Wynn Resorts Inc., the casino company led by Stephen Wynn, plans to build a second resort in Las Vegas, where tourism is increasing yearly.
Wynn Resorts will put the $1.4 billion resort, called Encore, next to its new Wynn Las Vegas hotel, which is scheduled to open April 28. Encore is expected to open in 2008, the company said Tuesday in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The Wall Street Journal reported the story Wednesday.
The company had initially planned to build a smaller tower for $900 million. Las Vegas, the world's largest casino market, had a record 37.4 million visitors last year, the third straight year of gains, according to the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority.
Wynn spokeswoman Denise Randazzo didn't return a call for comment.
Competitors are expanding also. Las Vegas Sands Corp. is building the Palazzo Casino Resort next to its Venetian casino on the Las Vegas Strip for $1.6 billion. Caesars Entertainment Inc. will open an expanded 949-room hotel tower at its flagship Caesars Palace later this year.
Wynn's sites are also on the four-mile Strip.
The Wynn Las Vegas hotel has 2,716 hotel rooms, an 18-hole golf course and a 110,000-square-foot casino. The complex cost $2.7 billion. Wynn also is building a resort in Macau, a territory of China, expected to open in 2006, and may build a casino in Singapore.
Shares of Wynn fell 1.3 percent to $71.89 Wednesday in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. They have more than doubled in the past year.