Changes Ahead For Graceland

CKX President and CEO Robert F.X. Sillerman is moving forward on redevelopment plans for Graceland more than five years after purchasing a majority stake in Elvis Presley Enterprises.

Sillerman, who’s talked for years of a $250 million revamp of the site, recently told the Commercial Appeal in Memphis that he’s scheduled to meet with a group of architectural and design firms in January to begin preparations on the project.

“We’re taking a look at in what phases that should be developed,” Sillerman said. “What needs to be developed first and how best we achieve maximization that pays homage to what is there, but also provide a whole new perspective on where we are going.”

Reported plans for Graceland include demolition of the Heartbreak Hotel and existing visitors’ center, which will be replaced by new facilities including hotels, a convention center and updated public spaces.

The city of Memphis has also apparently gotten involved in the project and could be asked to widen Elvis Presley Boulevard that runs outside Gracelend, the paper reported.

Sillerman’s FX Real Estate recently announced that it was selling off 17.7 acres on the Las Vegas Strip that had been intended for an Elvis Presley-themed luxury hotel-casino as part of a bankruptcy agreement.

However, the media entrepreneur told the Commercial Appeal that the Vegas setback would have no effect on plans in Memphis.

“Heartbreak Hotel, despite the fact that it was built as anything but a luxury hotel, maintains the highest occupancy of any hotel in the state of Tennessee,” he said. “What we’re talking about is the highest occupancy of any hotel in the state of Tennessee.”