The Venetian Las Vegas is a luxury hotel and casino resort located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States, on the site of the old Sands Hotel. Designed by KlingStubbins, the hotel tower contains 36 stories and rises . The Venetian is owned by Vici Properties and operated by Apollo Global Management. The Venetian resort complex includes the adjacent Palazzo resort and The Venetian Convention and Expo Center center, as well as the upcoming MSG Sphere at The Venetian. The Venetian-Palazzo complex includes the world's second-largest hotel, with 4,049 rooms, 3,068 suites and a casino.; History In April 1996, Sheldon Adelson announced plans to create the largest resort on the Strip. This project would be situated on the former Sands property. On November 26, 1996, eight years after it was purchased by the owners of The Interface Group—Adelson, Richard Katzeff, Ted Cutler, Irwin Chafetz and Jordan Shapiro, the Sands Hotel was imploded to make way for The Venetian Resort Hotel Casino. Groundbreaking for the hotel began on April 14, 1997. The resort opened on May 3, 1999, with flutter of white doves, sounding trumpets and singing gondoliers. Actress Sophia Loren joined Adelson, the chairman and owner, in dedicating the first motorized gondola. Built at a cost of $1.5 billion, it was one of the most expensive resorts of its kind when it opened. On June 27, 2003, the 1,013-room Venezia Tower opened. It was built on top of the garage parking lot. In 2004, the Venetian agreed to pay a $1 million penalty to settle a 12-count Gaming Control Board complaint. One of the 12 complaints alleged the hotel had held a drawing for a Mercedes-Benz that was rigged to be won by a high roller who had lost a large amount in the casino. The executives involved were fired. 2007 saw the opening of the sister resort in Macau, The Venetian Macao, modeled after the original Las Vegas property. In 2010, it was announced that it will be affiliated with InterContinental Hotels Group. In October 2011, the Cantor Race & Sportsbook opened, which was the only Las Vegas sportsbook that was open 24 hours a day. On June 11, 2012, the Venetian opened Carnevale, a summer-long festival that is anchored by a nightly 3-D projection show on the clock tower. In 2013, the Venetian agreed to pay the U.S. Department of Justice $47.4 million to settle