Developers are among the riskiest owners to build for, a principle proven again in 2023 when financial problems stopped work on the Las Vegas Dream resort project. Shopoff Realty Investment never re-started work and St. Louis-based McCarthy Building Cos., its construction manager, filed a $40-million lien.
On August 21, McCarthy bought the partly built property for $17.2 million, real estate records show. Prior to the purchase the contractor had paid off the project’s subcontractor liens.
News site AltsWire reported that the Dream resort had been planned as a 20-story, 527-room building and that at the time work stopped construction was 20% complete.
When work stopped in 2023, Bill Shopoff, CEO of the Irvine, Calif.-based developer, said in a statement, “As soon as the financing is in place, the project’s construction will be restarted, and we have every intention to complete this project as planned.
Shopoff had said the firm was in active discussions lenders to finalize terms.
“Las Vegas history is littered with projects that started and stalled due to lack of funding,” wrote Scott Roeben on the vitalvegas.com website. He cited the Skyvue observation wheel, and the St. Regis Residences at the Venetian, among others. “The list goes on and on.”
McCarthy said in a statement that it had no particular plan for developing the property and a spokeswoman for the company could not immediately be reached for further comment.
