Tropicana blast permit reveals potential fall implosion time frame

The remains of the Tropicana are tentatively set to be imploded in early October to make way for the planned Oakland Athletics MLB ballpark to be built on a portion of the site, according to Clark County records.

An explosive use permit application filed for on July 11 by Tropicana owner Bally’s Corp. names the event, the implosion of the Tropicana and Paradise towers, with a planned move in date of Sept. 30 and a move out date of Oct. 8. That suggests the implosion could occur between those nine days.

With Bally’s Corp. still needing to submit its implosion plan, the time frame could change, pending permitting and planning approvals by the county.

Bally’s Corp. applied for the permit on July 11, the same day as an implosion permit application was filed for by the company.

Following the closure of the former Rat Pack-era resort in April, crews have been gutting the two hotel towers on the Tropicana site, prepping the structure for implosion.

Once the implosion occurs and the site is cleared, the A’s plan to begin construction in April on their $1.5 billion, 33,000-seat ballpark. The team plans to have the stadium completed about three years after work commences, with the ballpark ready for the 2028 MLB season. Bally’s Corp. also plans to build a future resort on the remaining acreage surrounding the stadium.

The A’s, Bally’s Corp. and landowner Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc., recently agreed that the planned stadium will be built on 9 acres, just northeast of center, of the 35-acre site.

Updated renderings released earlier this year displayed the ballpark in that general vicinity, but having the location nailed down is a positive development, according to Las Vegas Stadium Authority Chairman Steve Hill.

The fixed-roof, climate-controlled ballpark is scheduled to feature a massive curtain glass wall providing a view of the Strip, looking toward the MGM Grand and the New York-New York.

“When you build a baseball stadium, you build it with where the sun’s going to shine across any 24-hour period in mind,” Hill said following last week’s stadium authority board meeting. “You know it’s going to face in that direction, we just wanted to make sure that it was far enough west that we still had that kind of iconic view. You’re going to get a great view out of the stadium, out of that great big window there. There’s going to be no better setting for a stadium anywhere.”

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.