There is an abundance of casinos in Las Vegas and the US gaming hub can accommodate the impending additions, but it appears that the city of Sin will not be seeing any new gaming establishments emerging soon.
CBRE analyst John DeCree has expressed his opinion that the Fontainebleau Las Vegas and Red Rock Resorts’ Durango Casino & Resort — both of which are planned to open this year — will probably be the last to be added to the list of casinos in Las Vegas for a while. The Fontainebleau will be the most recent opening on the northern part of the Strip, while the Durango is to be situated in an area of Southwest Las Vegas which is under-served.
DeCree noted that the city is able to absorb the addition of these venues, however, macroeconomic challenges could prevent any further new developments from taking place in the near future. With the cost of construction on the rise, as well as the tightness of the credit market, he believes that the projects due to open this year could be the last wave of major developments in Las Vegas for a while.
The MSG Sphere, a $2.1 billion venue, is expected to be opened also later this year, however this is not a gaming establishment, but instead is likely to drive traffic to the Venetian and other nearby Strip properties.
The current state of development on the Strip is not especially optimistic, with some projects being halted due to the inability to finance the construction already completed. Billionaire businessman Tilman Fertitta has yet to decide on the 6.2 acres of land at Las Vegas Boulevard and Harmon Avenue that he purchased last year for $270 million. It is possible that Fertitta will sell the land to fund an acquisition of the NFL’s Washington Commanders or Wynn Resorts, though he has not publicly commented on this.
Durango is a major part of Red Rock’s Las Vegas Valley expansion plan, and is unlikely to contribute to casino saturation in the market due to its advantageous location. DeCree remarked that the Durango will be opening in an area of the Las Vegas locals market which is currently lacking in supply, and should thus expand the market, despite the possibility of some casinos experiencing cannibalisation. Red Rock has recently opened a Wildfire casino in downtown Las Vegas, and has other projects in the works aside from the Durango.
