Adelson wins a round in battle of Strip titans

Thursday, July 22, 2004 | 11:11 a.m.

Strip casino mogul Sheldon Adelson won a key vote before the Clark County Commission on Wednesday that will allow construction of his planned $1.6 billion resort to move forward.

The vote, centering on thorny issues of parking, came over the objections of representatives for Steve Wynn, who is building his own new, $2.4 billion resort across Sands Avenue from Adelson's site.

The debate Wednesday was the second battle in front of the commission in two months for the Strip titans. Wynn, according to most observers, won the first round when the commission delayed approval of Adelson's parking plans -- and construction of the new resort itself -- for a month. Wynn and other neighboring hotel operators thought Adelson had already failed to provide required parking space at The Venetian, and they convinced commissioners to delay approving Adelson's new plans until he provided for sufficient parking. The Venetian's employees were parking in neighboring hotel parking garages because of the property's parking shortage, Wynn lawyers and an MGM Mirage lawyer argued.

Wednesday's approval requires Adelson's company to juggle at least five different temporary parking lots while building a new, underground parking garage that will eventually provide more than 11,200 spaces and will be the foundation of his new megaresort. For the next year workers at the Venetian will have to park at a relatively remote satellite lot and prove that they did not park at neighboring properties over the next year.

Paul Larsen, a lawyer representing Adelson, said the construction work on the project should begin the first week of August. The work was originally scheduled to begin last month.

A vote to reject Adelson's parking plan failed on a 3-3 tie. A second vote to approve the plan passed 4-2. Commissioners Myrna Williams and Yvonne Atkinson Gates voted against Adelson both times. Commissioner Lynette Boggs McDonald switched her vote on the second tally, joining Commission Chairman Chip Maxfield and commissioners Bruce Woodbury and Mary Kincaid-Chauncey to approve the parking plan.

The debate over the issue took more than three hours and included some of Las Vegas' top legal heavyweights. Former senator and governor Richard Bryan, backed by a dozen men in dark suits, represented Adelson. Wynn's side had only a half-dozen men, but they included Frank Schreck, one of the state's top gaming attorneys, and Mark Russell, MGM Mirage attorney.

Bryan tried to keep the debate focused.

"The issue before us is an application for a parking garage," he said. "That is all that we seek."

Bryan said Adelson's planners took seriously the direction from the commission during last month's contentious hearing to have the property's parking in order before going forward with the larger hotel construction.

The opposition, however, said that unlike other Strip megaresorts, the Venetian has never had the parking spaces on site required under county code -- 7,600 -- and that number is a 30 percent reduction from the county's baseline requirement.

"What we have is history," Russell told the commission. "What we have is facts that are irrefutable. The Venetian has never provided the parking that is necessary. If they weren't building this new project, they would still be providing woefully inadequate parking."

Schreck agreed.

"The Venetian spent the last four or five years circumventing county parking requirements," he said. "It chose to use all of its property to construct income-producing facilities, rather than satisfy county parking requirements."

The opposition joined commissioners Williams and Gates in questioning The Venetian's timetable for its year-long effort to provide enough parking while clearing enough ground to build the new parking garage and the rest of the megaresort. The plan will involve removing some parking areas for construction while putting new parking areas in.

Gates said one parking area identified on Spring Mountain Road, which at one point will be a primary parking area for Venetian employees, will be at least a half-hour drive across Interstate 15 by shuttle to the resort.

"I still have a major, major concern about one of the off-site parking areas, which is at a minimum 30 minutes away," Gates said. "It could be longer, depending on traffic."

Williams was steadfast in her opposition to The Venetian's plan, although she said both sides had representatives who she respected.

"I live near there. I know what goes on around there," she said. "This whole thing is much too iffy for my comfort level. I don't think the Venetian has come in with a plan that has been truly negotiated."

The opposition also questioned whether the multi-phase project, which includes the excavation of six floors into the ground for the garage, could be achieved.

In response, Maxfield's successful motion to allow The Venetian's parking plan requires the casino company to certify each month that it has the number of parking spaces it agreed to provide, and that its employees are using those lots. Woodbury said those requirements would protect the casino's neighbors.

"We can impose conditions that can ensure that the temporary and permanent parking is in place," he said.

Under the terms passed Wednesday, failure by the Venetian to comply with the county's requirements will lead to a shutdown of construction.

When the hotel is ready to open, it will be denied a certificate of occupancy if it has fewer than 11,200 parking spaces, Maxfield said.