Las Vegas go hard or go home thread

[RPM 26330]

Vegas homeless are corralled into an empty parking lot

 

[Axle Hongsnort 208]

Vegas homeless are corralled into an empty parking lot

 

You can’t win. Make an effort to keep the homeless distant and you get railed in the press.

[Blotto 23560]

On 3/30/2020 at 2:56 PM, RPM said:

Vegas homeless are corralled into an empty parking lot

 

The "empathetic me" gets depressed looking at the photo.

The "entrepreneurial me" sees a profitable angle for Corona Keno.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

MGM CEO says the Governor will soon announce pushback to April 30 before any possible opening up of business for Nevada. So earliest possible casino openings now at least May 1 but he also says MGM won’t be the first to open up whenever that happens in Vegas.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[RPM 26330]

Tropicana Is Sold for Five Months’ Rent

Frank Sinatra hung out there. “The Godfather” was filmed there. And the iconic Las Vegas resort even invented the swim-up blackjack table.

But on Friday night, Penn National Gaming Inc. announced it’s selling the Tropicana for $307.5 million -- about $52.5 million less than it paid for the Strip property five years ago.

 

 

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

Organizers behind Electric Daisy Carnival's sold-out 2020 edition in Las Vegas are planning to postpone the dance music festival to Oct. 2-4 and will announce a reschedule soon, a source tells Billboard.

This year's EDC Las Vegas is currently still scheduled for May 15-17. It is one of the world's largest dance music festivals, with a 2020 lineup featuring more than 200 artists, including Chainsmokers, DJ Snake, David Guetta and Major Lazer. Details on ticketing and possible lineup changes for the new dates are forthcoming.

[Angry Gorilla 1768]

13 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

This year's EDC Las Vegas is currently still scheduled for May 15-17. It is one of the world's largest dance music festivals, with a 2020 lineup featuring more than 200 artists, including Chainsmokers, DJ Snake, David Guetta and Major Lazer. Details on ticketing and possible lineup changes for the new dates are forthcoming.

That's a fun weekend to be in Vegas.  I could care less about the festival but it's fun to be sitting drunk at a BJ table at 5am and watch the girls in neon face and body paint come stumbling through the casino.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Just a day after announcing they will pay all employees through April 30, Las Vegas Sands is now assisting employees of third-party restaurants at the Venetian Resort. On Friday, the company announced a new program to cover emergency pay for employees of several partner restaurants.

The new program assists approximately 1,200 employees. These restaurants include:

Black Tap Burgers & Beer
Bouchon
Buddy V’s Ristorante
CUT by Wolfgang Puck
Go Greek
Lagasse’s Stadium
Matteo’s Ristorante Italiano
Majordomo Meat & Fish
Moon Palace
Mott 32
sixth+mill ristorante pizzeria and bar
Solaro by Wolfgang Puck
Spritz Poolside Restaurant
Yardbird Southern Table & Bar

Las Vegas Sands will cover payroll costs during the current shutdown of each restaurant’s salaried employees and weekly stipend for hourly and part-time employees.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

LVRJ:


Professional gamblers would normally not be allowed to file for unemployment insurance benefits in Nevada, but circumstances have changed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

These workers may qualify as independent contractors or self-employed “during this unprecedented time and under the CARES Act,” said Rosa Mendez, a spokeswoman for the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

Professional poker player Chris Konvalinka told the Review-Journal last month that he was considering filing for unemployment benefits.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[Incredulity 11680]

On 4/2/2020 at 7:16 AM, Angry Gorilla said:

That's a fun weekend to be in Vegas.  I could care less about the festival but it's fun to be sitting drunk at a BJ table at 5am and watch the girls in neon face and body paint come stumbling through the casino.

I happened to be in Vegas a few years ago during EDC.  It is something to see.  

Every so often a blackjack dealer would go, "oh my god.. Look at that."

It would either be a complete knockout dressed up like Wonder Woman or a Vic Mackey special in the same outfit.  Kind of added another element of chance to the evening.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[Landomatic 3813]

1 hour ago, bigup2dahorns said:

 

I shoulda been a mogul.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[Landomatic 3813]

9 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

 

I'm all about showing front line workers the love and I guess jet fuel is pretty cheap right now...but, this seems a little over-the-top and wasteful given the current landscape.  Don't know what it costs to put each of those things in the air, but it ain't cheap and I have to believe that money could be used for something much more useful.  I mean, there's a fine line on how much of this type of thing we need to keep doing for morale and I'm sure everyone has a different idea of where to draw it, but this one seems excessive to me.

Edited April 10, 2020 by Landomatic

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

They will be performing in a week in Colorado for the USAFA graduation ceremony. They will be practicing for that show as well. It’s not like the planes and crew are grounded. No issues with social distancing. And the airspace in Vegas is pretty much dead right now.

[RPM 26330]

I have no issues at all with the Thunderbirds doing a free show for Las Vegas. Like Bigup said, it's probably just a practice session they moved to an area they can be seen.

[Underdog 28759]

On 4/3/2020 at 11:16 PM, bigup2dahorns said:

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Just a day after announcing they will pay all employees through April 30, Las Vegas Sands is now assisting employees of third-party restaurants at the Venetian Resort. On Friday, the company announced a new program to cover emergency pay for employees of several partner restaurants.

The new program assists approximately 1,200 employees. These restaurants include:

Black Tap Burgers & Beer
Bouchon
Buddy V’s Ristorante
CUT by Wolfgang Puck
Go Greek
Lagasse’s Stadium
Matteo’s Ristorante Italiano
Majordomo Meat & Fish
Moon Palace
Mott 32
sixth+mill ristorante pizzeria and bar
Solaro by Wolfgang Puck
Spritz Poolside Restaurant
Yardbird Southern Table & Bar

Las Vegas Sands will cover payroll costs during the current shutdown of each restaurant’s salaried employees and weekly stipend for hourly and part-time employees.

Stupid question but are these two places just have his name attached to them or does he actually own/run them?  If the latter, you'd think ole boy would have enough dough of his own to take care of his employees.  

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

Las Vegas Sun April 6:


Celebrity chef, culinary industry titan and pioneering Las Vegas restaurateur Wolfgang Puck has been making headlines while lobbying for a federal bailout for the restaurant industry.

The Austrian-born mogul last week joined fellow star chefs Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten — all of whom have operated restaurants in Las Vegas — on a conference call with President Trump to push for specialty stimulus relief for big fine-dining restaurants like his and smaller neighborhood restaurants struggling to survive through the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’re the biggest employer in the country, 15 and a half million people, the second largest after the government itself,” Puck told the Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. “We need the ear of whoever is in the White House.

“I’ve been getting messages from employees and they say, ‘I’ve got to feed my family, what can I do?’ … All of these individuals are in real trouble. They don’t have a big savings account. Something like this has never happened before. When I get emails from people who’ve worked for me for so many years, I feel like I’m letting them down.”

Puck owns and operates dozens of restaurants around the world but only four are currently operating: two at the Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore and two United States restaurants offering takeout and delivery services, Spago in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Wolfgang Puck Players Locker at Downtown Summerlin in Las Vegas.

“We are starting to process and fully take advantage of the new federal programs and the CARES Act that should allow us to keep our employees [paid] who are not working, and it appears we are going to be able to do that,” said Tom Kaplan, senior managing partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group. “It appears that [program] is going to be very helpful and we have a strong business structure in Las Vegas, but … I do worry beyond our group how that will effect smaller restaurants. For us [in Las Vegas] and for Wolf, we are deeply concerned not only for our own business but for the industry as a whole.”

Puck was one of the first prominent national or international operators to land on the Las Vegas Strip when he opened an outlet of Spago at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in 1992. His company has expanded its presence in the Las Vegas Valley through the years and currently operates six restaurants on the Strip and in Summerlin. Five are company-owned, with Spago at Bellagio owned by MGM Resorts International and managed by Puck’s group; that restaurant’s workers are MGM employees.

Las Vegas Sands announced on Friday it would pay more than a thousand third-party restaurant workers at its Strip resort properties Venetian and Palazzo, including Puck’s CUT steakhouse and Solara poolside café. The program will cover payroll expenses for salaried employees at restaurants and a weekly stipend for hourly and part-time workers.

In addition to specific federal aid for restaurants, Puck and his colleagues are lobbying the government and the insurance industry to allow business interruption claims associated with pandemic-caused closures. Such claims are currently reserved for restaurant closures caused by fires or natural disasters.

“That’s a big discussion. If the government does get behind that the way they did after September 11, that can make or break a business, even when we come out on the other side of this,” Kaplan said. “That’s where Wolf has really been pushing and others are using their celebrity status to pressure insurance companies to recognize this is indeed a business interruption event and they are responsible on some level for compensating.”

Kaplan has been working with Puck for almost 40 years and has lived in Las Vegas for almost 30 years. While the Vegas branch of the company is filtering relief efforts to its employees and attempting to calculate the business impact of this crisis in the short, mid- and long terms, it is also communicating with and supporting other local hospitality operators, he said.

“Myself and David Robins (managing partner, operations and corporate chef) are always on the side getting calls and I think that will increase as we get more [information],” Kaplan said. “Just as there is universal support in the scientific community to find a cure, all working together, the restaurant business is the same thing. We’re all in this together. We’ve always been happy to open our doors for [Las Vegas] and answer any questions we can and this is no different. We love this community and if people ask if we can help, we’re going to help.”


https://m.lasvegassun.com/news/2020/apr/06/wolfgang-puck-restaurant-bailout-tom-kaplan/

[Underdog 28759]

Wolfie may want to hock more pots and pans on QVC/HSN to make ends meet. 

[Chewbacca 7780]

Stupid question but are these two places just have his name attached to them or does he actually own/run them?  If the latter, you'd think ole boy would have enough dough of his own to take care of his employees.  

It depends.

[Axle Hongsnort 208]

Las Vegas Sun April 6:


Celebrity chef, culinary industry titan and pioneering Las Vegas restaurateur Wolfgang Puck has been making headlines while lobbying for a federal bailout for the restaurant industry.

The Austrian-born mogul last week joined fellow star chefs Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten — all of whom have operated restaurants in Las Vegas — on a conference call with President Trump to push for specialty stimulus relief for big fine-dining restaurants like his and smaller neighborhood restaurants struggling to survive through the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’re the biggest employer in the country, 15 and a half million people, the second largest after the government itself,” Puck told the Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. “We need the ear of whoever is in the White House.

“I’ve been getting messages from employees and they say, ‘I’ve got to feed my family, what can I do?’ … All of these individuals are in real trouble. They don’t have a big savings account. Something like this has never happened before. When I get emails from people who’ve worked for me for so many years, I feel like I’m letting them down.”

Puck owns and operates dozens of restaurants around the world but only four are currently operating: two at the Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore and two United States restaurants offering takeout and delivery services, Spago in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Wolfgang Puck Players Locker at Downtown Summerlin in Las Vegas.

“We are starting to process and fully take advantage of the new federal programs and the CARES Act that should allow us to keep our employees [paid] who are not working, and it appears we are going to be able to do that,” said Tom Kaplan, senior managing partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group. “It appears that [program] is going to be very helpful and we have a strong business structure in Las Vegas, but … I do worry beyond our group how that will effect smaller restaurants. For us [in Las Vegas] and for Wolf, we are deeply concerned not only for our own business but for the industry as a whole.”

Puck was one of the first prominent national or international operators to land on the Las Vegas Strip when he opened an outlet of Spago at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in 1992. His company has expanded its presence in the Las Vegas Valley through the years and currently operates six restaurants on the Strip and in Summerlin. Five are company-owned, with Spago at Bellagio owned by MGM Resorts International and managed by Puck’s group; that restaurant’s workers are MGM employees.

Las Vegas Sands announced on Friday it would pay more than a thousand third-party restaurant workers at its Strip resort properties Venetian and Palazzo, including Puck’s CUT steakhouse and Solara poolside café. The program will cover payroll expenses for salaried employees at restaurants and a weekly stipend for hourly and part-time workers.

In addition to specific federal aid for restaurants, Puck and his colleagues are lobbying the government and the insurance industry to allow business interruption claims associated with pandemic-caused closures. Such claims are currently reserved for restaurant closures caused by fires or natural disasters.

“That’s a big discussion. If the government does get behind that the way they did after September 11, that can make or break a business, even when we come out on the other side of this,” Kaplan said. “That’s where Wolf has really been pushing and others are using their celebrity status to pressure insurance companies to recognize this is indeed a business interruption event and they are responsible on some level for compensating.”

Kaplan has been working with Puck for almost 40 years and has lived in Las Vegas for almost 30 years. While the Vegas branch of the company is filtering relief efforts to its employees and attempting to calculate the business impact of this crisis in the short, mid- and long terms, it is also communicating with and supporting other local hospitality operators, he said.

“Myself and David Robins (managing partner, operations and corporate chef) are always on the side getting calls and I think that will increase as we get more [information],” Kaplan said. “Just as there is universal support in the scientific community to find a cure, all working together, the restaurant business is the same thing. We’re all in this together. We’ve always been happy to open our doors for [Las Vegas] and answer any questions we can and this is no different. We love this community and if people ask if we can help, we’re going to help.”


https://m.lasvegassun.com/news/2020/apr/06/wolfgang-puck-restaurant-bailout-tom-kaplan/

Kaplan’s wife is a Texas grad, so there’s that \m/

[RPM 26330]

19 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

Las Vegas Sun April 6:


Celebrity chef, culinary industry titan and pioneering Las Vegas restaurateur Wolfgang Puck has been making headlines while lobbying for a federal bailout for the restaurant industry.

The Austrian-born mogul last week joined fellow star chefs Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten — all of whom have operated restaurants in Las Vegas — on a conference call with President Trump to push for specialty stimulus relief for big fine-dining restaurants like his and smaller neighborhood restaurants struggling to survive through the coronavirus pandemic.

“We’re the biggest employer in the country, 15 and a half million people, the second largest after the government itself,” Puck told the Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday. “We need the ear of whoever is in the White House.

“I’ve been getting messages from employees and they say, ‘I’ve got to feed my family, what can I do?’ … All of these individuals are in real trouble. They don’t have a big savings account. Something like this has never happened before. When I get emails from people who’ve worked for me for so many years, I feel like I’m letting them down.”

Puck owns and operates dozens of restaurants around the world but only four are currently operating: two at the Marina Bay Sands resort in Singapore and two United States restaurants offering takeout and delivery services, Spago in Beverly Hills, Calif., and Wolfgang Puck Players Locker at Downtown Summerlin in Las Vegas.

“We are starting to process and fully take advantage of the new federal programs and the CARES Act that should allow us to keep our employees [paid] who are not working, and it appears we are going to be able to do that,” said Tom Kaplan, senior managing partner of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group. “It appears that [program] is going to be very helpful and we have a strong business structure in Las Vegas, but … I do worry beyond our group how that will effect smaller restaurants. For us [in Las Vegas] and for Wolf, we are deeply concerned not only for our own business but for the industry as a whole.”

Puck was one of the first prominent national or international operators to land on the Las Vegas Strip when he opened an outlet of Spago at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in 1992. His company has expanded its presence in the Las Vegas Valley through the years and currently operates six restaurants on the Strip and in Summerlin. Five are company-owned, with Spago at Bellagio owned by MGM Resorts International and managed by Puck’s group; that restaurant’s workers are MGM employees.

Las Vegas Sands announced on Friday it would pay more than a thousand third-party restaurant workers at its Strip resort properties Venetian and Palazzo, including Puck’s CUT steakhouse and Solara poolside café. The program will cover payroll expenses for salaried employees at restaurants and a weekly stipend for hourly and part-time workers.

In addition to specific federal aid for restaurants, Puck and his colleagues are lobbying the government and the insurance industry to allow business interruption claims associated with pandemic-caused closures. Such claims are currently reserved for restaurant closures caused by fires or natural disasters.

“That’s a big discussion. If the government does get behind that the way they did after September 11, that can make or break a business, even when we come out on the other side of this,” Kaplan said. “That’s where Wolf has really been pushing and others are using their celebrity status to pressure insurance companies to recognize this is indeed a business interruption event and they are responsible on some level for compensating.”

Kaplan has been working with Puck for almost 40 years and has lived in Las Vegas for almost 30 years. While the Vegas branch of the company is filtering relief efforts to its employees and attempting to calculate the business impact of this crisis in the short, mid- and long terms, it is also communicating with and supporting other local hospitality operators, he said.

“Myself and David Robins (managing partner, operations and corporate chef) are always on the side getting calls and I think that will increase as we get more [information],” Kaplan said. “Just as there is universal support in the scientific community to find a cure, all working together, the restaurant business is the same thing. We’re all in this together. We’ve always been happy to open our doors for [Las Vegas] and answer any questions we can and this is no different. We love this community and if people ask if we can help, we’re going to help.”


https://m.lasvegassun.com/news/2020/apr/06/wolfgang-puck-restaurant-bailout-tom-kaplan/

Trump won't back a Vegas bailout unless they give him a gaming license. No CR, just history.

Edited April 11, 2020 by RPM

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[pops 7006]

Damn that's crazy to see I15, trop, Sinatra... All of those roads fucking empty. 

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

The Las Vegas Raiders were on track to play their first season in Sin City in 2020. Thanks to stadium construction delays due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Raiders may have to wait another year to enter their glamorous new home. Per Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Raiders investigated options to play games in Salt Lake City, Phoenix and San Diego if the coronavirus pandemic and the stay-at-home orders continue construction delays to Allegiant Stadium. This is considered the worst-case scenario for the Raiders as the franchise still plans to have the stadium completed in time.

The majority of the work is in the interior of the stadium as the construction of the roof is scheduled to be completed in a few weeks. If the Raiders stadium construction is delayed, the team can play their preseason games at an alternate site -- perhaps some regular season games until the stadium is completed. Playing all four preseason games on the road is also an option, in case the team wants to play a full eight-game home schedule in their new venue.

Of the three cities listed, the closest to Vegas is Phoenix -- which is four hours and 45 minutes (4:45) away. San Diego is about five hours away and Salt Lake City is approximately six hours from Vegas, the farthest distance of the three proposed destinations.

If the Raiders were to play in Salt Lake City, Rice-Eccles Stadium (where the University of Utah football team plays) would be the preferred destination. The University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale (where the Arizona Cardinals play) could host the Raiders, or Chase Field (where Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks play) could be a potential venue. San Diego County Credit Union Stadium (formerly Qualcomm Stadium) is the logical site if the Raiders were to play in San Diego, which hosted the Chargers from 1961 to 2016. The stadium has been in existence since 1967 and has hosted three Super Bowls.

Oakland, which was the Raiders' home city since 1995 (the second stint), is not considered an option.
All these cities are long shots at this stage in the game, but they are on the table for the Raiders. The longer the stay-at-home orders exist, the more likely the Raiders may need to find a place to play in 2020.


https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/raiders-reportedly-have-contingency-plan-in-case-stadium-is-not-completed-with-three-cities-at-top-of-list/

[wild_turkey 3177]

Rates at Wynn are super cheap in June and fully refundable up until 24 hours before arrival. I'm thinking of booking a long weekend just to give myself something to look forward to. Worst case I cancel and push it out another 1-2 months. Airfare is also cheap.

[Guest Lobo]

Those planes are too close together for Covid-19.  

[Wally Pryor 5261]

I'm doubting that our annual trip in August is going to happen.

Hope I'm wrong.  Damn hope I'm wrong. 

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[RPM 26330]

After the end of the world: the eerie silence of the Las Vegas Strip

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

Guessing game continues

[Landomatic 3813]

51 minutes ago, RPM said:

After the end of the world: the eerie silence of the Las Vegas Strip

Ugh...that's a tough read.

[Landomatic 3813]

34 minutes ago, bigup2dahorns said:

Guessing game continues

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

[Grade of D as in David 13253]

13 minutes ago, Landomatic said:

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

No just more gullible 

[hornbri 1400]

16 minutes ago, Landomatic said:

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

The operating costs on the value resort are likely a lot less. So they will lose less money with a lower occupancy. Hard to open a luxury resort with 25% occupancy. 

[NoName 16367]

28 minutes ago, Landomatic said:

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

value resorts need the money more than luxury resorts?

[po elvis 2076]

39 minutes ago, Landomatic said:

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

i would think the demographic that goes to the cheap resorts fits in more with people that don't think corona is a big deal.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

Assume low level of demand to start, and higher operating costs at luxury properties, so they go with phased opening of properties and gauge demand and go from there. But I’m digging into the possibilities.

[Moby Ric 2058]

I see the mayor of Vegas is calling for he hotels and casinos to reopen.  Timing as stimulus checks are hitting accounts is brilliant.

[Landomatic 3813]

1 hour ago, bigup2dahorns said:

Assume low level of demand to start, and higher operating costs at luxury properties, so they go with phased opening of properties and gauge demand and go from there. But I’m digging into the possibilities.

Makes sense.  At some point, we will all reach a point of risk/reward in this thing.

[RPM 26330]

6 hours ago, Landomatic said:

Value resorts to open June 1, luxury resorts August 1...what's their justification for this?  Poor people are more expendable than rich people?

Canaries in the coal mine.

[Moby Ric 2058]

25 minutes ago, RPM said:

Canaries in the coal mine.

Exactly, the lower income are more willing to go blow their free money in Vegas than those who are regulars and stay at the higher end places.

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[bigup2dahorns 3343]

[Landomatic 3813]

10 hours ago, bigup2dahorns said:

 

I know the Bellagio has seen its better days, but I didn’t necessarily consider it a “value resort” just yet.  Must have really gone to shit here lately.