Management team led by ex-LV Sands boss to oversee Bahamas project
A management company headed by former Las Vegas Sands Corp. President Bill Weidner will oversee the centerpiece resort of a $3.5 billion hotel-casino complex in the Bahamas.
Baha Mar Ltd. announced Tuesday night that Global Gaming Asset Management of Las Vegas will operate the Baha Mar Casino & Hotel, which is scheduled to open in December 2014.
Weidner is CEO of Global Gaming, which recently opened the first phase of the $1.2 billion Solaire Manila, a full-scale resort and casino in the Philippines.
Brad Stone is Global Gaming’s president and Garry Saunders is executive vice president.
The three were involved in the opening and managing The Venetian and Palazzo in Las Vegas and the Venetian Macau, and the development of the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore while employed by Las Vegas Sands.
Weidner was fired in March 2009 by Las Vegas Sands Chairman Sheldon Adelson after a highly publicized dispute between the two gaming executives over the company’s financial restructuring. Stone resigned a few months later.
They formed Global Gaming Asset Management in 2011.
“These executives have proven themselves in every major gaming market they’ve entered and have succeeded against the best in the business,” Sarkis Izmirlian, Baha Mar’s chairman and CEO said in a statement.
Last month, Weidner testified in the retrial in the breach of contract lawsuit brought by Hong Kong businessman Richard Suen against Las Vegas Sands. A jury awarded Suen $70 million.
In an interview at the trial, Weidner said his company was part of a group hoping to build a $2 billion hotel-casino complex in Taiwan.
The 1,000-room Baha Mar Casino & Hotel will have a 100,000-square-foot casino with more than 150 table games, 1,500 slot machines, private gaming salons, and sports wagering. The hotel-casino is the centerpiece of Baha Mar, a 1,000-acre destination resort along 3,000 feet of oceanfront property in Nassau, The Bahamas.
“Few gaming destinations bring together such a desirable location, high-quality assets, and powerful brand partners,” Weidner said in a statement. “We see a tremendous opportunity to build the Baha Mar brand into a premier name in gaming resorts.”
Baha Mar will also house a 700-room Grand Hyatt, a 300-room Mondrian, and the 200-room Rosewood Hotels & Resorts. Amenities will include an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course, two spas, 200,000-square feet of convention facilities, a 2,000-seat performing arts center and an art gallery of curated Bahamian art. The property will have more than 30 restaurants, nightclubs and bars.
Contact reporter Howard Stutz at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
