BLM offers land for Henderson stadium plan
A proposal to develop a sports stadium project in Henderson took a step forward this week when the Bureau of Land Management said it would offer up 480 acres of public land for the project.
The BLM's offer gives Silver State Land LLC, a Delaware corporation working with the city of Henderson, an advantage in acquiring the property and starts a 45-day clock for bidding and public comment.
Under the proposed "modified competitive, sealed-bid" sale, the BLM would accept bids on the property, and Silver State LLC would have an opportunity to match the best offer.
"If they matched the highest bid, that parcel would go to that person," BLM spokeswoman Hillerie Patton said.
The minimum bid the BLM will accept for the land is $10.6 million under rules of the Southern Nevada Public Land Management Act, which requires the government to accept no less than fair market value when selling property.
Henderson, which has a development agreement with businessman Chris Milam to build a multi-stadium sports project, made the request to the BLM to offer the land "to build enclosed, covered stadiums to create a distinctive sports venue and mixed-use facilities," according to the notice.
A representative of Milam did not return an email seeking comment. Henderson officials were off Friday and unavailable to comment.
Although the move by the BLM gives stadium backers a chance to secure land for development, it doesn't guarantee the project will advance.
Milam has proposed stadium developments in the city of Las Vegas, on the Strip at Sahara Avenue and near Russell Road and Interstate 15 but failed to deliver results.
An agreement by Milam to buy the Las Vegas 51s baseball team fell apart when the Legislature failed to act on a bill that would have enabled tax dollars to be diverted to a stadium.
He also is subject to a $1.1 million judgment stemming from a condominium project he started but was finished by another company, although the judgment is under appeal.
Milam also faces competing stadium proposals, with one group seeking to complete a stadium on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus and with an arena backed by Caesars Entertainment Corp., proposed near the Strip.
Still, the developer has persisted.
In February, Milam's company, International Development Management LLC., reported in a news release it had secured a memorandum of understanding with China Security & Surveillance Technology of Shenzhen, China, and "Chinese banking partners" to provide, "full financing and construction of the 750,000-square-foot, 17,500-seat, $650 million state-of-the-art Silver State Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada."
Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at
bspillman@reviewjournal.com.
Follow him on Twitter @RJVegasBeat.
