Liz Benston

Reporter/ Gaming

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Recent Stories (view all stories)

CityCenter: One man's concept of a real city: To Jim Murren, a CEO who had studied art and architecture and lived in New York, Las Vegas needed a true urban center; Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009; Visitors to CityCenter, the Strip’s newest spectacle, will be driven to look up at the glistening glass and steel. It is an inexorable pull, to cock your head backward and take in the sweep of six high-rise towers — including two that lean — that create an urban scene unlike any other. The man who conceived of this place, however, would like to draw your attention to a small park bench. It is found near the center of the 67-acre site, alongside Aria, the flagship high-rise filled with 4,004 guest rooms.
Could the game be partly to blame for addiction?: Some say features common in machines may lull players into crossing the line; Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009; Hoping to solve the decades-old mystery of why some people develop gambling problems, a growing number of researchers are studying the other side of the equation: the games that gamblers fixate on.
Illness theory gaining ground for gambling addiction: Similar disorders found in alcoholics, those with a compulsion to gamble; Monday, Nov. 23, 2009; Experts who study gambling addiction remain a long way from knowing why people develop gambling problems. But researchers now know what happens inside the brains of gambling addicts that fuels the addiction, and how best to help them.
At CityCenter, it's not your usual uniforms for workers: Second looks may be needed to spot employees by what they’re wearing; Monday, Nov. 23, 2009; At CityCenter’s 25,000-square-foot uniform distribution center on Dean Martin Drive, Jhane Barnes, a slight woman with squarish glasses and short hair, proudly shows off clothing racks heavy with new uniforms.
Hotels rein in risque advertising campaigns: Friday, Nov. 20, 2009; Before the recession, ads for Las Vegas resorts appealed to a desire for frivolity and conspicuous consumption with taglines such as, “Some fantasies just don’t work anywhere else,” “Everything in moderation? Yeah, right,” and “Parents gone wild.”
Some seeing signs of Strip’s economic recovery: Convention planning, stabilizing of housing nationally good signs for Vegas; Monday, Nov. 16, 2009; As a real-time indicator of how confident American consumers feel about spending their money, earnings of the big casino operators on the Las Vegas Strip haven’t inspired much confidence lately. And yet, a growing number of industry executives and analysts believes the market has bottomed and are forecasting a modest rebound in 2010, in part based on evidence that convention groups are more confident about booking rooms next year and signs that year-over-year gambling revenue declines have plateaued on the Strip.
Vegas resorts get new places on Monopoly game board: But in assigning most-coveted spots, maker cops out; Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009; There may be some squabbling among Vegas aficionados over whether these assessments of relative value are accurate. The resorts, though, are just happy to have won a place at the table — or, more specifically, the Monopoly game board.
They are, after all, in the gaming business.
Vegas is inspiring, but not buying, ideas for tourism ads: Professionals say they can handle promotion themselves; Monday, Nov. 9, 2009; With Las Vegas tourism in the dumps, Virginia Ridgway, a retired gift shop owner in Goldfield — a mining boomtown decades before Vegas became a vacation hot spot — is doing her part. She hosted a luncheon to present her catchphrase, “Deal Vegas In,” to tourism bigwigs in Las Vegas including honchos with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
Eager to get to work: Struggle to find jobs led these six people — and 11,994 others — to CityCenter; Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009; When MGM Mirage’s $8.5 billion CityCenter resort opens next month, its financial and artistic merits will be debated the world over.
MGM Mirage following Harrah’s lead on marketing conventions: Friday, Nov. 6, 2009; In its last earnings report before the company opens its $8.5 billion CityCenter complex next month, MGM Mirage on Thursday projected an improvement in business next year. Part of this optimism is based on a new sales strategy for filling its hotels.

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Recent Blog Posts (view all entries)

Deals hit the buffet line: Eat all day for $25: Friday, Feb. 13, 2009; The economic slump has Las Vegas casinos blitzing the Internet with offers that include free rooms, half-price show tickets and airplane vouchers for future trips. The Excalibur is filling a new niche, so to speak, for the gluttonous crowd.
CityCenter jobs a bright spot in down economy: Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2009; The prospect of getting a job at CityCenter, which is hiring some 12,000 people for a late 2009 opening, has thrown some locals into a state of anxious excitement. Officials now expect more than 150,000 applications, including some 50,000 flooding the site within three weeks.
Primm hotel rates for locals: free: Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008; Remember the days when casinos gave away rooms and meals to attract gamblers?
Casino companies, even the competition, wish Aliante well: Thursday, Nov. 13, 2008; While the buzz at Station Casinos’ Aliante Station grand opening party Tuesday was shaded with concern about the company’s ability to generate decent money at this suburban casino amid this downturn, everyone is hoping for the best.
Casino stocks plunge to new lows: Friday, Oct. 24, 2008
MGM Mirage stock still on downslide: Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008; Those investors who figured MGM Mirage couldn't trade much below $20 a share a few weeks ago got another nasty surprise today, when bond rating agency Fitch Ratings issued an especially bearish outlook on the company.
MGM Mirage announces end to bonuses: Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2008; While some Strip operators have been cagey about layoffs, firings and other employee moves during this time of economic turbulence, MGM Mirage appears to be going the route of full disclosure.
MGM Mirage splits from Nevada Resort Association: Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2008
CityCenter secures $1.8 billion; Wynn avoiding worst of crunch: Monday, Oct. 6, 2008; It wasn't that long ago that Wall Street was criticizing Steve Wynn, who then owned Mirage Resorts, for spending money like a drunken sailor.
Adelson bails out Las Vegas Sands with cash: Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2008; It takes more than skill to survive on the Strip, especially now with business plans and financing deals imploding like so many old hotels.