Henderson’s M Resort has turned its expansion from a construction bet into operating capacity: the 384-room second hotel tower opened December 1, 2025. On the south Strip, the Athletics’ ballpark project is moving through construction, with the team listing 2028 as its opening target. One development is already taking guests; the other is still building toward its first pitch.
The money and timing tell the story. PENN Entertainment announced a $206 million budget for the M Resort expansion when construction began in 2023. The finished project brought the resort to 765 rooms and suites and added a 15,000-square-foot ballroom. The A’s stadium, planned for the former Tropicana site, is a separate project with its own construction, financing framework and delivery schedule.
These are two investments in the Las Vegas visitor economy, not a formally announced contest between Henderson and the Strip. M Resort has added resort and group-business capacity in Henderson. The ballpark is designed to add a major-league sports venue to the south Strip corridor. Whether either project generates broader gains for nearby businesses will depend on how visitors use the added capacity, not on the announcement alone.
What has changed at M Resort?
A completed expansion, not a future plan
The second tower nearly doubles M Resort’s hotel capacity. PENN said the property now has 765 rooms and suites, alongside more than 100,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting and event space. The Montese Ballroom, a 15,000-square-foot addition, opened in October 2025, before the tower’s December opening.
The completion matters because it moves the project into the commercial test: filling rooms, booking events and converting traffic into spending at the resort. PENN estimated the expansion would add 120 jobs to the property’s workforce. That was the company’s estimate, not a published count of jobs ultimately added.
The resort sits on the southeast corner of St. Rose Parkway and Las Vegas Boulevard, south of the Strip. Its expanded inventory gives it more room to pursue group business while serving the local market. That is a stronger position than the previous footprint, but it does not guarantee occupancy or event bookings. Those results depend on demand and execution.
The project’s announced $206 million budget is a development estimate from the 2023 groundbreaking announcement. At the December 2025 opening, PENN said the work was completed on budget and ahead of schedule. The company also disclosed that it received $150 million in funding from Gaming and Leisure Properties in connection with the project. Those figures describe the resort expansion, not the Athletics’ stadium financing.
Where does the A’s ballpark stand?
Construction is underway, with 2028 as the target
The Athletics’ ballpark is planned for the former Tropicana site at the southeast corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Tropicana Avenue. The team’s official construction page provides construction-camera access, and its ballpark site lists an opening in 2028. That is the team’s stated target, not a guarantee of a specific opening date.
Nevada’s Legislature established a legal framework for financing a Major League Baseball stadium project, including a stadium district in the general area of the site and provisions for certain public financing mechanisms. The state’s SB1 overview describes the framework. It does not make the stadium’s cost, financing mix or eventual economic return interchangeable with the M Resort’s $206 million expansion budget.
The stadium is intended to create a recurring sports and entertainment draw. Games would add events to the region’s calendar, but projected visitor spending is not the same as realized economic impact. The practical milestones are completion of construction, the team’s ability to open on schedule and the development of an event operation that can attract fans and visitors.
Two investments, different measures of success
M Resort and the ballpark occupy different positions in the market. The resort’s added rooms and meeting space are available now. The ballpark remains a project under construction, with its opening target in the future. Comparing them as if they were competing for identical customers misses the central business distinction: one expands an existing hotel operation; the other aims to add a new sports venue.
For Henderson, the near-term question is whether the larger M Resort can sustain room demand and book the group business its expansion was built to serve. For the ballpark, the near-term question is delivery. Construction progress and the 2028 target matter more than hypothetical game-day spending until the venue is operating.
Both projects also rely on the wider Las Vegas economy. More rooms and more events create opportunity, but they do not automatically produce repeat visits, local hiring or benefits for neighboring businesses. The durable measure is performance after opening: bookings, attendance, jobs and spending that can be sustained over time.
The valley is widening its development portfolio, but the projects are at different points in the deal cycle. Henderson has already put new hotel capacity to work. The A’s still have a stadium to deliver. In Las Vegas, the advantage goes to the investment that turns plans and concrete into dependable demand.
