Gaming Commission considering Mirage sale earlier than planned

The Nevada Gaming Commission will conduct a special meeting Friday to consider approval of the acquisition of The Mirage by Hard Rock International and the licensing of the Florida-based company, owned by the Seminole Indian tribe.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board on Wednesday recommended approval of the deal last week, and it will be reviewed by the five-member commission at 9 a.m. in Las Vegas.

In last week’s hearing, which lasted nearly four hours, Hard Rock International President and CEO James Allen outlined plans for gutting the Las Vegas Strip resort and expanding the number of hotel rooms and size of the casino floor, including plans to demolish the erupting volcano attraction and replace it with a 550-foot guitar-shaped hotel room tower.

Company officials have since backed away from Allen’s discussion about closing the property in late 2023 or early 2024 for construction work and instead say that closing the resort is an option that hasn’t been officially decided.

A letter to Mirage employees from Hard Rock Las Vegas President Joe Lupo dated Thursday said, “We will consider options for closure during construction and we would anticipate communicating further on this in late 2023 when we have more definitive timelines developed from the planning process.”

Representatives of the Nevada Gaming Control Board and MGM said they did not know why the hearing was moved up, and Hard Rock officials did not respond to inquiries about the date change.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.