Jeffrey Soffer and Brett Mufson

The long and treacherous journey back to Las Vegas is finally over for Jeffrey Soffer. The saga began in the early 2000s when the Miami developer announced plans to bring Miami Beach’s iconic Fontainebleau, which Soffer has owned since 2005, to Sin City. But the Great Recession halted construction, forcing Soffer to hand back the keys. 

In 2021, Soffer triumphantly returned, buying back the project in partnership with Koch Real Estate Investments. In late 2022, the new owners secured a $2.2 billion construction loan from JPMorgan Chase, an eye-popping number given the skyrocketing interest rates that had slowed the debt market.

Finally, this December, the 67-story Fontainebleau Las Vegas opened to great fanfare. Opening night attracted Kim Kardashian, Tom Brady, Cher and Lenny Kravitz in addition to a performance by Justin Timberlake. While the 3,600-room property has drawn the ire of TikTokers for pint-sized nachos, and four high-level staffers have left, bumps are to be expected for a new hotel. 

For Super Bowl weekend, the resort boasted some of the most expensive rates in the city, with prices soaring to $1,600 a night. Some of its clubs are commanding entry fees ranging from $7,000 and $55,000.

Even in Vegas, the Fontainebleau resort remains an advertisement for the Magic City. Soffer, along with Fountainbleu president Brett Mufson, lured several Miami institutions to the casino, including the nightclub LIV and eateries Komodo, El Bagel and Miami Slice. 

In Miami Beach, the Fontainebleau remains a stalwart of South Florida hospitality. To accommodate demand, the oceanfront resort is expanding. The firm secured a $73 million construction loan from Goldman Sachs to add a five-story events center.

The year did bring some losses, such as the closure of the Story nightclub and a failed lobbying effort for a casino at the Fountainbleu. But even the losses have some upside. Days after purchasing the building that housed the Story nightclub in Miami Beach’s upscale South of Fifth neighborhood, the establishment closed because of a newly instituted alcohol curfew. Despite the closure, the two-story property still has value as developable land in a prime Miami Beach locale.