Executive to receive award

Monday, Jan. 27, 2003 | 11:03 a.m.

Steve Wynn, credited with sparking construction booms that have transformed Las Vegas to a premier resort city, will receive the seventh annual Pioneer Award from the International Society of Hospitality Consultants this week.

Wynn, the president and chief executive officer of Wynn Resorts Ltd., is building the $2.4 billion Le Reve hotel-casino project on the Las Vegas Strip. He will receive the award at a lunch at the Century Plaza Hotel & Spa in Los Angeles today.

"Steve's accomplishments in the lodging and gaming industries truly exemplify the criteria we look for when choosing a recipient of the ISHC Pioneer Award and he continues to show that pioneer spirit with his latest projects," Rick Pastorino, chairman of the organization, said. "To that end, he is very deserving of this award and we look forward to presenting him with it at the upcoming Americas Lodging Investment Summit conference."

Lori Raleigh, executive director of the ISHC, which has 170 members from 16 countries, said the gathering this week is one of the largest investment conferences scheduled for the hospitality industry.

She said previous winners of the Pioneer Award include Randy Smith, president of Smith Travel Research; Jonathan Tisch, chairman and chief executive officer of Loews Hotels; and Michael Leven, president and chief executive officer of U.S. Franchise Systems Inc.