LAS VEGAS — The NBA Board of Governors is scheduled to meet in Las Vegas this month with potential discussions on league expansion to Las Vegas on the agenda.
Meanwhile a proposed NBA arena site south of the Las Vegas Strip led by Tim Leiweke, chief executive officer of Oak View Group, has been abandoned after Leiweke resigned after being accused of orchestrating a conspiracy to rig the bidding process for the Moody Center, an arena built at the University of Texas in Austin. A federal grand jury returned the indictment on Wednesday, the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division announced.
That leaves only one NBA-ready arena project currently on the table located in between the Sahara and Fontainebleau on the Las Vegas Strip and the project would like to surpass the rave reviews for the new $2 billion home of the Los Angeles Clippers.
LVXP has selected AECOM, the global design firm behind the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, to lead the design of a new NBA-ready arena on the Las Vegas Strip.
AECOM’s team will be led by Bill Hanway, Dan Meis and Matt Crane, who is overseeing the U.S. West region for the firm. The company has designed more than 70 arenas worldwide, including Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta and Golden 1 Center in Sacramento.
Matt Crane said AECOM’s “multidisciplinary experts,” advanced technology and integrated delivery model will help create a “world-class facility that supports LVXP’s bold vision.”
The planned arena is expected to seat up to 20,000 fans and anchor what LVXP says will be one of the tallest resort developments in Nevada, with approximately 2,500 rooms. The project is located near the expanded Las Vegas Convention Center and just south of the former Wet ’n’ Wild site.
“This location, our world-class team and ambitious design will create a magnificent and unrivaled destination on the Las Vegas Strip,” said LVXP CEO James Frasure.
No timeline has been announced for construction, though the project has received local approvals and would be in position to break ground as soon as Las Vegas was awarded an NBA franchise.