Casino mogul James Packer reveals Vegas gamble secret weapon

CASINO mogul James Packer introduced the man he believes will help him win big in Las Vegas to the Crown Resorts board yesterday.

CASINO mogul James Packer introduced the man he believes will help him win big in Las Vegas to the Crown Resorts board yesterday.

Andrew Pascal flew in from the US gambling mecca for one day to explain his vision for the $2 billion high-roller resort they plan to build on the site of the demolished New Frontier casino.

“It’s the perfect opportunity. The site is, without a doubt, the best piece of undeveloped property on the Las Vegas Strip. That is a very compelling opportunity,” Mr Pascal said.

He has recruited Mr Packer’s Crown Resorts, as majority partner, and Oaktree Capital Management to develop a 1200-room luxury resort on the 34.6ha site.

“This will be a great collaboration,” said Mr Pascal, who felt Mr Packer’s high-quality VIP offering would fill a niche in the Las Vegas market.

“When we started talking about my point of view on the market and my vision for what I wanted to create on this site, not only did he respond to those things he helped refine them,” he said.

Casino design guru Todd Nisbet will work on the project. Both worked for Vegas casino king Steve Wynn, whose casino sits on the opposite side of the famous gambling strip to the planned new casino.

Mr Packer was delighted with hiring Wynn’s winning team.

“I got the guy who built Wynn in Todd Nisbet and I have got the guy who ran Wynn in Andrew Pascal,” Packer said after announcing the new casino.