As the 2019 Triple-A baseball season came to a close last month, there was much to celebrate in the master-planned community of Summerlin®. Las Vegas Ballpark® and the city’s beloved Triple-A professional baseball team, renamed this year as the Las Vegas Aviators®, both enjoyed record-setting inaugural seasons that uplifted the entire community.
Capturing national attention with a growing suite of awards and setting records within the world of Minor League Baseball, both the Ballpark and the team, a member of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and affiliate of the Oakland Athletics, helped Downtown Summerlin® to solidify its popularity as one of the valley’s premier dining, retail, entertainment and sports destinations.
Opening just five months ago to significant fanfare, Las Vegas Ballpark is located in Downtown Summerlin, the community’s urban core. It was envisioned from inception and developed by Hughes as a major league venue for the city’s beloved minor league team. Designed by HOK, a national architecture firm with more than 40 major sports stadiums and arenas to its credit, Las Vegas Ballpark boasts a capacity of more than 10,000, features a wide range of seating options including 22 suites, club seats, berm seating, party zones and decks, kids’ zone, bars and even a pool beyond the outfield wall where it’s possible to watch the game while floating.
Similar to the fairy tale first year of the National Hockey League’s Vegas Golden Knights, whose practice facility, City National Arena, is adjacent Las Vegas Ballpark in Downtown Summerlin, the Las Vegas Aviators also enjoyed storybook success during the team’s inaugural year as the Aviators. Leading Triple-A baseball in home attendance with 47 sold-out games and average attendance of nearly 9,300 visitors—more than double the attendance of previous seasons, the Las Vegas Ballpark total regular season attendance eclipsed 650,000 in 70 games with 23 crowds of 10,000-plus. The team finished the year as the 2019 PCL Pacific Southern Division Champions.
According to Professional Sports Catering, a subsidiary of Levy and the official hospitality partner at Las Vegas Ballpark, the Ballpark’s food and beverage sales are higher than those at several Major League Baseball stadiums. In fact, Hughes worked hard to develop an elevated food and beverage program at Las Vegas Ballpark that upgraded the classics and expanded traditional fare to include community favorites from popular area restaurants, including a special collection of hot dogs called FLYDOG by chef Brian Howard of Sparrow + Wolf. Celebrity chef takeovers at select games draw huge crowds. Among them is Giada De Laurentiis, whose custom frosé is served stadium-wide during every game. And merchandise sales at Las Vegas Ballpark are double initial projections, a testament to the community’s embrace of the team.
“The excitement and enthusiasm for baseball and Las Vegas Ballpark is palpable in Downtown Summerlin,” said Kevin T. Orrock, President, Summerlin. “Not only is the Ballpark the area’s newest landmark, it is a place where families and friends come together to enjoy good baseball, good food and good fun. It’s not lost on us that baseball is America’s national pastime, and as the best place in Southern Nevada to live, raise a family, work and play, Summerlin and baseball go hand in hand.”
While Las Vegas Ballpark and the Las Vegas Aviators won numerous awards this year, among the highest profile honors are those from Ballpark Digest, the industry standard for the business of baseball. On Aug. 30, Ballpark Digest announced that Las Vegas Ballpark was selected as the ballpark of the year, and the Las Vegas Aviators are the team of the year. This is the first time Ballpark Digest has awarded both a stadium and its affiliated team with top honors during the same year.
Downtown Summerlin’s retail center was also uplifted by the success of Las Vegas Ballpark and the Las Vegas Aviators. With more than 125 national and regional retail and restaurant brands arrayed in a vibrant outdoor setting, Downtown Summerlin boasts annual visitation of more than 18 million annually. Once 2019 figures are compiled, that number is expected to approach 20 million thanks to the influx of baseball fans who took advantage of the destination’s shopping, dining and entertainment offerings both before and after the season’s 71 home games.
Planned as a true urban living environment in the heart of suburbia, Downtown Summerlin is expected to offer more than 4,000 residences upon completion via an array of apartments, brownstones, lofts and condos. Today, the area is home to two luxury apartment communities that are meeting growing demand in Southern Nevada for a more experiential lifestyle and a smaller footprint with low maintenance.
In July, Hughes opened Tanager, boasting 267 apartments from 660 to 1,300 square feet. Tanager has a prime location at Downtown Summerlin and is within walking distance to all the retail, dining and entertainment options in the area. With an exceptional amenities package, such as innovative smart home technology powered by Dwelo, resort style pool, fitness center, gaming studio and a pet park, Tanager is nearly 40 percent leased, just weeks after opening.
“You could say that Las Vegas Ballpark was a real-life field of dreams,” said Orrock. “We built it, and they came. Literally. The entire community and the Downtown Summerlin area, in particular, were uplifted by the success of the ballpark and the team this past summer. We are already looking forward to next year.”
The master-planned community of Summerlin currently offers 155 floorplans in 35 neighborhoods throughout nine distinct villages. Homes are available in a variety of styles – from single-family homes to townhomes, priced from the mid-$200,000s to more than $1 million.
PHOTO CAPTIONS: Las Vegas Ballpark® and the city’s beloved Triple-A professional baseball team, renamed this year as the Las Vegas Aviators®, both enjoyed record-setting inaugural seasons that helped Downtown Summerlin® solidify its popularity as one of the valley’s premier dining, retail, entertainment and sports destinations. Attendance at Aviators games throughout the season topped 650,000, helping to fuel Downtown Summerlin’s 2019 record-setting visitation to an estimated 20-plus million.
About Summerlin
Developed by The Howard Hughes Corporation, Summerlin began to take shape in 1990 and has ranked in the country’s top 10 best-selling master-planned communities for nearly two decades. Located along the western rim of the Las Vegas valley, Summerlin encompasses 22,500 acres with approximately 6,000 gross acres still remaining to accommodate future growth, including infrastructure, open space and common areas, all within the master plan. The community is currently home to nearly 100,000 residents who enjoy an unparalleled list of amenities. These include more than 250 neighborhood and village parks, more than 150 completed miles of trails, 26 public and private schools, 14 houses of worship, ten golf courses, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks and dozens of actively selling floor plans. Homes are available in a variety of styles – from single-family homes to townhomes– priced from the $300,000s to more than $2.5 million. For information on custom homesites in The Ridges please call 702.255.2500. Luxury apartment homes offer monthly rents starting from the $900s.
About The Howard Hughes Corporation®
The Howard Hughes Corporation owns, manages and develops commercial, residential and mixed-use real estate throughout the U.S. Our properties include master planned communities, operating properties, development opportunities and other unique assets spanning 14 states from New York to Hawai‘i. The Howard Hughes Corporation is traded on the New York Stock Exchange as HHC with major offices in New York, Columbia, MD, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas and Honolulu. For additional information about HHC, visit www.howardhughes.com, or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
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