Las Vegas' Venetian Casino Plans $1 Bln Expansion

(Bloomberg) -- Las Vegas Sands Inc. plans to spend about $1 billion adding 4,100 rooms to its Venetian casino in Las Vegas, which would make it the world's largest hotel, said Sands President William Weidner.

Sands would add 1,100 rooms to the Venetian in 2002, Weidner said, and start work on a 3,000-room hotel building on the property later that year. The Venetian would then have more than 7,000 rooms, surpassing MGM Grand's 5,034 rooms to become the world's biggest hotel.

Weidner said the 3,000-room hotel wouldn't follow the same design as the existing Venetian casino. The Venetian, on the Las Vegas Strip, opened in 1999.

``The idea is to try to create another experience,'' giving people ``new reasons'' to visit Las Vegas, said Weidner.

The expansion comes amid a slowdown in gaming revenue in Las Vegas. MGM Mirage Inc. said last month it's delaying a development next to its Bellagio casino in Las Vegas to focus on a new resort next to a $1 billion hotel and casino it's building in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

The Las Vegas Sun previously reported the expansion plans.