"Music to my ears," that is how one real estate expert described the Steve Wynn's announcement that he is developing a new hotel called West Wynn on the Las Vegas Strip.
The casino mogul discussed the new 2,000-3,000 room hotel along with his Paradise Park lagoon project during an earnings call Monday.
"I'm going to get those damn buildings up as fast as I can, because I want to capture more of the absolutely inevitable visitor and tourist traffic that Las Vegas will experience in the next 15 or 20 years," Wynn said.
Those in the commercial real estate industry said they are excited that Wynn is planning to build on the long vacant site of the former home of the New Frontier hotel.
"Steve Wynn is arguably the best resort developer in the world, so him taking another project, believing in the market I think that sends the right signal," said John Knott, Executive Vice President of CBRE. "I think any time Steve Wynn makes an investment in any community, it is a game changer."
The project joins a long list of developments in the works including Resorts World, the Fontainebleau (now known as Project Blue) and the Convention Center expansion.
Those in the industry say Wynn's investment could push developers of those other projects to pick up speed.
"I think [we] will see other credible developers in the market activate their own plans to take advantage of this renewed optimism and demand for the Las Vegas experience," said Mike Mixer, Executive Managing Director of Colliers International - Las Vegas.
Mixer also said the recent tax reform and reduced cost of bringing offshore money back into the United States likely played a part in the decision for Wynn to move quickly in developing his latest hotel project.
