Nevada tourism panel discusses 9 potential sites for Raiders stadium

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- As theOakland Raiders' interest in Las Vegas as a new home remains strong, the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee held a special meeting Monday to discuss nine potential sites for a65,000-seat stadium.

The estimated price tag has gone up, from an initial $1.4 billion to possibly as much as $2.1 billion. The rise in price would be in part due to land acquisitions, as well as the stadium now being proposed as a retractable dome.

Raiders owner Mark Davis has said that he would prefer a retractable dome as well as a natural grass playing surface, though when it comes to a location in Las Vegas, Davis told ESPN.com he was "site agnostic."

Also, the committee, which was initially to dispand at the end of July, will ask Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, who convened the committee, for two more months before issuing an official recommendation.

The nine sites discussed:

A 42-acre site owned by UNLV at the corner of Tropicana Avenue and Koval Lane, though it is across the street from McCarran International Airport and in the flight path, and Southwest Airlines already has written its protest to such a site.

A 65-acre site just east on Tropicana, on the UNLV campus in the Thomas & Mack Center's parking lot.

A site on more than 100 acres farther west on Tropicana just off Interstate 15 that is owned by the Fertitta family, which just reportedly sold UFC for $4 billion.

A 47-acre site where the Riviera Hotel & Casino stood on Las Vegas Boulevard, an area owned by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

A 35-acre site on the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara Avenue that is referred to as the "Rock in Rio" festival grounds and is owned by MGM Resorts International.

A 50-acre site where Cashman Field now sits near North Las Vegas, as the baseball Triple-A team Las Vegas 51s, a minor league affiliate of theNew York Mets, will soon move to a new facility in Summerlin, northwestof downtown Las Vegas.

A 62-acre site west and across I-15 of Mandalay Bay on Russell Road.

A 139-acre site on the Wynn Golf Club, east of Wynn Encore and Wynn Las Vegas, off the Strip.

A 27-acre site on Las Vegas Boulevard where the Wet 'n' Wild water park stood.