So Why is the Trump Tower built off the Las Vegas Strip??
First off, it really is not that far off the Strip. It’s just that many people today think that He should have built it on the Strip to be popular and successful.
What people forget or did not know in the first place, is what used to sit there. The entire piece of property, from the Las Vegas Strip back to Frank Sinatra Drive/Industrial Blvd, used to be the New Frontier casino. This was the second resort to be built on what was then Highway 91 and what we now call The Las Vegas Strip. It first opened in 1942
Phil Ruffin, a Wichita, Kan., businessman bought the property in 1976 for $167 million in 1998. In 2007, he broke off 15 acres to go into partnership with Trump International and sold the other 36 acres to an Israeli-owned real estate investment group for a record $1.2 billion.
The idea was to demolish the New Frontier and build a 5 -Star mega-resort on the property. Meanwhile, the two Trump Towers were to be built as high-end residential/hotel units with what some termed a reverse timeshare. MGM had planned to do the same thing with their Signature Towers. You would be able to buy a unit for $1 million or more than Trump International would rent the units out and split the room rate with the owner.
On paper, this all looked perfect. They would get the high rollers and the executives from the mega-resort and not have to build a casino. Since the neighboring Wynn hotel with similar rooms was averaging $500 a night for a suite and the average daily occupancy in Las Vegas was over 90% all year round, it looked like an easy way for investors to make their money back quickly.
The new owners of the New Frontier property demolished the hotel. The Trump property started to build the first tower and all was going smoothly until the international recession hit and the Obama “Don’t Go to Vegas” comment hit the world as the American markets collapsed. People suddenly stopped traveling to Las Vegas. Las Vegas crashed as most projects stopped construction. The Isreali company filed for bankruptcy and Trump International was unable to find buyers for thier suites, killing off the second tower and only completing the first tower with 1200 rooms/suites.
In 2012, Trump International sold about 300 condo-hotel units to Hilton Grand Vacations time share division.
Although not really on “the Strip”, the 64 story tall, gold-windowed skyscraper is difficult to miss and is an easy walk from the Strip. Being right across from Fashion Show Mall, it is a popular hotel for families and those seeking luxury, yet affordable accommodations and a refuge from the noise and the chaos of other well know Strip resorts that do contain casinos and showrooms.
- Donald Trump Approved for State Gaming License
- Book a room at The Trump International Hotel Las Vegas
What about the land in front of the Trump Tower?
So now between the Trump Tower and the Las Vegas Strip, you have a big empty lot, filled with trash, an occasional homeless person and a few trees donated by Steve Wynn and company.
The future of that parcel is now in the hands of Australian businessman James Packer. His company bought a majority interest in the parcel for $280 million in 2014. If that name sounds familiar, he is the son of the late Australian media mogul Kerry Packer. One of the most famous Las Vegas whales. When he died in 2005, the idea was floated to dim the lights on the strip in his memory. He meant that much to the casinos. Especially MGM…
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