Las Vegas nightclub, sushi bar get redevelopment grants
Efforts to attract more business to downtown Las Vegas, including a nightclub, magazine and sushi bar, got a boost Wednesday from the city's redevelopment agency.
The agency board, which is made up of City Council members, voted unanimously in favor of several items that would invest up to $200,000 in the projects.
The biggest project to get help was the $1.5 million renovation of former theaters in Neonopolis that are being converted to the Krave Massive nightclub, billed as the world's biggest gay club.
That project received a $50,000 grant from the city's Quick Start program, which provides businesses money to offset the costs of bringing older properties up to code.
Redevelopment Director Bill Arent said the program is helpful because the costs of adding sprinklers, plumbing fixtures and other improvements to older buildings to make them usable can add up and discourage businesses from opening in older parts of town.
"A little bit can go a long way when you are trying to wrestle with some of these issues," Arent said.
The other projects on the agenda, including a former home on Seventh Street that is being renovated for a magazine company to lease as commercial space and two projects on Casino Center Boulevard, are owned by developer Kamran Foulad.
The Seventh Street project won approval for up to $50,000 from the city's Commercial Visual Improvement Program, which is money set aside to help businesses upgrade street-facing facades.
The other projects on Casino Center include two buildings Foulad is renovating for residential and commercial use.
Each won approval for up to $50,000 in visual improvement money. The buildings are at Casino Center and Charleston, the heart of the monthly First Friday street festivals, and Foulad has plans to attract a sushi bar and small tavern.
"It is excellent for the neighborhood, there is no sushi bar in the area," Foulad said.
Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285 .
