Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 50

NEVADA LOOKS AHEAD March 10, 1980 Reno Evening Gazette-Nevada State Journal 3 (HE Las Vegas pooh-poohs prophets of recession v. shine. Las Vegas is like London, Paris or Tokyo. People go because that's where it all began. Las Vegas is where gaming all began.

It's the only place like it in the country." Gaming is the key to it all. What about gaming revenues? In 1979, gaming revenues were up 14.8 percent over 1978 and are expected to increase as much or more this year, Read said. Renovations and new construction indicate even bigger years ahead, Read says, ticking off Las Vegas' bets on the future. The Las Vegas Hilton became the largest resort hotel in the world in 1979 with a total of 2,784 rooms, he said. But it's a title Hilton won't hold for long.

The MGM Grand Hotel-Casino in Las Vegas is breaking ground for a new tower which will make it the world's largest resort hotel, he said. Neither will be the tallest in Las Vegas. That honor will go to the Sahara which is building a 23-story tower, said Read. He continued: The Dunes Hotel and Country Club completed a new wing. Caesar's Palace is building its new Fantasy Tower with 600 more rooms.

The Flamingo Hilton is adding an addition, and Circus Circus is building the largest recreational vehicle park in the world. A mini-strip was started on Boulder Highway with the opening of the Nevada Palace and Sam's Place in 1978. "The Fun Never Sets in Las Vegas," says a tourist brochure. It apparently hasn't yet. The resultant increase in airline traffic has more than made up for the decrease in other forms of traffic, according to Read.

Luck dealt Las Vegas a good hand. Along with an increase in airline traffic running about 21 percent as a result of the deregulation, Amtrak began providing passenger rail service to the self-proclaimed "entertainment capital of the world" in November. Americans who saw their dollar decreasing in value in Europe opted to come to Vegas instead, Read said. At the same time, he said, Europeans who saw their money increase in value in the United States also decided to come to Vegas. Las Vegas businessmen are not ones to miss out on a bet.

A $754 million expansion program is planned over the next 20 years at McCarran International Airport, opening the door for more airlines and more international tourists, according to Read. Las Vegas also goes all out for the convention business, he said. The convention center there is the largest single-floor convention center in the country. Last year, it attracted the Home Builders Convention with 53,000 people, and the even bigger Consumer Electronics Convention, with 58,000, he said. Is Las Vegas worried about New Jersey gaming competition? "It will have no effect on Las Vegas gaming," said Read.

"Las Vegas is the only 24-hour town in the the country. In addition, we have 320 days of sun By JACK McFARREN Gasoline is $1.25 a gallon and going up. Recession threatens. So, what do they do in Las Vegas? They plan for another 15,000 hotel rooms during the next decade. The rest of the world may be hitting a lemon and two plums, but Las Vegans are sublimely confident their glittering oasis will keep hitting jackpots.

Las Vegas is in a continued growth period, according to Alan Read of the Las Vegas News Bureau, the publicity arm of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce. He quotes Burton Cohen, president of the Desert Inn, speaking about Las Vegas: "We're the best and we're going to get better." "There will be more hotel and motel rooms, more new casinos, more convention facilities, more new shopping centers and a continued growth of family attractions," said Read, explaining what Cohen meant by What about air, water and sewer problems? Clark County Commission Chairman Bob Broadbent has been quoted as saying Las Vegas has some of the same growth problems as Reno. "I'm not really aware of them," said Read. What about the price of gasoline? What will happen to tourism when the price of gasoline hits $2 a gallon? The number of visitors traveling to Las Vegas by car has been decreasing. What about that? "It's not a significant problem," responds Reed.

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