Thanks,
LVD
Posted on 02/15/2009 5:51:59 AM PST by Las Vegas Dave
Gaming revenue fell for the 12th month in a row in December and last year's overall drop is historic.
Some locals who depend on conventions to survive say they can't afford the war of words going on between President Obama and Mayor Oscar Goodman.
Last week, both Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs canceled corporate junkets scheduled to take place here in Las Vegas.
They were trying to get away from the perception that they are taking the money given to them in these bailout packages and using it to treat their CEO's to lavish vacations.
The comment President Obama made about the matter at a town hall meeting on Monday was:
"You are not going to be able to give out these big bonuses until you've paid taxpayers back, you can't get corporate jets, you can't go take a trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayers dime."
Wednesday workers who were setting up for the Magic Apparel convention were steamed about the president's comments.
Electricians' union foreman Charlene Wallace says her crews are working, but just barely.
"There's been a big impact because there's not as many people coming out to do the shows, so therefore the shows have gotten a lot smaller," said Charlene Wallace, Local 357 Foreman.
Smaller shows and fewer tourists equal big losses.
Gaming revenues fell every month last year and they were down nearly 19% in December which is a drop of 9.7% for all of 2008.
That is the worst gaming revenue decline in Nevada's history.
The president took particular aim at Las Vegas' convention business, but the ripple effect of his comments could stretch far beyond the convention floor.
Fewer convention workers, hurts the hands that feed them as one Valley caterer's business is down 50%.
Local unions aren't seeing massive layoffs but expect fewer of their members to be hired.
Keep it tuned to Channel 13.
Lets see, Nevada, home to Harry Reid and complaints from the unions in Vegas who supported Obama. How ironic. The most left wing Socialistic shift this country has ever seen is underway and people like Reid and Pelosi are leading Congress in support of it. Obama is leading it now. We deserve what we get for being so foolish and not making an attempt to understand what this means to our country. Chris Dodd and Barney Frank are the main culprits in this financial mess and there were warnings to Congress on more than one occasion starting in 2001 but people like Dodd and Frank said there was no problem. And now we are embarking on a grand stimulus plan which is really a plan to promote every imbecilic project and plan that Congress would not have dared to promote on their own. There is so much waste, pork and abuse in this plan it is sickening and little of this is going to stimulate anything. it will cause this economic downturn to last longer than it needs to. It will, at some point, cause a serious rise in inflation and interest rates to pay for the foolishness. The very people who are first responsible for this mess (Congress and people like Dodd and Frank) are the very ones now "fixing" the problem. How dumb can we get in this country? Socialism has never succeeded anywhere in the world. Even Europe is moving away from it but the Untied States is about to embrace it. And there is no such thing as spending your way out of a downturn. As someone once said, those who fail to read and understand history will pay heavily for the education later. Lets hope we wake up before it is to late. Like this comment? [yes] [no] (Score: 102 by 114 votes)Community assigned karma score: 0 by 0Mark as offensive[reply] [delete] [edit] [moderate]
Sunday, February 15, 2009Have you ever seen such a negative thinking anti-capitalist President? You cant reward your workers or CEOs? Let's see if he goes on vacation somewhere. When he does, maybe we should remind him that it's on the tax payers dime. Like this comment? [yes] [no] (Score: 71 by 87 votes)Community assigned karma score: 0 by 0Mark as offensive[reply] [delete] [edit] [moderate]
Sunday, February 15, 2009This is what happens when you elect an amateur as President. He has no concept of how the things he says affect people's lives. Same deal with the Catepillar CEO, where Obama totally misused the truth. Nevada, you helped elect this guy. Now you have to pay. Sorry for those of you who were smart enough to vote for someone else. No sympathy for you Obama lovers who now have buyers remorse. The man talk pretty, but doesn't get it. Like this comment? [yes] [no] (Score: 75 by 97 votes)Community assigned karma score: 0 by 0Mark as offensive[reply] [delete] [edit] [moderate]
They are opening two giant complexes on the strip this year. City Center and the old Stardust area. They will hire 25,000+ employees. They will have to go out of Nevada to hire. New employees from out of the area will suck up much of the housing vacancies. I don’t know where the customers are coming from, but I would say Vegas is about to boom.
Oh, I see. The steady drop in revenue over the last 12 months is people just waiting for these two places to open up.
Casinos and convention centers are not permanent jobs. They are for the good time only. Even the casinos in CT are laying off workers.
you can’t go take a trip to Las Vegas,but I can take air force one to Chicago for dinner,wonder what the price tag for that is???
We were there the week of New Years. It was packed. The shopping malls on the strip were elbow to elbow as were the casino's we visited. Another anecdote.
I don't care if Vegas goes bust. If and when I want to gamble, I have the largest casino in Cal 30 minutes away. I just thihk that people don't build billions of new buildings on a down market projection.
Thanks,
LVD
Will the last person oout shut off the lights?
I think Las Vegas gets to benefit no matter what economic conditions are. When it’s boom, people flock there to spend their cash. When its bust, people go there in an attempt to turn their (mis)fortune around and forget about the bad times they’re in.
Does this mean the price of hookers will be going down?
Good points....
In Florida, where there is little casino gambling...already one of the “gambling boats” has gone under in the Orlando/Space Coast area...and the other has a major loss of customers (even started charging an entrance fee). Even the Hard Rock casinos (owned by the Seminole Indians) are seeing a decline
People just arent gambling anymore (someone should tell faux-conservative talk wonk Michael Medved about that)
And, with so many places offering gambling now....Vegas has too much competition, even in these slow times. If I wanted shows with my casinos...I can go to Biloxi. If I want western motif...I can go to Deadwood, SD or Black Hawk, CO....in Nevada I prefer Reno and some of the other off-Vegas places
(this is not an endorsement of gambling...)
From the Mirage to airport by limo, Mr and Mrs. coworker were setting down in the airport concourse for breakfast in approximately 1/2 hour, after baggage check in and security...(They were totally amazed.)
Mrs LVD and I have not planned a Vegas trip this year, we will review our options in the Spring, and then make a decision.
Work at City Center Halted
"That has all come to a grinding halt as of last week. Sources say as many as 500 electricians and 1200 carpenters were given pink slips as funding for the project has all but dried up. "
Deflation produces a deflationary psychology. The mania of the bubble years is finished.
SO-—— Even if people had the monery to blow in Vegas (and they don’t) they would stll be more conservative with their hard earned and not be gambiling so much
Atlantic City is down
The local Indian casinos down here seemed busy to me when I went.... I never gamble a penny. I hit the buffet
Wasn’t the Las Vegas Mayor pissed at Obama for telling CEO’s to stop wasting trips to Las Vegas?
.......Will the last person oout shut off the lights?......
In the spirit of the age, Senator Dingy Harry Reid will push legislation requiring hotel A/C thermostats to be 80 in the summer and heating heating thermostats to be 68 in the winter.
Additionally, there will be an outdoor advertising illumination energy recovery tax based on the watts per square foot of the signage. There will however be a credit for heat exchangers that absorb the signage thermal emissions and recycle them to casino internal heating elements. Also, any hotel or casino naming its selg Desert Winds or Saraha Winds or Flamingo Winds will be exempted with a wind credit
Good to see someone is looking at the crucial third-tier effects of these issues! ;^)
lolz
I’ll do my part to help their economy when I’m there in May and July.
I love Vegas!
FREEDOM from the NANNY STATE!
Remember, those places were contracted and started when the U.S. was still enjoying its orgy. Those days are gone.
The real indicator isn't the amount of people in a shopping mall. That's for amateurs. They may not be buying. And, buying cheap clothes at JC Penny doesn't keep the economy going. It's the purchase of big ticket items like cars, washers, dryers, garden equipt. etc, that counts. Also, investment money. ALL of that is down. Or, haven't you noticed that GM, Chrysler, Toyota are recording record sales drops?
We are in no way, shape, or form "big" gamblers, if fact , we are the types that Vegas probably doesn't like (maybe an hour a day on the casino floors) so it won't bother them much, but even though we are going, we will not be spending what we usually do on vacation (maybe only one expensive meal out, the rest quick dinners).
BTW, you would think that deals would be out there for cheap rooms, cars, etc. but we haven't found it any cheaper for where we want to stay. Our hotel, and car fees are more expensive than they were a couple of years ago, when things were supposedly booming.
Well I think Congress critters and prostitutes are psychological soulmates anyway.
And of course, this is my favorite line: until you've paid taxpayers back
I won't even comment on what I think about that.
What an idiotic thing to say...why don't you make sure to stay in your "CA" casino
What an insult to the ladies.
I am looking forward to seeing my favorite beverage servers and slot attendants once again when I’m there in May. I hope they are all doing well.
My bad. So solly.
Unfortunately, what is happening here in this city is just a sign of what is coming to all cities across this country
We're the first to to bear the burden of the economy for obvious reasons.
For that other poster to suggest they don't care if we go bust is just narrow minded and absent of any thought process
Isn't it the customers who make the boom? If you build it and they don't come you will hardly have a boom. Oh, you'll have a temporary boom as the building is going on. Lots of good jobs, extra people in town to work o the projects, etc. But once the project is finished all that stimulus stops. Usually quite suddenly. That's the problem with stimulus plans that front load the stimulus. A true stimulus plan would be a gift that keeps on giving.
I can think of few areas that will suffer more than Las Vegas if the economy follows the course being predicted by a lot of people. They will suffer from every aspect of a slowing economy. And as if that weren't bad enough lots and lots of states are getting on the gambling bandwagon. It's no longer necessary to hop a flight to Las Vegas if you want to gamble.
I pray that my favorite employees are still there and are happy. It wouldn't be the same without them.
I'll see you on Mother's Day (my husband's birtday). :-)
Listening to Fox this morning, talking about the $80,000,000 that GM spends to sponsor Nascar.
Don’t the people realize that if Nascar takes a hit, a ton of support people will be out of work.
And should GM be restricted from advertising, which is a lot of what sponsoring Nascar does for them?
I heard a caller to Hannity, wife said her husband worked for an insurance company and had worked his butt off for the last year to earn a nice trip.
The trip was cancelled ‘to avoid sending the wrong message’. Don’t people realize that this is again a trickle-down effect, many people in the travel industry are affected, not only the hardworking salespeople.
The dems do not understand simple economics, but they know how to make everyone’s life miserable.
CityCenter construction hasn't actually stopped - but there are rumors that Dubai is trying to back out of its deal to invest in the project, which would leave MGM having to frantically sell off many its other Las Vegas properties to finish work. Mirage is supposedly the next on the block. I expect CityCenter to open in November, but MGM clearly bit off way more than it can chew with the project, regardless.
Cosmopolitan, just north of CityCenter, was foreclosed on by Deutsche Bank, which decided they would lose less money by completing the project than they would by halting it. There are continual rumors they are rethinking that decision, and will just finish the building exteriors and halt work until economic conditions improve.
Echelon (on the old Stardust site) is supposedly "suspended for a year" until market conditions improve. That will probably turn into five years and a restart under a new owner. Boyd Gaming simply can't afford to proceed with it, and made a wise decision to halt work after making the foolish decision to tear down Stardust before starting the new tower. The partially built Echelon is a horrible eyesore, though.
The St. Regis condo tower connected to Palazzo and Venetian was halted so Sheldon Adelson could stave off bankruptcy. The tower is the biggest eyesore of all, since it's right on the Strip and a telling symbol of how Adelson overextended himself in Macau and elsewhere.
The ElAd Plaza project across from Wynn will likely never break ground. There was thus no need to tear down the New Frontier so quickly. This will probably remain a vacant lot until Steve Wynn buys the land cheap in a few years.
Fontainebleau (on the old Algiers site) was fully funded before work began and is still on schedule for a November opening. The hotel tower is topped out and work seems to be progressing normally. It will be a spectacular property, but probably an operational money-loser for a while.
One day I heard the weather report. High 111 with 0% humidity. Question: I never heard of 0% humidity. Is that possible?
Golden Nugget keeps sending me e-mail to come back. Stay 5 nights and get 2 free. I'm going again in a few months.
Well said. If everyone was pappy, there would be no need for demoncrats. Same with politicians in general, they create problems to come along and fix them.
We used to have a saying in the insurance sales business, "create the need and instill the greed"
Politicians have that down to a science.
So, if a bunch of them lose their jobs because their savior caused the local economy to tank, I won't shed a tear over it. They're getting what they cheered for.
Odds of any of those projects due 10m+ out is slim to none as most are still hoping for a 2nd half recovery and credit continues to dry up. Trump bankruptcy isn’t going to help that.
I'm not sure but I do know it is very dry here in the summer sometimes. Other times it can be very humid.
The worst part about living here is the dust...unbelievable.
Yes, indeed, very well said fellow Ohioan.
I was also a little angered by the way the dems treated the bank execs during their committee hearing last week. The dems looked foolish to me.
As long as the Peppermill is open for breakfast.
Service industry people, the majority of which will be illegals, make enough to buy 400,000 dollars homes. Only after they win. LOL
Then they will probably only live ten families to the house.
Are you like the kid with the shovel digging in the horse poo looking for the pony.
It is - and it appears to be doing fine. ;)
Talk about job security lotta lights
I like the Ballagio. It’s nice there and very worth it. Only players at the crap tables that know what they are doing. I tried to show two different women how to play that game. Women just can’t think spacially or mathematically. Craps is a war game to me. I never lost with that approach.
Yep, the “play” town going down is an indicator of what’s to come for the rest of us.
I know you guys have a lot of people who rely on tourists and such. I hope it gets better out your way.
Will this be enough to finally get rid of Reid?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.