Last week's announcement by Station Casinos (Fertitta/Colony Partners) regarding Viva (a $10-billion mega-resort project in Las Vegas) got quite a few people taking. At $10 billion, the development could possible surpass the costs of the 76-acre, $8.4-billion MGM MIRAGE CityCenter project on the Las Vegas Strip. Viva's location is actually west of the Strip and sits on an approx. 110-acre parcel of land. But before jumping to conclusions, let's look at 10 tidbits of interesting information.

First Rendering of Station Casinos' Viva

10 Tidbits regarding a possible $10-billion Las Vegas development

- Station Casinos has a reputation for raising the bar with every single new development it creates. Red Rock Station in Summerlin was the first-ever billion-dollar, off-Strip casino-hotel property in the history of Las Vegas. It's architecture and throw-back design have already made it an iconic structure in Las Vegas. Red Rock Casino Resort can be seen in multiple television shows and movies including the recent movie 21, with Kevin Spacey.

- Just because the price tag looks to exceed that of MGM MIRAGE CityCenter, it doesn't automatically mean that Viva will be built with higher-quality building materials.

- Could Viva use higher-quality building materials than the already eco-friendly, green construction of CityCenter? Perhaps. Or will it be more expensive simply because of the time difference, number of hotel and casino properties, high-rise condominiums, restaurants, clubs, possible arena etc.?

- If Viva was to move forward, Panorama Towers (a residential high-rise condominium property) could find itself sitting virtually in the middle of approx. $20 billion worth of mega-resort development including restaurants, retail, spas, entertainment, nightclubs, and world-class architecture.

- Station Casino's has gone private, giving the company more freedom to do what it wants without pressure from shareholders.

- Luxury condominium properties at CityCenter such as Vdara Condo Hotel, Mandarin Oriental, The Harmon Hotel, Spa & Residences, and Veer Towers are built with extremely costly, eco-friendly building materials. Could Viva also go green? Will green construction become more affordable for developers by 2010 or so?

- Station Casinos' Viva is definitely an exciting announcement, but in Las Vegas, we hear stuff like this all of the time. So many things can change in a matter of two or three years (the timeframe in which Viva is expected to break ground).

- As of April, 18th, 2008...MLS resale inventory at Panorama Towers (see link for details) had hit 106 units for sale. The lowest price-per-square-foot for a unit was $329 dollars. A two-bedroom floor plan facing the pool and mountains. Recent record-setting penthouse sales at The Harmon Hotel at CityCenter sold for over $2,000, and $2,400 a square foot (see more info). In some cases, Panorama Towers' current resale properties are approx. six to seven times less (price-per-square-foot) than CityCenter.

- The final construction cost of MGM MIRAGE CityCenter may not be locked in place just yet. The most recent projections have it costing approx. $8.4 billion. It will be interesting to see where CityCenter's final cost ends up.

- Should they both be built, how will Viva's final construction costs look when compared to prime-location mega-resort properties such as The Plaza Hotel Las Vegas (being planned by ELAD Properties)?

Viva's location can be seen on the map below (Notice Panorama Towers and CityCenter)

Map provided courtesy of Mark Adams, Owner/Operator of VegasTodayAndTomorrow.com

Aaron Auxier, REALTOR®, ABR can be reached at 702-205-1818.

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Copyright © 2008 Aaron Auxier. All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: All information in this post is subject to change without notice. Subject matter is not guaranteed and is often considered time-sensitive.