House, Del Frisco’s, Mastro’s, and Morton’s. The brands to be featured at the automotive showroom weren’t disclosed. But Fertitta owns Post Oak Motor Cars in Houston, which sells Bentley, Bugatti, and Rolls Royce, among other pricey brands.

The filing with the Clark County Commission arrives about four months after Fertitta acquired 6.2 acres at Las Vegas Boulevard and Harmon Avenue for $270 million.

Fertitta Needs to Make a Splash

Fertitta, 65, is worth an estimated $7.7 billion and his business interests include the NBA’s Houston Rockets and several gaming properties. Those include five Golden Nugget casinos in downtown Las Vegas and Laughlin, Nv., Atlantic City, Biloxi, Ms., and Lake Charles, La.

The aforementioned plans mark his initial foray onto the Strip, though he’s long said he’s wanted to operate a venue there. As such, his name has been attached to various sale rumors involving Strip assets in recent years.

One thing is clear: Fertitta Entertainment will need to spruce up the property to adequately compete with neighboring venues. When the company acquired the land, it was occupied by a Travelodge hotel, a Mexican restaurant, and a smattering of souvenir shops.

The property is situated near CityCenter, Aria, Vdara, Cosmopolitan, and the Waldorf Astoria, indicating Fertitta could opt to tussle with high-end venues, or potentially carve out a niche as a more cost-friendly option. While no decisions have been made on that front, the filing indicates a posh venue could be in the works. The documents confirm plans for a 43-story integrated resort with 2,240 guestrooms.

Price Tag Unconfirmed, but Likely High

The cost of the project isn’t yet known, but when accounting for the $270 million spent on the real estate and recent values of on Strip transactions, it’s likely the Fertitta venture will stretch beyond $1 billion.

The $4.3 billion Resorts World Las Vegas, the Strip’s most expensive integrated resort in terms of construction costs, opened in June 2021. That’s also the newest Strip venue.

Fertitta Entertainment is privately held, though it was close to a second go-round as a public company prior to the December 2021 collapse of a merge with a blank-check entity. Fertitta’s firm was valued at $8.6 billion in that transaction.