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Snow Dome Las Vegas a $1.1-billion Las Vegas real estate destination resort anchored by an indoor snow park and a massive indoor-outdoor Las Vegas water park is being planned for more than 100 acres on Las Vegas Boulevard south of Interstate 215 by a group of former Disney and Universal Studios executives, designers, architects and engineers. In addition to the ski and water park real estate components, plans include a casino, two hotels, a spa, an events arena, a multiplex theater and several nationally recognized retailers and restaurants.

The real estate developer is Las Vegas Wet LLC. One of the co-founders is Steve Dooner, who spent 30 years in operations and development with the company of Paramount Parks, Raging Waters Disney, Universal and other theme parks around the world. Dooner’s work includes brands such as Discovery Zone and Chuck E. Cheese, ESPNZone, Club Disney, DisneyQuest, and Universal Studios Japan.

Dooner says got $1.1 billion lined up from several banks and joint venture partners from Connecticut, New York, and the UK. The cost to construct this massive real estate in Las Vegas Nevada project will range from $800 to $850 million; The remainder of the money will be used to acquire the Las Vegas commercial real estate, Dooner says. This real estate development could be operational by the end of 2008 or 2009.

“When Wet-N-Wild closed in 2004, Vegas became one of the only major cities in the US without some sort of water park somewhere nearby,” said Dooner.

The most unique part of the project is the indoor ski park, Dooner says. There are 40 “snow domes” worldwide, mostly in Europe and Asia, and no such facility in the US, though one is planned as part of Mills Corp.’s Meadowlands Xanadu development in New Jersey. Dooner says the one in Vegas likely will be in partnership with X-Leisure, a UK-based company run by a former Disney alum that has developed Xscape-branded facilities in Milton Keynes; Castleford, Leeds; and Braehead, Glascow.

The investor group spent a year analyzing the needs of Las Vegas both from a tourist perspective and a local’s perspective. “Wet-N-Wild, because it was on the Strip, only drew 13% locals, the rest were tourists,” Dooner says. “Having our facility somewhat away from the Strip but close to I-215” will make it more accessible to the region’s 1.8 million locals, he says, and having hotels on site will help attract the tourists along with cooperative deals with resort casinos that don’t have major water features.

The resort’s atmosphere will be Disney-like, with characters, musical bands and other entertainers roaming. Restaurants and retail and will be spread throughout the park. The arena will seat 5,000 for concerts and sporting events. The casino will have a tropical theme. The water park and indoor skiing and snow play area, called “Snow Dome,” each will have its own themed, 600-room hotel. Dooner says one of the cool technology features of the resort will be radio frequency wristbands tied to a credit card or hotel so guests don’t have to carry credit cards or cash around with them at the park to purchase food.

The water park will cover 30 acres and have several different themed areas. Luxe lagoon, the main entry and central hub, will include a giant wave pool and indoor beach, water slides and rivers wherein guests can float to other areas, such as Painted Desert Oasis, which will mimic Bryce Canyon National Park and include water slides, swirling pools and private cabanas; Survivor Island, a South Seas-themed area with beaches, pools, and water adventures; Glacier Bay, a family area with cold geyser fountains, mini slides, a pint-sized inner tube river, and squirt gun stations; and Riviera, a 21-and-over area with a beach, pools and hot tubs, a fine restaurant, bar and dance club.
In addition to Dooner, Snow Dome Las Vegas real estate participants include:

• Las Vegas Wet LLC co-founder Greg Stevens, the founder of S&G Management Group LLC, a consulting and management company focused on the entertainment business.
• Kelly Horton, co-founder Proteus Creative, a 20-year veteran of the high-tech industry, managing customers, projects, and programs for such firms as Sun Microsystems and Mentor Graphics.

• Harrison Price, retired founder of Economic Research Associates, performed the original feasibility study for Disneyland and has advised on many major theme parks developed over the past 50 years including all those of Disney and Universal Studio.
• Fred Cochrane, the financial analyst performing the feasibility study, co-founded ERA with Price and has been providing financial advice to theme parks since 1962.
• Thinkwell Design and Production, a Burbank, CA-based company that specializes in the turnkey design and production of experience-based exhibits, attractions, live shows and environments for the likes of MGM, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Harrah’s, Nike, Universal Studios, Sesame Workshop and MasterCard. Source: Globe St.

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Snow Dome Las Vegas real estate with indoor skiing, water park, snow play and destination resort by Las Vegas Wet LLC.

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 21st, 2006 at 6:09 am and is filed under Las Vegas Real Estate, Las Vegas News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.