Las Vegas casino project delayed amid US economic woes
It has been reported that the development of a casino complex on the Las Vegas strip has been delayed due to a slump in the casino and housing markets.
Construction of an $11 billion casino complex has been halted for one year after developers, CityCentre, said they would be suspending work on the 400-room Harmon Hotel and Spa.
The Harmon is one of three hotels in the development, including a 4,000 room casino resort tower and a Mandarin Oriental hotel.
While the casino complex is set to open in December 2009, the joint developers of the project, MGM Mirage and Dubai World, both said they were "actively pursuing additional financing" for the project in order to ensure the hotel was constructed for 2010.
Elsewhere in Las Vegas, a casino is bucking the downward economic trend in the city by offering gamers a completely smoke-free casino. The Fernley Nugget casino was built specifically as a non-smoking gaming establishment. It is a relatively small casino, built on the outskirts of Las Vegas. It has 174 slot machines and two poker tables.
The general manager of the casino, Scott Tate, commented on market research that suggested there was a demand for non-smoking casinos in the state. He said:
"We are not taking a position to be smoke-free everywhere and for always. But this particular facility, in this particular market, in this particular location, we feel could be successful."
While there are several casinos in Las Vegas which operate a non-smoking policy on the gaming hall, the new casino is one of only two in the state that enforce a total ban. While Nevada has a smoking ban in many public places, the law does not apply to casinos.
Marybel Batjer, a spokesperson for Harrahs, operators of the only other non-smoking casino in Nevada, said that non-smoking casinos had a future in Las Vegas.
"Our position is that we would be very supportive if everyone were to go in this direction, but it is very hard when you are adjacent to another property, a competitor, and they have an offering that you don't."