The pitch was bold. A luxury resort, restaurants, entertainment venues — and a casino — all near the site of the former Texas Stadium in Irving. But just before city officials could even weigh in, the casino plans were yanked from the table.
On Thursday, a top executive from Las Vegas Sands Corp. told Irving city leaders that the gaming part of the proposal was off. Just like that. Gone. No dice.
Community voices prove louder than corporate vision
Mark Boekenheide, a senior VP for Las Vegas Sands, showed up to a city council workshop ready to talk through the ambitious development. But he led with a surprise: the company was officially pulling the casino portion.
Why? Pushback. And plenty of it.
In recent weeks, opposition had grown louder. Residents, faith groups, and local leaders raised concerns about what a casino might bring — or take away. Talk of gambling addiction, crime, and changing the character of the city hit home. Some were fine with a resort, but not the roulette wheels.
One local council member described it bluntly: “We’re not Vegas. We don’t want to be Vegas.”
That sentiment, apparently, was loud enough to get heard in corporate boardrooms.
What’s still on the table for the massive resort plan?
The Sands resort project isn’t dead. Not even close.
Though the casino part is out, the rest of the blueprint still packs a punch:
- A 500-room luxury hotel
- High-end restaurants
- Concert and performance venues
- A convention center
- Retail spaces
Sands officials say the project can still revitalize the 80-acre site where Texas Stadium once stood, acting as a magnet for tourism and jobs — minus the slot machines.
Boekenheide insisted the company still sees Irving as a “world-class” destination. He described the new plans as a “multi-use development focused on entertainment, hospitality, and business events.”
Sands still wants a piece of Texas, but the law remains firm
Here’s the real kicker: casinos are still illegal in Texas.
Despite years of lobbying, legal gambling hasn’t made it past the Texas Legislature. Sands has spent big trying to change that — over $15 million in recent years on lobbyists and campaigns. They’ve even backed sports team owners, like Mark Cuban, who want to bring Vegas-style resorts to Texas.
But the law is stubborn.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has repeatedly blocked gambling bills in the Senate. And although public opinion is warming — recent polls show a majority of Texans now support legal casinos — lawmakers haven’t budged.
The move to remove the casino may be tactical. It gets the ball rolling on the development without running into immediate legal barriers. And if gambling laws ever change, Sands could slide it back in. Quietly.
Timing wasn’t random — here’s what happened behind the scenes
The decision to drop the casino wasn’t just a goodwill gesture.
Thursday evening was going to be pivotal. Irving city officials were set to formally consider early-stage approvals. The workshop wasn’t a vote, but it would’ve signaled support — or not — for the development.
Sources close to the project say internal polling didn’t look good. There were signs that some council members were on the fence or leaning against the project because of the casino. That uncertainty likely pushed Sands to act preemptively.
Pulling the casino language may have been the only way to keep the bigger resort plan alive.
One Irving official said, “It wasn’t going to pass with the casino. It just wasn’t.”
Local response: relief, suspicion, and lingering questions
Some local residents celebrated the news like a win. Online forums lit up. “We stood up to them and they blinked,” one commenter wrote.
But not everyone’s convinced the casino is gone for good.
Critics say it could easily come back once legal tides shift in Texas. They worry this is just a “foot in the door” — that Sands will build the infrastructure now and simply plug in the gambling later.
“It’s a bait and switch,” said longtime Irving resident Martha Lyles. “They’ll wait us out.”
Still, with the casino piece removed, many who were on the fence may now see an opportunity — a big investment with fewer risks.
