Ivana Towers –Trumped?
Another one bites the dust without ever taking off. The Ivana Towers project, trumpeted as being the tallest structure in Las Vegas is stillborn.The 2.17-acre property at the northeast corner of Sahara Avenue and Las Vegas Boulevard is up for sale for $49 million.Two Australian entrepreneurs Victor Altomare and his lawyer and business partner Joseph Di Maurohad teamed up with Donald Trump's ex-wife Ivana to build a $US700 million ($913 million) 73-storey tower apartment block. Originally called The Summit, the287-metre tower with a penthouse at the top - dubbed The Cockpit, was renamed The Ivana when Mrs Trump joined in.
The project was announced with a lot of fanfare and details released of the project were overwhelming. The sales office made presentations that were more appropriate for a nightclub with flashing lights, smoke machines and loud music. Ivana announced a Men of Construction calendar for 2006 and invited hunks from the construction trade to send in their entries. Ultimately, it all came to naught; Altomare, who had already abandoned his Liberty Towers projects decided to call it quits on Ivana too.
Las Vegas is experiencing a gold rush situation in the real estate development business. Naturally, there is stiff competition amongst high-rise projects. Developers try to pre-sell the units in a blitz of publicity but raising finance for a huge project like this one can never be easy. Rising construction costs are mainly because of unavailability of material like lumber and shortage of labor. Not everyone can survive the race. In the case of Ivana, even if the developers had pre-sold 500 units it would have been a tough job.
Marketing real estate is extremely competitive business. Success comes to those who can market high-end residences and actually stimulate demand for them. The Cockpit was designed as a huge 20,000 square feet $35 million penthouse with its own pool and elevator and exclusive fittings. Not many could have been able to afford it and ultimately the developers could not afford to build it!
Developing property is never easy and in the current Las Vegas scenario of rising construction costs, rising land prices and the fact that the mid- and high-rise condo market (in Las Vegas) is still in its infancy has made it a difficult game to play. One hopes that not all is lost yet. The land value is considerable and the location, on the site of the former Holy Cow casino is a prime one. The site can still be a success if the entire project is conceived and promoted correctly.
Though the present developer wants to sell the land, it does not mean that the project will not see light of day. It may not be the Ivana, where Mrs. Ivana Trump personally designed the interiors of each unit but I am of the opinion that something good will come out of this. There is a lesson for all the stakeholders in this and one hopes that the project in whatever form does get to see the light of day.
The project was announced with a lot of fanfare and details released of the project were overwhelming. The sales office made presentations that were more appropriate for a nightclub with flashing lights, smoke machines and loud music. Ivana announced a Men of Construction calendar for 2006 and invited hunks from the construction trade to send in their entries. Ultimately, it all came to naught; Altomare, who had already abandoned his Liberty Towers projects decided to call it quits on Ivana too.
Las Vegas is experiencing a gold rush situation in the real estate development business. Naturally, there is stiff competition amongst high-rise projects. Developers try to pre-sell the units in a blitz of publicity but raising finance for a huge project like this one can never be easy. Rising construction costs are mainly because of unavailability of material like lumber and shortage of labor. Not everyone can survive the race. In the case of Ivana, even if the developers had pre-sold 500 units it would have been a tough job.
Marketing real estate is extremely competitive business. Success comes to those who can market high-end residences and actually stimulate demand for them. The Cockpit was designed as a huge 20,000 square feet $35 million penthouse with its own pool and elevator and exclusive fittings. Not many could have been able to afford it and ultimately the developers could not afford to build it!
Developing property is never easy and in the current Las Vegas scenario of rising construction costs, rising land prices and the fact that the mid- and high-rise condo market (in Las Vegas) is still in its infancy has made it a difficult game to play. One hopes that not all is lost yet. The land value is considerable and the location, on the site of the former Holy Cow casino is a prime one. The site can still be a success if the entire project is conceived and promoted correctly.
Though the present developer wants to sell the land, it does not mean that the project will not see light of day. It may not be the Ivana, where Mrs. Ivana Trump personally designed the interiors of each unit but I am of the opinion that something good will come out of this. There is a lesson for all the stakeholders in this and one hopes that the project in whatever form does get to see the light of day.
posted by realestatevegas | 9:11 PM
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