Tropicana Closes Doors Tuesday After Nearly 67 Years; Next Stop For Site On Strip Is A’s Baseball Stadium In 2028

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Story by Alan Snel   Photos by Hugh Byrne

By 11 AM Tuesday, security began advising people inside the Tropicana hotel-casino to head out and stopping visitors from entering the 1957 circa hotel.

The party was over at the historic hotel that was once the Bellagio of the Strip, but had turned into that old mall in the inner suburbs that time and modern decor had passed it by.

The hotel closed Tuesday a mere two days before its 67th birthday to make way for a MLB Athletics stadium that is costing $1.5 million to build. The A’s worked out two deals — winning a $380 million stadium subsidy bill from the Nevada Legislature and building a 33,000-seat dome stadium on nine acres of the 35 acres owned by Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. (GLPI) at the southeast corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue.

Demolition of the two Tropicana towers and other buildings will happen later this year, while the A’s want a groundbreaking in the first half of 2025 for a stadium opening before the start of the MLB season in 2028.

The A’s are playing at the Coliseum in 2024 on a shoestring player payroll and are expected to easily lose more than 100 games in their 162-game schedule. The team is negotiating with the city of Oakland to play at the Coliseum for 2025, 2026 and 2027 while the stadium on the Strip is built for 2028.

Bally’s Corporation runs the Tropicana and says it has plans to build a new hotel somewhere on the 35-acre site that it will share with the Athletics. But neither the A’s nor Bally’s has revealed where exactly their respective buildings will be situated on the site.

The demolition equipment is already on the south side of the site.

 

A’s owner John Fisher said he’s looking for local stadium investors, but he also noted he and his family are prepared to come to the table with their $1.1 billion to build the stadium on the Strip. Its location tells you the baseball stadium will be a tourist attraction and compete with the Sphere and shows along the Strip.

The Athletics were once one of the American League’s premier teams with three World Series championships from 1972-74, three World Series appearances from 1988-90 and playoff appearances that were commonplace.

But the team is pegged to finish last again and have lost four of their first five games.

A’s team president Dave Kaval wants games to be filled with entertainment and he told LVSportsBiz.com the stadium will include an area for acts much like the Golden Knights’ arena that includes a castle stage on one end of the venue.

The Strip has limited public transportation options and metro Las Vegas has a population that is used to driving everywhere.