Wrestlers seek new site for LV resort

John Wilen

Thursday, June 17, 1999 | 11:28 a.m.

The World Wrestling Federation wants to sell the former Debbie Reynolds hotel-casino on Convention Center Drive and is considering at least three other Las Vegas sites for its wrestling-themed resort, say Debbie Reynolds time-share unit owners and a local real estate agent.

The WWF, owned by Stamford, Conn.-based Titan Sports Inc., has determined that the former Debbie Reynolds resort is too small for its planned 1,000-room wrestling resort, and is considering other sites for the project, these sources say.

"This has been discussed and it's being considered," said David Atwell, a hotel-casino broker with Resort Properties of America. "But the decision is in limbo mainly because of the tragic death of this wrestler."

Atwell referred to the death late last month of Owen Hart, who plunged 50 feet to his death during a live pay-per-view WWF event in Kansas City.

Two time-share unit owners say they've been told Debbie Reynolds will be sold. The time-share owners say the resort's time-share office told them the WWF would be sending out letters soon, notifying time share owners of its decision.

"I did hear a comment that the WWF are going to sell," said Paul Rooney, a time-share owner from Halifax, Nova Scotia. "Nothing else yet. I guess we are to receive a letter."

WWF officials could not be reached for comment. Officials in the time-share office of the Debbie Reynolds declined comment.

The WWF bought the Debbie Reynolds hotel-casino out of bankruptcy last summer for $10.85 million. The price included a $200,000 payment to rival bidder and Florida time-share developer David Siegel.

The WWF initially talked about transforming the 300-room Debbie Reynolds and its 6,600-square foot casino into an "in-your-face" wrestling-themed resort. But it quickly became apparent that the existing building is too small for the WWF's needs.

There was some speculation the WWF would try to acquire additional acreage next to the Debbie Reynolds and build a second hotel tower. Then, in January, the WWF said it would raze the Debbie Reynolds completely and start from scratch. Its new plan called for a 1,000-room, 35-story hotel tower with a 50,000 square-foot casino.

There was just one catch: the time-share owners. When the Debbie Reynolds sold its time-share units in the early 1990s, it sold them as deeded pieces of property, giving each time-share buyer an actual ownership percentage of the hotel building. The deeds give their owners the right to use the units for a certain amount of time each year.

In order to demolish the resort, the WWF determined it needed the approval of at least 75 percent of the resort's 1,100 time-share owners. If it proceeded without their approval, the WWF feared it would face a litany of lawsuits.

The WWF also wanted to do away with the property deeds. Time-share owners were asked to turn in their Debbie Reynolds property deeds in exchange for contracts giving them the right to use units in the new WWF resort.

In January, when the WWF made its plans clear, several time-share owners worried the change from a deeded property right to a right-to-use contract would reduce the value of their investments. Rooney, who paid $42,000 for a three-week-per-year deed, was concerned he would not be able to re-sell a right-to-use contract. The WWF argued that the rights were the same under either deed or contract.

In any event, the WWF warned in a January letter to the time-share owners that if 75 percent of the time-share owners did not approve the change to right-to-use contracts and the WWF's plan to demolish the old Debbie Reynolds, the WWF "will simply seek another location for its project in Las Vegas. ... In that event, the WWF would sell the existing hotel and real property."

That, said time-share owners, is precisely what has happened.

One time-share owner said she was told the WWF had problems reaching all the time-share owners and simply did not want to wait to resolve what could be a mess of thorny legal issues.

The WWF has been looking for a larger Las Vegas site, said Atwell. But Hart's death has thrown yet another wrench into the WWF's plans, putting any decisions on where to build a Las Vegas property on the back burner.