With the final structural beam installed in the new $375 million Las Vegas arena Wednesday, talk of an NHL franchise in Nevada is picking up.
The lead investor in the bid to land an NHL franchise in Las Vegas, Bill Foley, is reportedly set to meet with the NHL’s Board of Governors next month to continue discussing a potential expansion franchise, according to 8 News Now in Las Vegas.
Foley and his minority partners, the Maloof brothers of Las Vegas, would like to have an NHL franchise in Las Vegas by 2017.
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Foley recently uprooted himself from Jacksonville, Florida, and relocated to Nevada in hopes of bolstering his bid. His mortgage and title company, Fidelity National Financial, is based out of Jacksonville.
“I know the league wants local ownership,” Foley told 8 News Now. “Now I’m here, I am going to be a local owner and I’m going to be involved in the community. We’re helping local charities as part of our hockey endeavour. We’re going to be embedded in this community. I know we’re doing everything right.”
The arena is set to open in April of 2016. Approximately 11,500 deposits have been secured in the prospective ownership group’s season ticket drive and an additional 735 seats in the arena’s planned 42 suites have been sold.
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