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An artist’s rendering of the stadium being built in Las Vegas where the Raiders and UNLV will play football.
Tuesday, April 3, 2018 | 1:12 p.m.
Clark County commissioners today approved the sale of bonds for construction of a $1.8 billion, 65,000-seat stadium where the NFL’s Raiders and UNLV will play football.
“The next step is to price the bonds and to get them sold,” said Jeremy Aguero, principal with Applied Analysis and the lead staff member for the Las Vegas Stadium Authority. “Expectations are that we’ll have all that done very early in May, so this was the first step in that process and one of the most important steps in that process.”
The stadium will be funded by $750 million in Clark County hotel room tax revenue, $850 million from the Raiders and a $200 million loan from the NFL.
Commissioners voted 6-1 to issue the bonds, with Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani casting the lone vote in opposition. She expressed concerns about what would happen if the Raiders left Las Vegas before the end of their 30-year lease.
Aguero noted that if the Raiders were to leave early, the team would be responsible for any outstanding debt associated with the stadium.
Raiders President Marc Badain said the stadium and the team, which will begin play in Las Vegas in 2020, will benefit the community.
“You’ve seen the way the Golden Knights have galvanized the city and what a team can mean for a community,” he said. “There aren’t that many shared community experiences anymore.”
