Almost two years after acquiring the unfinished Fontainebleau project on the Las Vegas Strip, a New York developer said Tuesday he has hired a design architect to complete the resort and has targeted 2022 as the tentative opening date of the nearly 3,800-room property.
In a statement, Steven Witkoff said Diller Scofidio + Renfro would create a design for the 67-story property – since renamed the Drew Las Vegas – that has sat untouched for a decade on the north end of the Strip.
Witkoff originally said he planned to open the resort in 2020, but the Drew will now follow the $4 billion Resorts World Las Vegas, which Malaysia-based Genting Berhad plans to open late next year. The Strip hasn’t seen the opening of a multi-billion project since the Cosmopolitan opened in 2010.
“We believe Drew Las Vegas is set to usher in the next generation of Las Vegas resorts. It will be unlike anything on the Strip today – a truly integrated resort that brings together a unique take on Las Vegas and curated set of experiences from around the world,” Witkoff, CEO of the real estate company that bears his name, said in a statement.
Witkoff did not provide a budget for completing the Drew. Much of the 3,780-room resort will be overseen by Marriott International in association with two of the company’s brands. The property will feature more than 550,000 square feet of convention and meeting space, with multiple retail, spa, nightlife, pool, and restaurant venues.
The Drew is adjacent to the expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center.
The nearly $3 billion Fontainebleau development began construction in 2007, but the Miami-based developers shut down the project two years later and filed for bankruptcy.
Corporate raider Carl Icahn acquired the site – which was 70 percent complete – for $150 million. He eventually sold off much of the building’s interior – including specially-made escalators and hotel furniture – but left the structure untouched.
Witkoff and the Miami real estate firm New Valley LLC acquired the building from Icahn for $600 million in August 2017. At the time, representatives for Witkoff said the name “Drew” was considered “fresh and modern.” However, others involved in the project said it was also partly in tribute to Witkoff’s son Andrew, who died in 2011.
Witkoff provided few details for the project in Tuesday’s statement.
He said “robust demand drivers continue to create an imbalance of hotel inventory supply and demand (in Las Vegas). The Drew is poised to not only capitalize on this imbalance, but also offer visitors a new marquee luxury resort with a distinctive, compelling concept.”
Drew Las Vegas will be DS+R’s first Las Vegas project and the company’s first in the hospitality industry. According to a statement, the New York-based firm has previously focused on cultural and civic projects, including a redesign of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Campus, and The Shed in New York; The Broad contemporary art museum in Los Angeles; Zaryadye Park in Moscow; and the Museum of Image and Sound in Rio de Janeiro.
“We are incredibly excited about being part of the Las Vegas landscape,” Witkoff said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our team and our partners.”
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgamingreports.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
