Kirby Lee – USA TODAY SPORTS
Never one to be outdone when it comes to taking things to a whole new level, the city of Las Vegas has some eye-popping plans in place for a new 60,000 seat capacity facility which will become the new home of the UNLV Rebels football team.
The new facility will include a 100-yard long video screen (read that one and weep, Jerry Jones) — 40 full yards longer than the world’s biggest, currently, at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas — and, along with other first-class amenities, will drive the price of the proposed facility up to close to $800 million.
Obviously, the construction of a facility of this size — and extravagance — opens the doors for all types of possibilities in Sin City, giving them the world-class entertainment and sports facility they have coveted for quite some time. Beyond just UNLV football, you’d have to figure major concerts, championship games of all sorts, and possibly even a Super Bowl could be in the sights of those planning the facility and the city of Las Vegas — with the latter being perhaps the longest-shot, given the NFL‘s tendency to try and divorce itself from any relationship with gambling.
If all goes as planned, construction on the new facility could begin in as soon as two years, with 2017 being the goal for it to be finished and ready for consumption.
You have to figure ever-present Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will not take this news lightly, given the massive investment he made into Cowboys Stadium as either the country’s premier entertainment destination (or its most massive and obnoxious eyesore, depending on who you want to believe).
In an era where it’s been proven time and time again that building new sports and entertainment facilities doesn’t necessarily immediately create a return on investment — in fact, it often does the opposite — there is still no hesitation to go with the bigger is better model of property development.
I mean, would we expect anything less from Sin City?
That answer seems obvious.
—
Kris Hughes is the College Football Network Manager for Rant Sports. You can follow Kris on Twitter, Google Plus and Facebook
