By Alan Snel
LVSportsBiz.com
The Raiders are padding their stadium budget by $40 million for a new north end zone field-level club, added suites, added exterior restrooms, plaza security and aesthetic enhancements, fixtures and art architecture upgrades, tech and communications upgrades and seating and building ops life-cycle upgrades.
The improvements bring the latest stadium construction to $1.37 billion — the major chunk of spending for an overall stadium development of $1.88 billion. The stadium board approved the Raiders’ revised project budget.
The Raiders stadium improvements do not mean that the public has to contribute more than the $750 million Southern Nevada is on the hook for. Raiders stadium pointman Don Webb told the local stadium board that the $40 million worth of improvements are not cost overruns. About 25 residents attended the 11:30 a.m. session at the Clark County meeting room Thursday.
The domed, 65,000-seat stadium is scheduled to open on 62 acres on the west side of Interstate 15 across from the Mandalay Bay hotel-casino.
The Raiders have already raised $320.5 million in personal seat license revenue as part of an overall stadium budget for PSL revenue at $330 million. Here’s a look at the stadium project funding.
Webb said 1,500 workers are on site with 380 days left for construction as the completion date remains set for July 31, 2020. The team is exceeding the workforce diversity goal, Webb said. Sales and marketing of suites, seats and PSLs are outperforming initial budget expectations, he said.
“We can sell them,” Webb said of the extra suites.
Webb said a construction project of this scope requires tasks and jobs to be re-scheduled at times. “There’s an enormous cost of doing nothing,” Webb said.
The Raiders also introduced its new stadium manager — Anschutz Entertainment Group. Los Angeles-based AEG partnered with MGM Resorts International to build the $375 million T-Mobile Arena, which opened in April 2016.
AEG Facilities President Bob Newman told the stadium board his company is already entrenched in Las Vegas. The stadium is projected to host 46 events a year, including at least 10 Raiders games (eight regular season, two preseason) and six UNLV football games. The Las Vegas Bowl will also be played there starting in 2020.
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