Convention attendance seen as sign of more Vegas growth

Ken Ritter

Friday, Jan. 30, 2004 | 9:21 a.m.

Double-digit growth in convention attendance in 2003 is one sign that Southern Nevada will continue to grow even if tribal gambling expands in California, a regional economist and a top Las Vegas tourism official said Thursday.

Las Vegas, with three of the five largest convention centers in the nation, has a chance to attract more convention and trade show attendees who spend more than individual tourists, said Manny Cortez, president and chief executive of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Convention atttendance grew 10.6 percent in the first 11 months of 2003, compared with 2002, Cortez said.

But to stay ahead in the competitive gambling and tourism market, Las Vegas will have to increase convention business 25 percent in the next five years, he said following his presentation to 1,750 business-minded attendees at Preview Las Vegas 2004.

University of Nevada, Las Vegas economist Keith Schwer, whose annual forecasts anchor the annual business pep rally, predicted modest economic growth of 2 to 3 percent for the southern Nevada region in 2004.

Schwer acknowledged the region remains dependent on gambling and tourism, but said it also is developing a service economy in a state that continues to grow by an average of 4,500 residents per month.

"People perceive Las Vegas as a growth community where they're willing to make long-term investments," Schwer said. "That bodes well for Las Vegas."

Las Vegas developer Leonard Mardian said he and partners are betting $35 million that southern Nevada growth will spill over into Mohave County, Ariz., where they plan a 35,000-home city called White Hills 60 miles east of Las Vegas. He said building will begin in 2007, after a bridge spanning the Colorado River is completed near Hoover Dam.

"It's no gamble," said Mardian, who walked among 120 trade show booths ringing the inner concourse at the Thomas & Mack center at UNLV. "There are a million and a half people here now. I believe there will be 800,000 more people here in 10 years."

Cortez and casino executive Kevin Kelley said that if tribal gambling expands in California, Las Vegas will need to do more to compete with Indian casinos.

Kelley, president and chief executive at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, urged the conference audience to invest in what he called a service culture, and spoke afterward of the need for bold advertising -- even at the risk of drawing the attention of state regulators.

He said the Hard Rock is negotiating with state gambling regulators who filed a complaint last week saying the hotel-casino violated offensiveness and decency standards with ads including a billboard depicting a woman with her underwear around her ankles.

The Hard Rock could be fined up to $300,000 or have its gambling license restricted, suspended or revoked by the Nevada Gaming Commission.

"Our customers have a choice," Kelley said Thursday. "We can't stop being creative. We can't stop raising the bar, because we're competing with South Beach and New York City for the same dollars."

Cortez said the 5.1 million convention delegates who visited Las Vegas in 2002 accounted for 15 percent of all visitors to the city, and contributed about $6 billion in non-gambling revenue to the region.

The average trade show delegate spent $1,362 in the city in 2002, according to convention authority figures, while convention delegates spent $1,028 and leisure visitors spent $638.