Las Vegas tribe plans $170 million golf resort expansion

Thursday, June 29, 2000 | 10:55 a.m.

The Las Vegas Paiute Tribe will break ground today on a $170 million expansion of its golf resort and conference center 20 miles north of Las Vegas.

The expansion plans call for the addition of a 300-room hotel, a 16,000-square-foot casino, 70,000 square feet of retail space "in a village configuration" and a 17,000-square-foot spa and wellness center. Financing is nearly secure for the project, resort officials say, and the second phase should be complete in 2002.

First opened in 1995, the Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort currently has two golf courses and a 50,000-square-foot clubhouse and banquet facility.

"(The casino) is more of an amenity than anything," said Lisa Ferguson, director of marketing for the resort. "It is not our intention to compete with the Strip (casinos)."

Instead, officials said, the resort is intended to compete with desert resorts located in cities such as Palm Springs and Scottsdale. It will cater primarily to tourists, Ferguson said.

A third phase is planned for the resort at an undetermined date. The tribe ultimately plans to spend $500 million on the project.