NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
Donald Trump filed to build Las Vegas' tallest building, and the casino and real estate mogul's company is moving closer to restructuring $1.8 billion in debt, according to published reports.
The New York Post and Las Vegas Review Journal reported that Trump filed Thursday for a permit to build a $300 million, 65-story Trump International Hotel and Tower on the Las Vegas Strip.
The tower would be a 50-50 venture between Trump and New Frontier Casino owner Phil Ruffin. The building will be next to the Frontier. It will be 645 feet high, slightly taller than any building in Las Vegas, though significantly shorter than the city's 1,149-foot-tall Stratosphere Tower, which has an observation deck, restaurant and thrill rides.
The property would not have a casino, but it would have 50 residences on the top 10 stories ranging from 3,000 square feet to more than 10,000 square feet, while the rest of the building would have 1,000 condominium hotel units ranging in size from 636 square feet to 1,057 square feet.
Meanwhile, the executive leading negotiations to restructure the debt for Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. (DJT: Research, Estimates) on Thursday told Reuters he believed he could have a deal with bondholders in the "near term... within several weeks."
"It is a hard thing to judge. I think we've done a fair amount of work. We started this thing in February," he said.
Trump owns three of the dozen casinos in Atlantic City but has been hurt by competitive pressure as rivals build new hotel towers and revamp properties. The company's second-quarter loss, reported Wednesday, widened to $17.6 million from $10 million a year earlier.
Credit Suisse First Boston's private equity fund DLJ Merchant Banking Partners has agreed to invest $400 million in the company if bondholders will restructure debt.
Butera said he aimed to bring debt ratios in line with rivals in the industry through the deal, which contemplates the DLJ fund taking a majority equity stake.
The $400 million would be used to cut debt and to invest in current properties, he said.
In addition, the company plans a $108-million casino in French Lick, Ind., which Butera said was not contingent upon the debt restructuring.
Donald Trump, the real-estate developer known for his role on the reality television program "The Apprentice," would remain as chairman of the company, said Butera, who added that the new investors did not intend to sell out quickly.
"This isn't a flip story," he said.
-- Reuters contributed to this story.
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