In February, it was announced that the Fontainebleau casino of Las Vegas would become The Drew Las Vegas. The casino has sat unfinished for several years, now set to reopen as a new venue. The Witkoff Group LLC and the Marriott International have come together in a partnership to revive the property. Now, we have learned that the opening date has been pushed back a bit, with a new opening date for 2022.

From 2020 to 2022:

Developer, Steve Witkoff, initially stated that The Drew Las Vegas would open in late 2020. However, this week, it was made known that the property would be delayed in opening. The new date for the 67-story property is the second quarter of 2022.

Witkoff purchased the property close to two years ago and has decided to start the venue on the path to recovery. Yet, the process is now going to take longer than expected. The goal is to have the venue up and running to help revitalize the north end of the Las Vegas Strip. This section of Sin City is riddled with unfinished projects and vacant lots.

According to the Las Vegas Review Journal…

Witkoff stated that his company has created a contracting package for The Drew. This package guarantees the pricing and schedule for construction. The opening pushback is due to the time that was spent on the design of the facility.

The total price for the project comes in at $3.1 billion. This amount includes $1.2 billion for construction and $600 million for the purchase of the property. financing is reportedly lined up and was not a contributing factor to why the project was delayed.

Witkoff also pointed out that the Las Vegas project would have cost a great deal more if they were working from scratch. Having the former Fontainebleau in place helped to cut down the cost. According to Witkoff, Sin City is one of the healthiest hotel markets in the US.

Details of the Property:

The Drew is named after Witkoff’s son, Andrew. Unfortunately, his son passed away from a drug overdose in 2011. The property will be dedicated in his honor and will feature 3,780 guest rooms. A convention and meeting space will be constructed of 550,000 square feet as well as retail and nightlife space provided.

There is much work to be done within the property in order to have it ready by the expected launch date. According to Witkoff, walls remain unfinished within the interior as well as the ceilings, escalators, columns, etc. There is even a partially built theater inside. Around 80% of the project was finished by the original developer, with the new owners now having to work to complete the building to their liking.

Once the venue is up and running, Witkoff plans to use a portion of his profits within a family foundation that helps to battle addiction.