Richard N. Velotta

Story Archive

He can't sing or dance, but John Burnett is an integral member of the Smith Center team: Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2013; For John Burnett, the chance to work at the Smith Center for the Performing Arts was an opportunity to be center stage at a theater the nation’s arts community has been buzzing about for months. Burnett was appointed vice president and chief financial officer of the year-old theater last month. His hiring ended a seven-month executive search.
Despite higher revenue on the Strip and abroad, MGM Resorts posts a second-quarter loss: Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2013; MGM Resorts International, the largest casino company on the Strip, reported its second-quarter earnings today. Despite record revenue in Macau and improved performance on the Strip, MGM reported a loss. Even so, the company performed better than analysts expected.
Tourist attractions recognized as Nevada standouts: Monday, Aug. 5, 2013; Three Southern Nevada tourist attractions have been recognized as standouts in the Nevada Tourism Commission’s Discover Your Nevada popularity contest.
The cash cow that is Macau: Research indicates the pockets are only getting deeper for casino companies in China; Monday, Aug. 5, 2013; Most of us have a hard time comprehending what a million dollars looks like stacked up in a neat pile on a table.
Monsters, goblins, zombies welcome: Circus Circus has some scary job prospects: Tuesday, July 30, 2013; Circus Circus is looking for more than 400 guys and ghouls to throw some scares into visitors at the Adventuredome’s 11th seasonal fright fest.
Tag, you're it: British Airways now offering self-service bag tagging: Tuesday, July 30, 2013; British Airways has become the third airline at McCarran International Airport to offer passengers self-service bag tagging for its international flights through London.
Boyd Gaming chief says company ‘moving in the right direction’: Tuesday, July 30, 2013; Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming, which operates locals properties the Orleans, Gold Coast, Suncoast and Sam’s Town, downtown’s Main Street Station, California and Fremont and a total of 22 casinos in eight states, reported its second-quarter earnings Tuesday.
Caesars Entertainment takes second-quarter loss, but CEO touts 'a number of key milestones' reached: Monday, July 29, 2013; Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment, which operates nine resorts in Las Vegas and a diversified portfolio of properties worldwide, reported its second-quarter earnings Monday. A loss of $212.2 million was an improvement of 12.2 percent from the second quarter of 2012.
Steve Wynn reveals theme, design elements for new casino in Macau: Monday, July 29, 2013; Wynn Resorts Chairman and CEO Steve Wynn gave more details about his planned $4 billion resort on Macau’s Cotai Strip today, including its name — Wynn Palace. In a conference call to discuss the company’s second-quarter earnings, Wynn said the new property would have a floral theme with colorful floats adorning the resort and changing monthly.
Wynn Resorts earnings for 2nd quarter down at $129.8 million: Monday, July 29, 2013; Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts, which operates Wynn Las Vegas and Encore on the Strip as well as two properties in Macau, reported its second-quarter earnings Monday.
The rise of retail law: Monday, July 29, 2013; Lawyer Glenn Truitt stands downtown, passing out T-shirts and cigarette lighters to art fans and hipsters mulling about First Friday. The trinkets bear the name of Truitt’s law firm, Half Price Lawyers, and he is working to change the public’s perception about how a law office should represent clients.
Hindsight after Asiana crash: Pilots’ experience being questioned, but public has little use for that information; Monday, July 29, 2013; Would you change your flight plans if you found out your airplane’s pilot or co-pilot had minimal experience?
International traffic flies high at McCarran, helping keep passenger counts steady for first half of 2013: Friday, July 26, 2013; McCarran International Airport showed modest gains in passenger traffic in June, bringing the half-year total to nearly even with last year.
'Negative show rotation' affects revenue of convention business, but earnings still higher than a year ago: Friday, July 26, 2013; Phoenix-based Viad, parent company of convention services giant Global Experience Specialists (GES) of Las Vegas, reported $249.3 million in revenue for the second quarter, up 1.1 percent from the second quarter of 2012.
McCarran monkey wrench: Network outage that caused long lines, manual check-in was biggest crash in three years: Friday, July 26, 2013; McCarran International Airport’s information technology experts are continuing to investigate what caused Thursday’s computer network crash that slowed the printing of boarding passes and tickets and caused dozens of passengers on all airlines to miss their morning flights.
Roderick William Dee II: No. 34 enemy of Las Vegas casinos: Thursday, July 25, 2013; Roderick William Dee II has been placed on the state Gaming Control Board's Excluded Person List — the so-called Black Book with the names of people not allowed to set foot in a casino.
Ultimate Gaming wins final approval for intrastate Internet poker system: Thursday, July 25, 2013; The Nevada Gaming Commission on Thursday approved the formation of a holding company by Caesars Entertainment for its Internet poker operation.
Southwest Airlines reports record operating revenue: Thursday, July 25, 2013; Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, the busiest commercial air carrier at McCarran International Airport, reported its second-quarter earnings Thursday.
Slow but steady recovery: Companies have created thousands of jobs in 2013: Thursday, July 25, 2013; After years of record unemployment, Nevada finally is seeing job growth. Employment gains are slow but steady and point to the city and nation's continued recovery from the recession, experts say.
Macau revenue sets record for Las Vegas Sands: Wednesday, July 24, 2013; Las Vegas Sands, operator of the Venetian and Palazzo resorts on the Strip and properties in Macau and Singapore, reported its second-quarter earnings Wednesday.
More routes, passengers result in more revenue for Spirit Airlines: Wednesday, July 24, 2013; Mirimar, Fla.-based Spirit Airlines, the fastest growing domestic air carrier at McCarran International Airport last year, reported its second-quarter earnings Wednesday.
Social gaming boosts IGT earnings 40 percent from last year: Tuesday, July 23, 2013; Las Vegas-based International Game Technology reported its third-quarter earnings Tuesday. Revenue and earnings were up from the third quarter a year ago.
Higher fares, lower operating costs drive Allegiant's profits up: Tuesday, July 23, 2013; Las Vegas-based Allegiant Travel Co., parent company of Allegiant Air, reported its second-quarter earnings Tuesday. Revenue and earnings were up from the second quarter a year ago.
Considering a trip to Panama City? More flight options becoming available: Monday, July 22, 2013; Panama-based Copa Airlines will add four weekly round-trip flights between Panama City and Las Vegas in December, the company announced today.
High-speed rail goes off track: Caught in a political game, XpressWest appears to have little hope of gaining funding; Monday, July 22, 2013; XpressWest executives recently acknowledged news that critics of the project have been waiting for: A review of the company’s $5.5 billion federal loan application to build a high-speed rail line between Southern California and Las Vegas has been suspended.
Diamond sparkles on first day of trading on New York Stock Exchange: Friday, July 19, 2013; Las Vegas-based Diamond Resorts International, a vacation home ownership management company with 296 destinations in 32 countries, completed its first trading day on the New York Stock Exchange on a positive note Friday after its initial public offering priced below its expected range.
Coming to a freeway near you: meters to help manage merging traffic: Wednesday, July 17, 2013; Freeway ramp meters regulating the flow of traffic will be activated on Interstate 515 and southbound Interstate 15 on Thursday.
Bally says $1.3 billion acquisition of SHFL entertainment good for growth: Tuesday, July 16, 2013; Las Vegas-based Bally Technologies will acquire SHFL entertainment, the Las Vegas company formerly known as Shuffle Master, in a $1.3 billion deal announced today.
For Southwest, no comparison: Website that breaks down airline amenities gets an incomplete grade for Las Vegas travelers; Monday, July 15, 2013; When you have a choice of airlines to fly, how do you decide which to take? Many travelers are loyal to specific companies and do everything they can — even rent cars and drive miles out of their way — to use their favorite carriers. But that can be expensive.
Protecting bright ideas: How to safeguard your company’s intellectual property: Monday, July 8, 2013; One glance at the Las Vegas Strip makes it clear that Southern Nevada is a center of creativity. New ideas, catchy phrases and eye-catching displays battle to attract attention. But the city also is a danger zone for thieves who hope to profit from that creativity by appropriating protected trademarks or concepts for their own use.
Retired airport director talks about McCarran, then and now: Monday, July 1, 2013; Randall Walker retired May 31 from McCarran International Airport, the nation’s seventh-busiest airport. He now is pursuing a career in aviation consulting.
Unearthing travel fees: Website compiles airline and hotel charges that aren’t included in advertised rate; Monday, July 1, 2013; High on the aggravation list for anyone who travels is the growing number of fees airlines and hotels add to customers’ bills.
The Indian 'Oscars of marketing' convention held in Las Vegas: Saturday, June 29, 2013; When 300 of the world’s top Indian business leaders held a two-day branding and marketing seminar, they came to one of the nation’s most recognizable brands: Las Vegas. The fourth annual PowerBrand Glams – considered the Oscars of the Indian business world – arrived this week at the Venetian. Previously, the event had been held in New Delhi, Dubai and London.
Despite delay, work continues on Southern Nevada's second water park: Friday, June 28, 2013; The developers of Southern Nevada’s “other” water park — Henderson’s Cowabunga Bay near the Galleria at Sunset mall — say most of their slides have arrived, and they still plan a spring 2014 opening.
NSA leak prompts Vegas to rehash 'What happens here' slogan: Wednesday, June 26, 2013; The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is once again weaving news headlines into an ad campaign, this time encouraging companies receiving information requests from the National Security Agency to say no and tell them “What happens here, stays here.”
X Train bringing the party to North Las Vegas: Company transporting partiers from Southern California changes arrival point from the Plaza to allow for growth; Wednesday, June 26, 2013; The train that will bring partiers from Southern California to Las Vegas next year will deliver passengers to a new train station that will be built in North Las Vegas. Originally, the company planned to build a station at the Plaza in downtown Las Vegas.
LVCVA committee recommends against contract with union: Wednesday, June 26, 2013; The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority's five-member compensation committee today voted against recommending a five-year contract with the Service Employees International Union.
New bicycles for taxi officers' patrol group: Tuesday, June 25, 2013; A Nevada Taxicab Authority pilot program for a small bicycle patrol has resulted in the acquisition of four new bikes for the small state agency.
Name Nevada's top commercial brand. Hint: It's not a casino: Tuesday, June 25, 2013; A U.S. map that depicts the most famous commercial brands emanating from the 50 states includes a surprise for Nevada: The state’s most famous brand isn’t a casino company. The map has a few no-brainers, but there are a few head-scratchers.
Taxicab Authority denies long-hauling appeal, finds no wrongdoing by taxis at nightclub: Tuesday, June 25, 2013; The Nevada Taxicab Authority rejected two requests. In one, the operators of Déjà vu Showgirls asked the authority board to discipline cab companies that they said diverted customers to rival nightclubs.
McCarran passenger counts fly high for just second time this year: Monday, June 24, 2013; May passenger counts at McCarran International Airport were the highest for any month in 2013. The Clark County Aviation Department today said 3.8 million people passed through the gates of Las Vegas’ airport, a 2.6 percent increase over May 2012.
Natural beauty marred: People consumed by greed shamelessly try to exploit Grand Canyon West; Monday, June 24, 2013; I love Grand Canyon West. But there’s something out there that elicits the most bizarre news stories.
Bar owner fined over lewd acts that were 'blatantly out in open': Thursday, June 20, 2013; The Nevada Gaming Commission has fined a 79-year-old Las Vegas tavern owner $27,000 and suspended her gaming license for three months for allowing patrons to engage in sexual activities in public view. Commissioners said Judy R. Nelson failed to adequately supervise the employees operating her bar.
Gaming commissioners clash over slot parlor licenses: Thursday, June 20, 2013; The long-standing debate over the issuance of restricted gaming licenses to slot parlors boiled over at today's Nevada Gaming Commission meeting in a heated policy discussion between Commissioner Randolph Townsend and Chairman Peter Bernhard.
Officials 'delighted' with changes to Nevada tourism website: Wednesday, June 19, 2013; The Nevada Tourism Commission was feeling a little better about TravelNevada.com 2.0 Wednesday after its brand consultant told members they’ll be tweaking the state’s tourism website after a lukewarm response to its mid-April debut.
Chase bank to celebrate Chinatown opening with lion dance: Wednesday, June 19, 2013; JPMorgan Chase has opened a multilingual Chase bank in Las Vegas’ Chinatown area.
Watching over us: Hundreds of freeway cameras monitor valley roads: Wednesday, June 19, 2013; It’s FAST. And it’s designed to help motorists go faster. FAST, the Freeway and Arterial System of Transportation, is the nerve center of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada’s traffic monitoring system. Thirty-five employees share space with the Nevada Highway Patrol and Transportation Department to manage the valley's streets and highways. They adjust traffic signal wait times to move cars more efficiently and notify motorists of freeway travel times.
Move over, NY-NY Roller Coaster: Another roller coaster - the Polercoaster - is proposed for the Strip: Tuesday, June 18, 2013; A Florida roller coaster company wants to build a towering roller coaster in Las Vegas, but the project has a long way to go before becoming a reality. US Thrill Rides LLC filed an application in April with the Federal Aviation Administration to build a 650-foot-tall observation deck and roller coaster called the Polercoaster. The FAA is reviewing the application, agency spokesman Ian Gregor said.
Company preparing to sell tickets for Las Vegas party train: Tuesday, June 18, 2013; A company developing a casino party train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas will launch a travel booking operation next month to sell tickets.
Group trying to lure Chinese banks, manufacturers to Nevada: Monday, June 17, 2013; People who travel to foreign countries get in a comfort zone when they see a Bank of America or Wells Fargo when they need to exchange currency or conduct other financial business.