The Las Vegas deals came after months, and in one case years, of negotiations. The closed transactions are an $18-million acquisition for CVS Pharmacy, the $7.3-million sale of the Fun City Motel, both on Las Vegas Boulevard, and a $6.1-transaction for R.C. Willey Home Furnishings.

NAI Horizon's Gary Cuff spent two years building a relationship with R.C. Willey Home Furnishings after receiving a tip that the furniture, electronics and appliance dealer had opened a new store in Henderson, NV, outside of Las Vegas. "It came about as a cold call to the president in Salt Lake," Cuff tells GlobeSt.com, adding that during that conversation, he offered to track commercial real estate trends for the company.

Two years later, that call paid off in the sale of nearly 14 acres at the South Square Marketplace in Summerlin, NV. The property, located at Interstate 215 and Town Center Drive and formerly owned by the Howard Hughes Corp., will be the site of the company's second store in the region.

Horizon's Dave Johnson senior vice president of retail development also took the initiative and began quickly promoting Las Vegas when he heard that Rhode-Island based CVS Pharmacy was considering expansion. Johnson began preparing market figures for the company showing planned retail space of 3.2 million sf, population and employment projections and an anticipated 50% increase in prescription demand. The analysis worked.

CVS Pharmacy opened nine pharmacies in the Las Vegas region and have completed nine additional land acquisitions. Among those sales are the $18-million purchase of a parcel adjacent to the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino on Las Vegas Boulevard.

It took 16 months of patience and persistence for broker/agent Sally Rycroft to seal a deal on the Fun City Motel. Rycroft, one of NAI Horizon's top 10 agents of 1999 brought seller Kenneth Glaster several offers during that time but none met his objective to sell the Las Vegas Boulevard property for a specific price.

Earlier this summer, Rycroft saw the perfect opportunity to close the sale when Chetak Development Co. closed on three acres of land near Sahara Avenue and Paradise Road. She pitched the deal to the developer to purchase the motel, located on 1.2 adjacent acres. The motel's location could create a combined retail complex within close proximity to a planned monorail with exposure on three sides to Las Vegas Boulevard, Sahara Avenue and Paradise Road. In July, the property closed escrow for almost $4.3 million per acre.

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