80,000-seat football stadium on mayor’s wish list

Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2008 | 2:33 p.m.

Sun archives

May 15, 2008 -- The many colors of Mayor Oscar Goodman
May 15, 2008 -- Ron Kantowski would love to tell you Omaha has shown Las Vegas the best way to get a shiny, new, publicly financed arena — but he can’t
Dec. 20, 2007 -- Your last chance, city tells arena developer
April 23, 2007 -- Why Las Vegas should forget the NBA and build a new arena for special events

Beyond the Sun

Mayor Oscar Goodman

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman floated a big trial balloon at this morning’s Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority meeting.

When the board of directors discussed a plan to seek proposals for a better use for the land where Cashman Center sits, Goodman shared what he wants to see: an 80,000-seat football stadium that would permanently house the National Football League’s Super Bowl and all Monday Night Football games.

“I thought I’d throw this out and let people chew on it,” Goodman said after describing the plan.

The mayor acknowledged that Las Vegas doesn’t have the best relationship with the NFL, considering the league’s stance on gambling and ban on the use of the words “Super Bowl” to market parties in casinos.

Goodman said capturing the Monday Night Football market would be good for Las Vegas because it could draw thousands of fans from different cities for extended stays in the city. He feels having a single venue for Monday-night games would be beneficial to the league on a number of logistical fronts and playing host to the Super Bowl would enable the league to take advantage of the city’s massive hotel room inventory.

“Believe me,” Goodman said, “they need us more than we need them.”

The LVCVA board also voted to extend the contract of the Skancke Co. Ltd. to lobby on transportation issues.

Skancke told the board that two of the new issues his firm will work on are upgrading U.S. 93 between Las Vegas and Phoenix to interstate highway standards and monitoring progress on the development of train service between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

Skancke said Interstate 11, as the U.S. 93 upgrade project has been dubbed, would eventually be built six lanes wide with right-of-way for a rail corridor. The LA-Las Vegas train study would include magnetic-levitation technology and proposals by Amtrak for conventional rail.

Discussion: 9 comments so far…

By alexant

8/12/08 at 4:14 p.m.

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Oscar unveils a plan dated Apr. 1 but the date on the story is Aug. 12. Which to believe?
By firedawg2000

8/12/08 at 6:35 p.m.

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Great idea! Get 'er done!!!
By enbe

8/12/08 at 6:44 p.m.

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Here is a copy of what I wrote and was printed in the LV Sun: *

Letter: Let’s put MNF games here

Fri, Oct 8, 1999 (9:32 a.m.)

Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman should not be looking for a professional team to occupy a new downtown sports area. This is Las Vegas. Think bigger. We want every NFL team here.

We should be the permanent host for every Monday Night Football game.

We would have three-day weekends every week of football season with fans from two distant cities visiting Las Vegas. Hotel rooms would be occupied both Sunday and Monday nights. ABC would not have to move equipment weekly. Often the NFL has complained that starting games in the East at 9 p.m. gave fans too much after-work time to get into trouble; 6 p.m. here would be perfect.

It may even be worth the loss not to take bets on the Monday Night games. Let's see what the Resort Association and the Convention Authority thinks of funding this concept.
By Fccfirstclass

8/13/08 at 4:50 a.m.

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YES!
By williamtomany1

8/13/08 at 10:30 a.m.

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Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman

Give the dreamer credit but it will never happen
By Sufferin_Succotash

8/13/08 at 11:44 a.m.

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Downtown needs a 35,000 seat retractable roof Baseball Stadium built and that is the only thing that the greatest Mayor in the history of Las Vegas should be working on. Baseball is what Downtown needs, not Football. Major League Baseball would move here if the Mayor would just build the retractable roof stadium. 35,000 seats Mayor Goodman! Baseball only.

The LVCVA should give UNLV $100 million dollars to help them finance a 50,000 seat On-Campus College Football Stadium. That is what is needed in Las Vegas. You can see the pictures of where the UNLV On-Campus stadium should go by clicking here: http://members.cox.net/rebelrobert/stadi...
By Ronnie

8/13/08 at 3:06 p.m.

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For the first time in the history of mankind, I agree with you on something Sufferin. UNLV is long over due to have a stadium for football on campus.
By KDR81

8/14/08 at 8:52 a.m.

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Waste of money, the city will never recoup the losses and taxpayers will be left with the bill for years.

Don't be fooled people.
By Rverp1

8/14/08 at 10:03 a.m.

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This would be better than 1 TEAM...We could use the stadium 16 weeks not just 8, and it would bring in outsiders unlike regular NFL games that draw mostly locals....If the stadium was built right we could reconfigure for the baseball all-star game also...So in reality with the Super Bowl we could fill the hotels 18 additional weeks...