Oak View Group CEO Tim Leiweke has laid out his vision for a $10 billion Las Vegas campus that will include a 20,000-seat NBA arena, as well as a resort and casino.
“On this arena, I’m not asking you for any money,” Leiweke explained during a Q&A session at the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance event last week. “We’re not going before the state. We’re not going before the county. We will go build it on our own privately.”
Leiweke envisions the project being sited south of the Las Vegas Strip near the 1-15 and I215 interchange on land OVG bought last year.
OVG was responsible for Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena where the Seattle Kraken play.
“There are seven new arenas that have been built around the world during and in the middle of COVID,” Leiweke said. “(Oak View Group) did all seven of them.”
Leiweke said that the project will pay for itself by hosting more than just NBA games, including concerts and other events.
“You’ve got to build an arena that’s on the cutting edge of premium, suites, hospitality, merchandise and experience,” he said. “We’re going to have to build something extraordinary.”
Leiweke said that the plan to build an arena before the NBA designates an expansion city has worked in the past, specifically in Seattle with the Kraken.
