By HUBBLE SMITH REVIEW-JOURNAL
A 65-acre chunk of land on the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Warm Springs Road across from Belz Factory Outlet is going to be sold at auction on June 3, a source said Friday.
Guy Deiro, president of Robert Deiro and Associates, said the property has been appraised at more than $43 million and would provide an excellent site for a hotel-casino or time-share development.
It has 1,500 feet of frontage along Las Vegas Boulevard and stretches to Interstate 15 on the west side.
A 3,000-room European-style development called Portolano Resort was previously planned for the property, and major developers such as Donald Trump and Sol Kerzner of Sun International have also studied the site.
“There was a lot of due diligence done, and there were some people who were ready to jump,” Deiro said. “I think 9-11 hurt a little bit.”
Deiro and David Atwell of Resort Properties of America are handling the sale for land owner Tom Lindstrom.
“Auctions are a time thing, when you’re under the gun and want to get it done soon,” Deiro said. “Everyone thinks they do it because they’re in trouble, but that’s not always the case.”
The south Strip has seen rapid development with three time-share projects and suite hotels, and this is one of the largest pieces of Strip property still available, he said.
“It’s a contiguous piece of land so you don’t have five owners who all think their land is worth more than it is,” he said.
The land has been on the market for about a year. There are height restrictions based on a 34-degree angle from McCarran International Airport, but it would still allow for up to 15 stories, Deiro said.