Barely a year after its official launch, the Asian-themed Lucky Dragon boutique hotel and casino, located just off the Las Vegas Strip, has filed for bankruptcy, reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The property was developed by Andrew Fonfa, the man behind the adjacent Allure Las Vegas residential tower. The Lucky Dragon site was intended to be developed as a sister tower to Allure but the recession intervened and, eight years after the first tower was completed, work began on Fonfa’s plan B – an Asian-themed boutique casino hotel of just 200 rooms.
Following a November 2016 soft launch, the grand opening took place in early December that same year. However the numbers failed to materialise and, in the absence of sufficient footfall drawn to the venue’s Asian stylings, the casino and restaurants closed last month as the property looked set to default on a $90m loan.
Fonfa filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy late last week. A Chapter 11 filing acknowledges that bankruptcy is imminent but seeks support in allowing time for the bankrupt party to pay creditors where possible and manage job losses, legal costs, etc.
The resort currently employs 98 people, around half of those initially recruited.
Court papers stated the Chapter 11 filing had been made in order “to preserve jobs, pay creditors and provide certainty to the market”.
