Board says All-Star game worth the expense

Dan Kulin

Thursday, May 12, 2005 | 9:29 a.m.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority bid for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game could include an offer of free venues for the game and fan activities, 100 hotel rooms and 30 hotel suites for four nights, plus $750,000, according to information shared with LVCVA board members in recent weeks.

Board members interviewed in recent days said they expect the cost of bringing the NBA All-Star Game to Las Vegas will be well worth the benefits that would come with it. The game and the related events leading up to it would be expected to bring more than 10,000 people to Las Vegas, and be seen on television by millions of people around the world.

Although the total cost of LVCVA's offer is unclear, some board members said they expect it to be in line with the LVCVA spending on the National Finals Rodeo and Arena Football League championship game. The LVCVA is expected to spend $1.1 million to $1.2 million on each of those events.

"It's a world-class event with world-class publicity," Las Vegas Mayor and LVCVA Chairman Oscar Goodman said about the All-Star game, adding that the cost of bringing it to Las Vegas would "absolutely" be worth the benefit.

Fellow board member Las Vegas City Councilman Larry Brown said he strongly supports the efforts to bring the game to Las Vegas because of the publicity for the city, and because he feels it would help further establish Las Vegas as a potential home for a major league sports team.

"It would build credibility and is a chance for us to show what we can do as a market and as a community," Brown said.

Goodman, who has been outspoken in his desire to bring a Major League Baseball franchise to Las Vegas, also said hosting the All-Star game would help improve the city's chances of bringing a major league team here.

Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson, who is also on the board, said he thinks the information shared with the board was a preliminary estimate of the anticipated minimum investment from the LVCVA. He added that he would probably support such spending.

"It's not an extraordinary departure from what we've done in the past for other events," Gibson said. "Any significant event like this has an economic value to it. And there would be worldwide exposure with it and I don't know how you put a price on that."

The LVCVA is overseen by a 13-member board made up of local elected officials and casino executives, and it is funded with revenue from the hotel tax. The board would have to vote on any deal with the NBA.

Board member Mike Pacini, a Boulder City councilman, said he is "very interested" bringing the game to Las Vegas because of the publicity it would generate for the area.

And Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins, also a board member, said he has "no reservations" about spending some money to bring the game here.

Several LVCVA board members confirmed in recent days the preliminary list of what the LVCVA might offer in its bid for the NBA All-Star Game, which was relayed to them in a private letter from LVCVA President Rossi Ralenkotter. The LVCVA would apparently also be expected to pick up the tab for insurance and security for the event, some board members confirmed.

Ralenkotter and NBA officials would only confirm that the league expects to be supplied with the venues for the game and other activities, plus rooms for players, guests and league staff. Neither would discuss any additional specifics of a potential deal.

The game would be played at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center, while the six days of fan oriented activities that make up the All-Star week would be held at a local convention center, Ralenkotter said. NBA officials visited the Las Vegas last month and looked over the Las Vegas Convention Center, Mandalay Bay Convention Center, and the Sands Expo Center. Ralenkotter has said he is waiting to hear which one they liked the best.

Ralenkotter said he expects the LVCVA will submit a formal proposal to the NBA by the end of the month. The league is expected to announce in mid-June where the 2007 NBA All-Star Game will be held.

The event could generate $75 million to $100 million in non-gaming revenue, Ralenkotter said, adding that the game would also be expected to be seen in 600 million households in 15 countries.

"We're very excited to be able to make a bid," he said.

NBA officials would not say which other cities are vying for the 2007 game, but said Las Vegas is not alone.

Mike Golub, executive vice president of the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies, said his team has submitted a proposal to host either the 2007 or 2008 All-Star game.

Golub said that although an All-Star game has always been held in a city with an NBA team, he said Las Vegas has some attractive attributes for a potential host city.

For example, unlike Las Vegas, Memphis has a "challenging hotel situation," he said.

"We don't have a lot of three and four star quality hotels. We are able to meet the minimum requirements but not all in one property," he said.

Also, while hosting an all-star game can be a bonus for a city and a team overall, some teams run into problems with season ticket holders upset they cannot all attend the game when it's in their home arena. Golub said the league typically reserves most of the tickets, leaving a few thousand for the home team to distribute.

Gavin Maloof, whose family owns the NBA's Sacramento Kings and the Palms hotel in Las Vegas, said a group of NBA owners were recently briefed on the possibility of the All-Star game going to Las Vegas in 2007, and they were "all gung-ho for it."

"There hasn't been one negative comment," he said.