When completed, it will employ over 6,000 people
Fontainebleau Las Vegas has an opening date, finally. The long storied property at the north end of the Strip is set to open in late 2023. The development will spend all of 2022 and at least half of 2023 turning the long standing eyesore of our skyline into a luxury property.
What We Know Now
Fontainebleau, located at 2777 S. Las Vegas Blvd, sits on 25 acres. When the 67 story building is complete, it will boast more than 550,000 square feet of convention space, and a collection of restaurants and shops, pool experiences, nightlife options and spa with wellness offerings. This forthcoming addition to the casino scene will be adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center and offer direct access to it. The property is set to include 3,700 guestrooms and 100,000 square feet of gaming space. Alright Fontainebleau, we see you.
The building is 75 percent completed (more on that below). Final construction will add 3,200 jobs and once completed, the luxury resort will add 6,000 jobs for operations. The ‘when’ of the completion isn’t exact. According to a press release, it’s only been identified as the fourth quarter of 2023.
A History As Long As the Strip
The property has a long history with Las Vegas. According to casino.org, Jeffrey Soffer, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), originally conceived the property and started construction. However, the recession hit the country hard, and Vegas even harder. Circumstances forced the Fontainebleau to file for bankruptcy protection in the summer of 2009. That was after 75 percent of work on the property was done.
Then, Soffer sold the unfinished casino to Carl Icahn for approximately $151 million. Icahn never intended to complete the property, only holding onto it as an investment. That gamble paid off for Icahn. He would sell the property in 2017 for $600 million to New York real estate businessman Steve Witkoff.
A plan to open the new property was halted when Witkoff decided to sell for two reasons:
- Existing financial problems
- The coronavirus pandemic
From there, the property ended up back in the original hands of Soffer.
“It’s kind of a crazy story, but I’m back,” said Soffer in a statement. “There’s so many people that it takes to make a job like this go forward; it’s not one person it’s a team.” He went on to say, “It’s a great building, it was always a great building, but this has come full circle back to us and we’re very honored and excited about it as a company.”
Fontainebleau Lux
The Fontainebleau name is known throughout the real estate development circles and is a trusted name in hospitality. The company properties have a diverse portfolio with residential, retail, commercial, hospitality and of course, gaming sectors.
Fontainebleau properties include: Big Easy Casino, Fontainebleau Miami Beach and Hilton Downtown Nashville. In all, the company has a 50-year history and has been involved in over 100 projects representing in excess of $25 billion in total transaction value.
Check out the Fontainebleau Portfolio to learn more about this development.
