Bally’s chief financial officer told Nevada gaming regulators Wednesday the redevelopment at the former Tropicana Las Vegas site is focused on dining, retail, and entertainment.
Vladimira Mircheva, also an executive vice president with the gaming operator, appeared Wednesday before the Nevada Gaming Control Board, which recommended she be licensed in the state. The Nevada Gaming Commission has the final vote later this month.
In September, Bally’s released plans for what it plans to build on the former Tropicana site, where the MLB Athletics are building a $2 billion baseball stadium set to open in 2028.
Bally’s plans to develop 500,000 square feet of retail and dining and build a 2,500-seat theater for live performances. The company said the development would start this year, with some of the area open in early 2028 before the baseball season. The Tropicana site would have two towers totaling 3,000 hotel rooms and a casino on the 35-acre site.
The land is owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties that leases the land to Bally’s for $10.5 million a year. GLPI contributed $176 million for the demolition of the property and it might provide additional funding to develop the site.
“The construction of the A’s stadium is now in full swing,” Mircheva said. “Around that, Bally’s will develop a retail, entertainment, and dining center that we think will be very attractive, given where it sits on the Strip. We foresee a great opportunity for billboards, signage and advertising for various retailers as well as an attractive shopping center that’s naturally going to have a lot of foot traffic that will be driven by the A’s.”
While Mircheva mentioned the two planned hotel towers, she focused on the non-casino space.
“We engaged JLL (Jones Lang LaSalle real estate firm) to work on finding retail partners for the development, and we are actively potential partners for an entertainment venue,” Mircheva said. “The focus and more immediate development is providing the infrastructure for the project.”
The operator filed plans in February on the phasing of the project, along with renderings, and is engaged in finding partners working with the landlord.
“There’s obviously a capital commitment under LOI there, which has only been partially funded,” Mircheva said.
Board Chair Mike Dreitzer said Bally’s is busy with projects in New York, Chicago, and Australia and wanted to know the impacts from those. “What challenges do you face, now that you are in so many jurisdictions doing so many things at once?” Dreitzer asked.
“We obviously have a lot of projects and a lot of development,” Mircheva said. “As projects progress, the certainty and funding increase. Chicago has a live web cam that shows the progress. The towers are rising and we are working with our landlord under the development agreement signed earlier in the year, as well as funding the soft costs from our end. That project is well underway.
“We’re very excited about the opportunity in New York,” Mircheva said. “We have funded a lot of the equity of the project ourselves with various development costs, licenses, and acquisition of the location. We’re actively working on securing financing via a construction loan or some other type of financing and getting other partners. There’s significant interest. We feel confident in the success of that endeavor, given the economics and opportunity there.”
In Australia, Bally’s is a minority shareholder owning 38% of Star Entertainment Group and helping to turn around operations and compliance, Mircheva said.
The company has had multiple transactions over the past year that extended maturities and reduced the amount of debt. It effectively merged with Intralot, the Greek gaming company specializing in lottery solutions, sports betting, and digital and interactive gaming. She said Bally’s merged their international interactive division with Intralot’s lottery business, and Bally’s is now 58% owner of that publicly traded company. Bally’s got $1.8 billion in cash in return and used that to pay down debt and pay costs in New York. In February, Bally’s did a refinance.
