A multibillion-dollar Las Vegas resort that had skidded to a halt over the economy, regulations, and outlook has been given a rebirth after the passage of President Donald Trump’s tax reform bill, according to reports.
Only days after the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed, New York developer Steven Witkoff announced that he is now surging ahead with his plans to complete the Fontainebleau resort in Las Vegas, Bloomberg Politics reported.
“Now, we’re not going to be patient,” Witkoff told Bloomberg. “We’ve basically pressed the ‘go’ button to do everything necessary to finish design on the project and take down a construction loan.”
The developer added that as soon as he saw the bill was going to become law, he was ready to ease off the brakes. He quickly launched an effort to restart his financing process for the estimated $3 billion he needs to finish the project.
Witkoff also noted that an important benefit in the tax reform law that allows full and immediate expensing of capital investments spurred him to immediate action. He also insisted to Bloomberg that the new tax law will spark great economic activity in the U.S.
“You can just feel it,” Witkoff said. “You can feel the pent-up fervor that’s happening out there, and it hasn’t even seeped through the system yet. And I’m not a Republican ideologue, for God’s sake.”
The new Fontainebleau resort will create 6,000 permanent hotel jobs and 5,000 construction jobs for the duration of the project and is set to have 4,000 rooms, a casino, and a restaurant when completed.
The Fontainebleau was about 70 percent complete when billionaire Carl Icahn bought the stalled project out of bankruptcy in 2010. The site was idle until last year when Witkoff began toying with jumping in to finish the building. But, until now, going was slow with an uncertain economy and a slow commercial property market dogging the project.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
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