City near Las Vegas OKs offering land to Raiders for facility

HENDERSON, Nev. -- The Oakland Raiders are one step closer to securing the land for their new headquarters and practice facility near Las Vegas at a steep discount.

Officials in suburban Henderson on Tuesday approved a resolution that allows the city to move forward with a direct sale of 55 acres for more than $6 million -- half the land's appraised value. The city is using a Nevada law that allows for no-bid sales at under-market prices when they are considered to be in the public interest.

"This is an opportunity to take the city of Henderson to a new level," Assistant City Manager Greg Blackburn said during the city council meeting ahead of the resolution vote. "It's hard to put a dollar value to what this does to help us for the future."

The Raiders have promised that the venue will create an estimated 250 full-time jobs not counting players. The team will spend about $75 million to build the complex.

The team wants to kick off the 2020 season at a new 65,000-seat domed stadium being built partially with taxpayers' money across the freeway from the Las Vegas Strip. The team in May paid $77.5 million for the 62-acre site and hosted a glitzy groundbreaking ceremony in November.

Guests of hotels and other lodging facilities in the Las Vegas area are contributing $750 million to the project through a room tax increase. The Raiders and the NFL are expected to contribute $500 million to the project, while the team has secured a $600 million bank loan for the construction.

The Henderson City Council must vote again next month to give final approval to the offer.

Henderson officials said the city will benefit from property taxes collected on the land and additional spending from visitors and team clients. City staff said similar projects have created an estimated $210 million tax impact over a decade after the venues are fully built.