Las Vegas Puts $4.2 Million Behind Its Creative Future

City Council unanimously approves major funding for THIRD Street Arts & Media Incubator, bringing a transformative new home for film, performance, education, and the arts one step closer to reality.

LAS VEGAS | November 4, 2026 — In a significant victory for Las Vegas’ growing creative community, the Las Vegas City Council has unanimously approved up to $4.2 million in Redevelopment Agency funding for THIRD Street Arts & Media Incubator, advancing one of Downtown Las Vegas’ most ambitious cultural development projects.

The investment represents more than the renovation of a former movie theater. It signals a growing recognition that the artists, filmmakers, performers, and creative professionals who call Las Vegas home deserve the infrastructure, resources, and opportunities to build sustainable careers in their own city.

Located at 814 South Third Street in the Las Vegas Arts District, THIRD Street is transforming the former Eclipse Theaters complex into an approximately 41,000-square-foot multidisciplinary creative campus. The ambitious project will bring performance venues, film and media production facilities, educational classrooms, collaborative workspaces, and workforce development programs together under one roof.

For a city internationally recognized for its entertainment industry, the development addresses an important distinction: the difference between being a destination for entertainment and becoming a place where original creative work is developed, produced, and sustained.

A $4.2 Million Investment in Local Creativity

The newly approved funding will advance Phase 1A of the project, which includes combining two former cinema auditoriums into a flexible studio theater accommodating approximately 250 guests.

Construction improvements will include accessible public areas, upgraded safety infrastructure, restrooms, dressing rooms, performer support facilities, and improved connectivity between the building’s upper levels.

“This is a great day for THIRD Street and for Las Vegas,” said Daz Weller, CEO of THIRD Street.

Weller described the City’s investment as a powerful vote of confidence in the project’s future, emphasizing the opportunity to provide local artists with the platforms and resources necessary to create meaningful work.

The funding is structured as a reimbursement of eligible project expenses, subject to the agreement’s requirements, rather than an unrestricted cash grant.

THIRD Street is also seeking approximately $3.3 million in complementary private capital to cover additional construction, design, permitting, and equipment costs associated with Phase 1A.

Together, these investments could establish a long-term foundation for an increasingly diverse creative economy in Downtown Las Vegas.

Building Careers, Not Just Stages

Perhaps the most significant aspect of THIRD Street’s vision is its commitment to developing the people behind the productions.

While Las Vegas has never lacked artistic talent, access to professional production facilities, educational opportunities, and sustainable career pathways has remained a challenge for many independent creatives.

THIRD Street intends to help close that gap.

Through its Creative Futures @THIRD Street initiative, the organization is developing educational and workforce training opportunities designed to connect students and emerging professionals with practical experience across the entertainment and creative industries.

A formal dual enrollment partnership with the College of Southern Nevada will help establish pathways for high school students to earn college credits and industry-aligned credentials while gaining experience in technical theater, media production, hospitality, and related disciplines.

“We want creative people to see a future for themselves in Las Vegas.”

“We want creative people to see a future for themselves in Las Vegas,” said Ginger Land-van Buuren, COO of THIRD Street. “That means nurturing our people and the culture they create.”

The initiative recognizes something increasingly important to Nevada’s creative economy: developing a sustainable entertainment industry requires more than attracting productions and performances. It requires cultivating the technicians, production crews, designers, editors, performers, and other professionals responsible for bringing those projects to life.

By connecting education with practical training and access to working production spaces, THIRD Street has the potential to help retain local talent while preparing a new generation of entertainment professionals.

A New Chapter for Downtown Las Vegas

THIRD Street’s development arrives at an important moment for Las Vegas.

Across the valley, independent filmmakers, musicians, theater companies, designers, and creative entrepreneurs are finding new ways to collaborate, produce original work, and build audiences.

But a flourishing creative community also needs physical infrastructure: places to rehearse, film, record, edit, perform, and connect.

THIRD Street’s multidisciplinary approach is especially compelling because it recognizes that these creative industries do not exist independently of one another.

Film intersects with music. Theater creates opportunities for actors, writers, designers, and technicians. Media production gives artists new ways to reach audiences beyond the city.

A shared creative campus could allow these disciplines to collaborate in ways that strengthen the entire ecosystem.

The project’s financial support also extends beyond City Hall. Philanthropic commitments include contributions from Zachary and Xiaoning Smith, whose family supports THIRD Street both as landlord and patron.

Their involvement, alongside public investment and educational partnerships, reflects the type of collaboration necessary to establish lasting creative infrastructure.

For Las Vegas, the broader opportunity is clear: invest in the people and institutions creating entertainment, not simply the venues where entertainment is consumed.

The Gala & Cockroach Ball: November 14

With the City’s commitment secured, THIRD Street is inviting the community to participate in its next chapter.

On Saturday, November 14, the organization will host its inaugural Gala & Cockroach Ball, an evening celebrating Las Vegas creativity while raising support for the development.

The gala begins at 5:30 p.m. and will honor legendary magician Teller, featuring performances by Human Nature and Piff the Magic Dragon.

Jessica Rosado will serve as emcee, with dinner prepared by Chef Lanny Chin.

At 8:30 p.m., the celebration transforms into the Cockroach Ball, a building-wide experience embracing the city’s artistic spirit through music, live performances, interactive art, and unconventional entertainment.

The event offers supporters, artists, and community members an opportunity to experience the vision behind THIRD Street while contributing to its realization.

Investing in the City That Creates

For years, conversations about the future of entertainment in Nevada have often centered on attracting major productions, outside investment, and large-scale studio developments.

THIRD Street offers another important perspective.

What happens when Las Vegas invests directly in the creative community already here?

The $4.2 million commitment is a substantial step forward, although fundraising and construction milestones remain ahead. Its ultimate impact will be measured not simply by the completion of another cultural venue, but by the opportunities it creates for local artists and the careers it helps sustain.

Las Vegas has spent decades building its identity as the Entertainment Capital of the World.

Projects like THIRD Street suggest that the next chapter may be defined just as much by the entertainment created here as the entertainment brought here.

For tickets and sponsorship opportunities for the November 14 Gala & Cockroach Ball, visit thirdstreet.vegas/gala.