Category Archives: Writing

Moving Mountains, Building a City in Vegas Seven

May 17, 2012 3:48 pmLeave a Comment

This week in Vegas Seven, I have a Latest Thought that looks back at the life and career of Stuart Mason, as viewed through the lens of something you don’t hear enough about in Las Vegas, at least in the news: community:

We’ve all heard the stereotype: Las Vegas is nothing more than a transient city, a plastic place where no one puts down roots, neighbors remain strangers, and the only civic duty is every man for himself. It’s not true, of course, and it never has been. But with the constant media flow of Vegas “mythology”—often delivered by our very own marketing gurus—sometimes we have to remind ourselves that we are a real community, built by people willing to devote their lives to an improbable dream. The recent death of Stuart Mason, a builder of the real Las Vegas, is occasion for such a reminder.

via Moving Mountains, Building a City | Vegas Seven.

I got to know Stuart Mason a few years ago, through his involvement in UNLV Libraries. He was a great, funny guy, very unassuming, who nevertheless had a tremendous impact on Las Vegas.

 

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Miracle Man & More in Vegas Seven

May 17, 2012 11:17 amLeave a Comment

In today’s Vegas Seven, I have an About Town profile of the work Russell Joyner’s done with Miracle Mile Shops:

The International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual REcon event is the Super Bowl for retail real estate professionals. It’s going on right now at the Las Vegas Convention Center, so all eyes in the shopping-mall world are riveted on Las Vegas. Plenty of attendees have made it a point to talk to Russell Joyner, who, in eight years has turned Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood into the talk of the town.

via Miracle Man | Vegas Seven.

Talking with Joyner, I got a sense of just how many moving parts there are in Strip retail.

From last week, I’ve got a short look at the closing of the Stirling Club, if you missed it.

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Ending an era in the LVBP

May 16, 2012 9:33 amLeave a Comment

This week, I wrote my final column for the Las Vegas Business Press. Here’s how it starts:

Its been an interesting seven years.

When I started writing a biweekly column for the Las Vegas Business Press in 2005, Las Vegas and the casino industry were in much different places. Models of Project CityCenter had just been unveiled; the first concrete pour on the foundations for what would become Aria were still in the future. Monthly revenue numbers, land prices and new condo projects on the Strip were increasing with a sense of inevitability. The bubble would never burst.

via Las Vegas Business Press :: David G. Schwartz : As I bid adieu, things looking up for Vegas.

I’ve had a lot of fun writing for the Business Press. I’ve taken on some other projects that weren’t leaving me the time I wanted to produce quality work.

Of course, there’s no shortage of places to find my writing these days–just check Two Way Hard Three and Vegas Seven.

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With Oseland Aboard, SLS Could Be a Winner in Vegas Seven

May 10, 2012 7:17 pmLeave a Comment

As you might know, a month ago, sbe Entertainment Group sent out a press release with some details of the financing of the putative SLS Las Vegas. I was skeptical, as were others. Last week, the company sent out a second press release, which provided more details. I still had questions, so, wearing my Vegas Seven gaming and hospitality writer hat, I put a call into sbe. After some back and forth, I had a 45 minute conversation with Rob Oseland, which answered many of my questions. The result: the latest Green Felt Journal, which talks a little about why, if this project is going to go forward, Oseland is a good guy to have in the driver’s seat:

Sam Nazarian’s SBE Entertainment Group made headlines last week by announcing that it had secured $300 million of the $415 million it needs to transform the shuttered Sahara hotel-casino—which the company bought in 2007, at the height of the casino real estate boom—into the SLS Las Vegas, a “refreshing, fun and accessible take on Vegas luxury.”There are still a host of concerns about the project, however: skeptics say that it’s too far away from the center of the action to compete; it’s too small; no one will invest in the north Strip; in any event, it’s not completely financed.Rob Oseland, recently hired as the president and chief operating officer of SLS Las Vegas, is the guy to answer those questions.

via With Oseland Aboard, SLS Could Be a Winner | Vegas Seven.

I look forward to a real back-and-forth about this on the next Vegas Gang.

I’ve gotten a few questions via email about this. The biggest one is: am I still skeptical? I’m not running for office, but I’m going to equivocate here. I have no idea whether sbe will be able to get the funding it needs. I’m not plugged into the investment banking/equity community, so I have no real insight about how competitive SLS Las Vegas is with the million other things that people could invest in.

Assuming a total project cost of about $415 million, you might have an annual average interest expense of $42 million or so. Could 1,600 rooms produce the kind of revenue that would enable them to make that nut? Possibly, if it does Cosmopolitan-like numbers for F&B. Will it be able to do Cosmo-like numbers in that location? It’s certainly possible, but it’s no slam dunk.

Then again, if it was a slam dunk, there would be a half-dozen other projects under construction. At one point very smart people in Las Vegas thought that a huge residential component at CityCenter was a slam dunk. Or taking on $20 billion in debt to go private. So is it possible that Nazarian, Oseland, and company see a value that others don’t? Definitely, because the crowd isn’t always right.

Of course, the crowd often is right, which is the rub.

According to Oseland, we should know by October–November at the latest–whether sbe gets its funding or not. This is going to be a great topic to debate up until we see construction start, or we get a tersely-worded press release announcing the project is “suspended.”

We had a few years of predictable success on the Strip, followed by a few years of predictable flops. Now we’re entering the unpredictable phase, where just about anything is possible. Should be a fun couple of years.

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Renovating the Grand and more in Vegas Seven

May 3, 2012 10:35 amLeave a Comment

This week in the Green Felt Journal in Vegas Seven, I take a look at the massive renovation of the MGM Grand:

If you’ve been to the MGM Grand in the past few months—or even checked its website—you probably noticed that they’re renovating the place. And that might not seem like such a big deal—casinos evolve all the time—but in this case, owner MGM Resorts International and contractor Thor Construction are making history.

via Renovating the Grand | Vegas Seven.

I took many pictures of the renovations, and will hopefully have the time to post them.

Earlier this week, I wrote a short blog piece about Lynda Allan, a Palace Station cocktail waitress who is retiring after 34 years on the floor.

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Las Vegas mantra in the LVBP

May 1, 2012 3:39 pmLeave a Comment

For this week’s Las Vegas Business Press column, I talk about the importance of renovation to Las Vegas today:

When The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas opened its doors in December 2010, there was some regret: This was, we were assured, the last casino opening on the Strip for some time. In a town that had gotten used to one or more new resorts opening each year over the previous two decades with a few pauses, that was bad news. These days, renovation, not new construction, is the name of the game. That says a great deal about how the Strip will continue to remain competitive in the near future.

via Las Vegas Business Press :: David G. Schwartz : Las Vegas mantra: If you cant build new, renew.

It’s a sign of the times, to be sure, that hotel renovations get the attention once reserved for casino openings. They are less dramatic, but I’d say they are no less important.

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The Man Behind The D in Vegas Seven

April 19, 2012 4:04 pmLeave a Comment

This week in Vegas Seven’s Green Felt Journal, I look at someone who’s making some waves Downtown:

Although the energy of Tony Hsieh and other non-gamers has helped fuel the transformation of downtown Las Vegas, a cadre of Fremont Street casino owners also deserve credit. Derek Stevens is prominent among them.

via The Man Behind The D | Vegas Seven.

I had a very nice conversation with Mr. Stevens in writing this piece. He’s got a definite vision for what he wants to do, and I think it’s a great match for Downtown.

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Pool season reflects LV’s ability to evolve in the LVBP

April 17, 2012 2:10 pm

In this week’s Las Vegas Business Press, I muse a bit about what the start of pool season really means in Las Vegas:

The weathers warming up, which in postrecession Las Vegas means one thing: pool season is here. Once, that would have meant little more than seasonal employees dusting off the lounge chairs and balancing the waters ph. Now, it entails celebrity disc jockeys, cabana reservations, and the sound of cash registers jingling. And that says a great deal about Vegas greatest asset — its ability to evolve.

via Las Vegas Business Press :: David G. Schwartz : Pool season reflects LVs ability to evolve.

It really is amazing how much casinos have changed, yet how much they stay the same.

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Digging into the GSA scandal in Vegas Seven

April 12, 2012 10:14 am

This week in Vegas Seven, I take a look at why the GSA scandal at the M Resort happened in the first place, and why it will probably happen again:

Las Vegas is back in the national headlines as a place where responsible people shouldn’t be wasting their money. Last time, it was executives for bailed-out firms “blow[ing] a bunch of cash in Vegas,” as President Obama put it; this time, it’s public employees behaving badly. National media outlets and politicians such as Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, have made sure that each time they’ve mentioned the bad behavior, they mention “Vegas” as well. As our very own marketers know, irresponsibility sells better when you leverage the Sin City name.

via Don’t Sweat It, They’ll Be Back | Vegas Seven.

There will be some immediate fallout from this, but I think that some meetings planners will continue to make poor choice–as most of them make good ones. Guess who’s going to make headlines?

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The Gaughan Also Rises in Vegas Seven

April 5, 2012 9:44 am

This week, my Green Felt Journal column in Vegas Seven is about Michael Gaughan, Jr., taking the reins at the Rampart Casino in Summerlin:

This week, a reunion of sorts took place in Summerlin, as the JW Marriott Resort & Spa and the Rampart casino, which had operated as separate units for a decade, were consolidated under the new ownership of Hilfreich Stiftung, a Liechtenstein-based foundation. Overseeing the transition and helming the new, combined operation is Michael Gaughan Jr., a third-generation casino executive who’s seen plenty of changes in his hometown, and who is now helping to write the next chapter for one of its most idiosyncratic casinos.

via The Gaughan Also Rises | Vegas Seven.

It’s an interesting story not just because it shines some light on the locals market, but because Gaughan is a third-generation casino operator. You’ve probably heard of his grandfather, Jackie Gaughan, and his father, Michael Gaughan.

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