Dive Brief:

• The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has filed its convention center expansion plans with the Clark County Board of County Commissioners and, as part of its rezoning request, has also asked for a noise ordinance waiver so that construction crews can work around the clock to accelerate the schedule. The board will consider the rezoning and waiver issues on July 18, but according to a review of the project, the staff recommends granting the authority's requests.
• The authority, according to the documents filed with the county commission, is expected to argue that allowing construction to be carried out during non-daylight hours will lessen the impact of construction on the existing convention center. Also, according to Vegas Inc., expedited construction should see the expansion completed by late 2020, allowing the convention center to host the January 2021 Consumer Electronics Show.
• The board will also review the convention authority's expansion plans for the three-story, 1.4 million-square-foot building, which include meeting and exhibition areas, accessory commercial uses and a space for outdoor live entertainment. Included in the authority's plans is a third-floor, 25,000-square-foot terrace that will host live outdoor events. The project is also subject to a Federal Aviation Administration review to ensure that the height does not interfere with air traffic in and out of McCarran International Airport. 

Dive Insight:

Las Vegas' current convention facilities are at capacity, and other construction projects now underway in Sin City are sure to pull in more trade shows, meeting and other event business than the city can handle with its existing space.

The NFL's Oakland Raiders are building a $1.8 billion stadium in Las Vegas and are expected to start playing there as the Las Vegas Raiders in time for the 2020 season. The joint venture of Mortenson Construction and McCarthy Building Cos. are underway with construction now on an accelerated 30-month schedule and are 15% complete. At the end of the month, crews are expected to go vertical with prefabricated steel. Fans have reportedly already snapped up most of the premium seating, which is good news for the project as the seat license charges for season tickets are helping to finance the private portion of costs.

The Madison Square Garden Co. also has something unique in store for visitors to Las Vegas. The company is planning to build a 360-foot-tall, 500-foot-wide, 18,000-seat spherical arena on the Las Vegas Strip in partnership with the Las Vegas Sands Corp. With its programmable exterior encircled with 36 miles of LED light, the MSG Sphere will host a range of events, from eSports to immersive shows.