Love is coming to the Las Vegas Strip in the shape of a new heart-shaped hotel

Couples looking for the ultimate romantic getaway in Las Vegas may soon be able to avoid any "Heartbreak Hotel" and instead check into a heart-shaped resort.Permits for a new heart-shaped resort were approved by Clark County commissioners Wednesday, giving developer Eli Applebaum, through Kulik River Capital, the go-ahead to transform one of the Strip's most recognizable eyesores, the long-abandoned SkyVue Ferris wheel site near Mandalay Bay, into a new entertainment destination.Plans envisage a 29-story hotel tower with a massive heart-shaped opening at its center and an exterior wrapped in LED screens.

The resort would also feature more than 42,000 square feet of convention space, a casino, restaurants, retail shops, a pool and a covered pedestrian plaza inspired by the Fremont Street Experience, the five-block downtown Vegas entertainment district known for its massive LED canopy, neon lights, free live music and the SlotZilla zipline.It’s hoped the project could breathe new life into the unfinished SkyVue development, which has sat abandoned for more than a decade. Originally proposed in 2011 as a more than $100 million entertainment complex with a giant observation wheel, roller coaster and retail promenade, construction stalled because of financial troubles, leaving behind only two towering concrete support columns.

open image in galleryThe Las Vegas resort is planned as a 29-story hotel tower featuring a massive heart-shaped opening and an LED-covered exterior (Clark County)open image in galleryThe unfinished SkyVue development’s towering concrete pillars, long known as a Vegas eyesore, would be transformed into a 265-foot-high restaurant above the new resort (Clark County)Instead of tearing down those unfinished structures, developers plan to incorporate them into the new resort by converting them into a 265-foot-high restaurant suspended above the property.The eye-catching addition to Vegas’ skyline would arrive amid declining tourism, with visitor numbers dropping 7.5 percent to about 38.

5 million in 2025 as rising costs, international travel restrictions and increased competition from sports betting and online casinos weighed on demand, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Join our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments