SLS Las Vegas owner sued for unpaid hotel, restaurant license fees

The owner of the SLS hotel brand has sued the owner of the SLS Las Vegas casino-resort for months of unpaid licensing fees.

California-based SBE Hotel Licensing, LLC, which owns the SLS brand, alleged in a lawsuit filed in Nevada last month that Las Vegas Resort Holdings, LLC has failed to pay at least $450,000 in fees since November which allow the Las Vegas resort to operate under the hotel brand and operate SBE-brand restaurants within the resort, including a restaurant by celebrity chef José Andrés.

Las Vegas Resort Holdings is owned by Alex Meruelo, who was approved last week as the new majority owner of the National Hockey League’s Arizona Coyotes.

Messages seeking comment from Las Vegas Resort Holdings, the SLS Las Vegas and Meruelo’s company The Meruelo Group were not immediately returned Tuesday.

The 1,600-room resort at the north end of the Las Vegas Strip has been undergoing a $100 million upgrade to its casino floor, hotel rooms, pool and entertainment venues since October.

The hotel was formerly known as the Sahara, which closed in 2011. The property reopened in 2014 as the SLS.