Raiders purchase land near Las Vegas Strip for new stadium

The Oakland Raiders have checked off one more item on a long to-do list in their effort to move to Las Vegas after buying more than 60 acres near the Las Vegas Strip where their partially tax-funded, 65,000-seat stadium is to be built.

A sale deed that became effective Monday shows a team-owned company paid $77.5 million for four parcels in an area west of the Mandalay Bay hotel-casino. Projections from the public board overseeing the $1.9 billion project had put the cost of the land at $100 million.

The team did not respond to requests from The Associated Press seeking comment on the purchase. The Raiders have taken more than 40,000 refundable $100 deposits for personal seat licenses since NFL owners approved their relocation to Sin City in March.

The Raiders' plan is to start playing at the proposed domed stadium during the 2020 season. They will be bound to Sin City for at least 30 years.

But the team and the Las Vegas Stadium Authority board have to tackle a laundry list of things before any ground-breaking ceremony takes place.

More than 10 agreements, including a lease and a separate sublease involving the University of Nevada, Las Vegas football team, are still pending. So is a study of the project by officials in Clark County, where the stadium is to be located. Questions over limited parking at the chosen stadium site are lingering.

Guests of hotels and other lodging facilities in the Las Vegas area are contributing $750 million to the project through an increase in the room tax. The Raiders and the NFL are expected to contribute $500 million. In addition, the team has said it has secured a $650 million loan from the Bank of America to cover the rest of the project's cost.

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