Strip lane closures begin for NFL Draft preparation

Expect heavier traffic around the Strip for the next few weeks as lane closures began Wednesday to facilitate preparations for the NFL draft.

Crews set up a crane Wednesday morning in front of the Fountains of Bellagio that will be used to hoist materials for constructing the red carpet stage for the April 28-30 draft. They started building the initial stage structure Wednesday afternoon, with other pieces of the setup expected to arrive next week.

The sidewalk in front of the fountains will remain open to the public, but a barrier and traffic control will be in place. Security will limit pedestrian movement when the crane is active.

Those lane closures will include:

The two outside lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard from Flamingo to the Bellagio entrance near The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. A third lane on this stretch will be closed from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The outside eastbound lane of Flamingo from 200 feet west of the Bellagio north porte-cochere to the Bellagio north-porte cochere.

The outside eastbound lane of Flamingo from the Bellagio north porte-cochere through the outside lane of channelized right turn at Las Vegas Boulevard.

The southbound curb lane on Koval from Winnick Avenue to Krueger Drive.

The closures will run through May 6 to allow for event breakdown.

“While these road closures are significant, I believe they directly translate into jobs and opportunities for our local community and for the destination as a whole,” said Clark County Commissioner Michael Naft, who also sits on the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority’s board of directors. “I’m hopeful that the impact will be mitigated by the months of communication with stakeholders and transportation alternatives that have been established.”

The draft’s red carpet stage will be above the Bellagio fountains, where top draft prospects will make the media rounds on Day 1. The draft theater and Draft Experience will be behind The Linq. The top prospects will be driven from the Bellagio down Flamingo to the main draft area, with fans expected to line the streets to greet the soon-to-be NFL players.

The Strip will essentially be closed in front of the Bellagio and on Flamingo Road between Las Vegas Boulevard and Koval Lane. The shutdown of what will be the center of all draft activity is slated to begin at 10 p.m. April 27 and run through 9 p.m. April 30.

Las Vegas Boulevard will reopen to traffic between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. April 29 and 30, mainly to allow for affected properties in the area to receive shipments.

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