In late 2017 and early 2018, drivers on the I-15 freeway in Las Vegas noticed two new major construction projects getting underway.
To the south, between Tropicana and Russell Road, in November 2017 a dark superstructure began rising on the West side of the highway that was frequently featured on TV news as our highly-anticipated new sports stadium.
Four miles to the north, at Desert Inn and Rancho Drive, just two months later – in January 2018 also on the West side and adjacent to the freeway – a second large project broke ground and began taking shape… but with little notice and/or sensationalism.
Over the next two-and-a-half years, some 350,000-plus freeway drivers watched the daily progress of these two structures. When completed, there was a massive 10-story “Allegiant” sports stadium located at the South end of the Strip… and at the other end stood an ominous 200,000 sq. ft. dark gray windowless two-story building with mysterious signage… AREA 15.
Fanfare and Surprises
These the two projects – started two months apart, each taking 2.5 years to complete and finished just two months apart – both had their openings temporarily delayed and impacted by the pandemic that shut-down Vegas.
In spite of this, on July 31, 2020 Allegiant stadium opened with great media fanfare and big expectations, to host high-profile Raiders games, big name concerts and even Super Bowl LVIII… while conversely, just two months later, AREA 15 opened quietly… with little notice and limited attendance per COVID-19 restrictions… to introduce a totally new, unique and unlikely attraction for the Entertainment Capital of the World.
Once fully operational – and over the next few years – their popularity and attendance numbers surprised planners, owners and locals alike.
While Allegiant Stadium exceeded initial projections, with 4.7 million attendees by 2024… the mysterious AREA 15 welcomed over 13 million visitors in that same period.
Even more surprising, AREA 15 drew over three million visitors in 2022 alone… making it the most-visited attraction in the United States. Same thing again in 2023.
Such an impressive debut demonstrated this attraction’s amazing popularity and immediate success. It also begs the question: What exactly is AREA 15?
Now for Something Different
AREA 15 is the brainchild of Winston Fisher – partner and principal of Fisher Brothers, a 115-year-old Fortune 500 real estate investment and management firm headquartered in New York.
In addition to owning and managing a large number of upscale properties in New York and Washington, DC, Fisher Brothers was looking to expand… not only to other cities, but also into new ventures and opportunities as well.
Excerpts from the company’s mission statement provides some insight. “Fisher Brothers aims to create purpose-driven developments that embrace disruption” (interesting) and “to establish a new standard for emotionally connected real estate” (clues number one and two).
With that credo mind, Winston Fisher soon focused on Las Vegas as having great potential for a yet-to-be-determined, but forward-thinking, mixed-use project of some sort.
In 2005, Fisher Brothers bought a large parcel of land at the corner of Desert Inn and Rancho Drive, then occupied by a Mercedes-Benz dealership and the Scandia Family Fun Entertainment Center. But just as decisions were being made and finalized, planning was derailed by the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008.
“Ex” Marks the Spot
By 2016, markets stabilized and planning for a Vegas project resumed – but this time with a new twist. The uniqueness and booming tourism of Las Vegas, along with the growing popularity of “immersive” entertainment – fueled by 18 to 34 Gen-Z and young Millennials – sparked Winston Fisher’s imagination.
“I want to create something that doesn’t exist,” he decided. Teaming up with famed New York designers, Beneville Studios – known for their super creativity and out-of-the-box thinking – together, Winston Fisher and Michael Beneville did just that… imagining and creating a never-before-seen original concept for a science fiction themed, “beyond George Jetson,” entertainment and retail complex that could, and would, successfully compete with the Las Vegas Strip just across the I-15 Freeway.
Fisher’s “doesn’t exist” was the first “ex” word used to describe AREA 15 (so named as a tongue-in-cheek tribute to the famous nearby Area 51), but it would not be the last.
There are between 1,500 and 2,900 words beginning with “ex” in English dictionaries, and a sub-set of 200 or so specifically pertaining to experiences… many of which describe and define AREA 15… from extrasensory and extraordinary to exciting, experimental and (a brand-new word created just for AREA 15) – experium.
I am Curious
It was time for a visit to AREA 15 and a first-hand “experience” of my own. Not sure what to expect… and ready to explore… these were my “ex” words.
Saturday afternoon, about 3:00 pm, was surprisingly busy. Following groups of people entering through two doors simply marked “enter” – within a few steps through a space-age themed tunnel – a sunny day suddenly exploded into a blast of glowing black light and brilliant LED colors with multi-color laser beams piercing the darkness. Quite the spectacular introduction.
The second surprise upon entering, there was no general admission… and you were simply on your own… greeted by a 12-foot illuminated Skull, first seen at the 2014 Burning Man festival… and one of the many artworks brought to AREA15 from the annual tribute to mind-bending art and self-expression held in the Nevada desert.
Stepping around the glowing Skull, you begin to get the idea. This a Star Wars-worthy futuristic “Mall” with curious attractions and immersive experiences lining the perimeter. Walking the circular aisle, called the “Spine,” you learn (just like a traditional mall), you can wander through any of the shops, have a bite to eat or a drink at one of the bars, pay to enter any one of the many intriguing immersive experiences…. or simply just stroll and take in the sights.
The AREA 15 Experience
The world’s first immersive entertainment complex of experiential attractions offers mind-bending adventures… where you fly like a bird… play virtual dodgeball … and shop the famous “Omega Mart” anchor attraction by Meow Wolf, a big and whimsical supermarket façade where every display and hidden door opens a passage to surreal worlds, extraordinary experiences and jaw-dropping interactive art, along with a secret bar and out-of-the ordinary cocktails.
There are 20 attractions overall, many of which offer fun physical activities like indoor golf, axe throwing and simulated Grand Prix racing… or you can hang-glide and soar overhead circling the Spine down below on “Haley’s Comet.” There are nine bars in all, as well as “eats and treats” for every taste, from “The Beast” eclectic gastropub and “Kaia” Asian/Sushi Bar to the walk-up “Conduit Café” and a psychedelic soda and candy shop, “Rocket Fizz,” to name but a few.
In the center of the mall, the big “Oddwood Bar” sits under a 23-foot digital tree with 5,000 LED leaves changing colors… next to a peaceful bamboo tented rest area, called the “Sanctuary.”
Back to Reality… or Not
The AREA 15 building is just the beginning. Once you exit and are back outside, you immediately encounter more experiential immersive entertainment options, like (left to right) an outdoor exhibit and array of large unique artworks, many drawn from previous Burning Man festivals.
Next to that, is “Liftoff,” an outdoor bar where you can order a cocktail and sit on the patio or take it aboard the Liftoff ride that rises 130-feet and slowly revolves 360º for a panoramic view of Las Vegas.
Next to that, on the Southwest corner, are three more individual immersive experiences. First is “Illuminarium,” with sensory day/night futuristic visuals, next “Army of the Dead,” lets visitors fight off zombies in a thrilling VR experience and the latest just-opened attraction, the “John Wick Experience,” an immersive visit to the dangerous and captivating Las Vegas Continental Hotel, filled with criminals and assassins based on the exciting world of John Wick films by Lionsgate. There’s also a hotel bar where one can relax and refresh after fighting crime.
Vegas Immersive District
As they say in TV Infomercials, “But wait… there’s more!” The City of Las Vegas, in cooperation with Fisher Brothers, recently authorized and created a 20-acre expansion adjacent to the AREA 15 Campus – that continues North on Rancho Drive and alongside the I-15 Freeway – called the “Vegas Immersive District.”
Planned to be developed in phases, the first of which is already under construction and well underway. The major anchor tenant is “Universal Horror Unleashed,” a year-round fully immersive horror experience by Universal Destinations & Experiences, with four haunted houses of bone-chilling terrors along with live entertainment, eats and eerie craft cocktails – scheduled to open in late 2025.
There are also a number of surrounding buildings ready for soon-to-open and/or future cutting-edge shops, restaurants and immersive experiences that include just-announced new tenants, like the “iFLY Indoor Skydiving” vertical wind-tunnel, “Interstellar Arc,” a 26th century immersive deep-space mission, “The Escape Game,” where you crack codes, uncover clues and solve puzzles and the innovative 30,000 square foot “Museum of Ice Cream” experium with an ice cream buffet, ice cream-themed hotel suites and a swimming pool filled with sprinkles for kids to dive into, as well as the forward-fashion “Dolls Kill” flagship store of alternative haute couture… to name but a few.
The Strip 2.0
The new “Vegas Immersive District” entertainment corridor will continue to expand North along Rancho Drive to further include a future-planned 200 room boutique hotel and large mixed-use residential and commercial complex called “Vegas Rising,” with 1,350 new town homes and hi-rise apartments surrounding a central park and commercial district. For this, 110 aging homes were recently cleared and the property is ready to begin construction in the near future.
“The caliber of tenants joining us illustrates the scope and scale of the transformative vision we’re pioneering in Las Vegas,” notes Winston Fisher, Chief Executive Officer of AREA15. “These concepts represent just the beginning as we continue to partner with visionary brands to shape an unparalleled destination for exploration and immersive entertainment.”
That Which “Does Not Exist”
“Four years ago, we set out to redefine what entertainment means in Las Vegas,” Fisher continues. “AREA15 has become the demonstrated thought leader for fusing immersive attractions and entertainment, and we’re elated to spearhead the future of the ‘experience’ economy… making it the place to be for the next generation of Las Vegas visitors.”
The expansion of AREA 15 and the adjacent Vegas Immersive District has just been further supported with a $161 million construction financing package orchestrated by Fisher Brothers… that will bring even more family-friendly, non-gambling, new immersive experiences to the Entertainment Capital of the World.
“Las Vegas has always been a place that continually reinvents itself,” states Las Vegas Mayor, Shelly Berkley, “always offering new experiences and amenities that keep visitors returning time and time again.”
“The new Vegas Immersive District expands the already incredibly popular AREA15,” she adds, “bringing even more places to eat, drink and play. Visitors to Las Vegas have a world of unique experiences at their fingertips… that they will remember for a lifetime.”
AREA 15… a vision promised… and a vision “that does not exist” delivered.
Come curious… and leave different.
Don Logay is an award-winning journalist and former Editor-in-Chief of three national magazines. Today he writes luxury lifestyle articles for numerous publications. He can be reached at (949) 240-4444 or [email protected].
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