CARSON CITY, Nev. — A $500 million resort development on Lake Tahoe's north shore will take several years to complete and could wind up with a lower price tag, the Nevada Gaming Commission was told last week.

The Boulder Bay LLC development plan for the old Tahoe Biltmore Lodge at Crystal Bay was reviewed as the commission approved Heather Lynn Bacon to participate in Biltmore operations while regulators review her pending casino licensing application.

Bacon said the goal is to start construction in mid-2009 and complete work by about 2014, subject to requirements by agencies such as the bistate Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. She didn't elaborate on possible lower costs for the project.

The goal is to create an upscale "escape to the lake" destination resort on the north shore that would include 200 hotel rooms and nearly 180 fractional-ownership or whole-ownership condominiums. Also planned are a "village" area with restaurants and shops, a 10,000-square-foot casino, "pocket" parks and family entertainment centers.

The proposed development has been described by Wittenberg as the kind of project that Tahoe planners have foreseen for years. Tourism officials have said the upgrade would benefit the entire north shore.