Las Vegas Convention Center buys the legendary Riviera

The surface of the hotel, which occupies 105,218 meters, will be used to expand the fair and conference venue, thus doubling the current space.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) has given the green light to the purchase of the historic Riviera hotel and casino located across from the current fairgrounds.

The surface of the hotel, which occupies 105,218 meters, will be used to build the expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Included in the Global Business District project, the most ambitious urban planning and economic development action carried out to date in the state of Nevada, it aims to establish a solid economic foundation for the development of the city as it will generate 6,000 new jobs and 3.6 billion dollars in economic activity.

In addition to expanding the exhibition area, the project will mean direct access to the Strip in front of the Circus Circus hotel and the new complex that the Chinese group Resorts World is about to build.

The project, whose cost will exceed 2.3 billion dollars, will allow the LVCC to welcome 480,000 new visitors, estimating an increase in activity in twenty fairs in the coming years.

Once the historic Riviera disappears, whose demolition is scheduled for next summer, work will begin, divided into two phases: the first will mean work on 69,700 m² dedicated to the exhibition area and the implementation of almost 18,000 m² for conference spaces. The built area will exceed 167,000 m² of useful area.

The second phase focuses on the renovation of the existing convention center, expanding its current surface area from the current 300,000 m² to almost double.

The project is expected to be completed in a period of between five and eight years and will be the heart of the so-called Global Business District Las Vegas focused on the development of an economic and business district concept in the neighborhoods surrounding the center focused on tourism. The district will provide a different look and feel to the area and offer the opportunity for industry-related economic development by attracting companies that want to interact with the 1.2 million professionals who visit one of the fairs throughout the year.

Currently, the fair and conference center, inaugurated in 1959, generates 14,000 jobs and an annual economic impact of 1.7 billion dollars.