The stalled $3.1-billion Fontainebleau development on the Las Vegas Strip, which filed for bankruptcy protection in early June, is facing mounting challenges in reaching completion. On July 14, Turnberry West Construction LLC, the project’s general contractor, sued the owner and its lenders in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Miami on a hefty $675.3-million mechanic’s lien, including 15% interest.

The 737-ft-tall, 3.4-million-sq-ft hotel-casino-retail complex, which is about 70% completed, is being built by Fontainebleau Resorts LLC, an investment group led by Miami-based developer Jeffrey Soffer, who also owns Turnberry West Construction. “Soffer as his own general contractor can be used as another profit center,” says Bill Kionka, regional estimating manager for O’Connor Construction Management Inc., an Irvine, Calif.-based construction consultant. “He could be drawing development fees as well as fees as the project’s contractor that he would not have to share with other development partners.”