Lenders Push To Liquidate Vegas Hotel-Casino Project

Key lenders for the stalled $3.1-billion Fontainebleau complex on the Las Vegas Strip have lost confidence that the 70% complete project can be finished through a bankruptcy filing earlier this year. A key steering group moved on Sept. 25 to liquidate the project through a sales process supervised by a court-appointed trustee. Project developer Fontainbleau Resorts LLC cited the lenders’ refusal to provide $656 million in pre-approved funding as the reason for the bankruptcy filing. Completing the 3.4-million-sq-ft project would require about $1.5 billion, according to the lenders, but court documents contend the development would be worth only $1.764 billion if it were to be completed by May.