The week’s best photos from RJ photographers, Sept. 24-Sept. 30
It’s been one year since people were diverted from UMC on Oct. 1, but county policy remains unchanged. UMC issued an “internal disaster” alert that night, telling ambulance drivers to avoid the hospital. It apparently contributed to the erroneous dispatch that UMC was “completely out of beds.” The alert wasn’t intended for mass casualty incidents, but neither hospital nor local health officials plan to erect policy changes to preclude its use during them. Instead, the health district is relying on a technical change to the computer system on which the alert runs. And UMC instituted an extra sign-off on capacity notifications. “(‘Internal disaster’) must be available for hospitals to use at all times,” a UMC spokeswoman said in an email. “The codes provide important notifications to both EMS and area hospitals regarding hospital status.”
After a long-winded battle with waste-management company Republic Services, Simple Environmental Services Group has declared bankruptcy. The recycling and waste management company filed for bankruptcy with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in July. According to Simple ESG’s filing, the company had more than 1,186,000 creditors, more than $1.05 million in reported assets and about $2.8 million in reported liabilities. The company used Republic Services — which has an exclusive franchise agreement with all municipalities in Southern Nevada — to collect clients’ trash. It also worked with other vendors to collect and haul recycling and provided additional services like graffiti removal. In a March 5 letter and obtained by the Review-Journal from Simple ESG to its clients, the company acknowledged that its clients had been receiving delinquent notices, service interruption notices, emails and phone calls regarding Republic Service accounts. Tim Oudman, area president at Republic Services
Las Vegas investor Ofir Hagay and partners recently bought several office buildings for $84 million combined. They picked up seven buildings in Summerlin and vacant space in Town Square Las Vegas. The sale comes as Las Vegas’ once-battered office market finds stronger footing. Hagay and other investors have been buying buildings amid job growth and shrunken vacancies.
U.S. securities regulators are asking a federal court to oust Tesla Inc.’s Elon Musk as chairman and CEO, alleging in a complaint that he committed securities fraud with false statements about plans to take the company private. The Securities and Exchange Commission says in the complaint filed Thursday that Musk falsely claimed in an Aug. 7 statement on Twitter that funding was secured to go private at $420 per share, a substantial premium over the price at the time.
Elon Musk, Tesla CEO Local experts say Tesla’s Gigafactory in Reno is secure — with or without its current CEO, and even if the company were to go belly up. Sam Abuelsamid, senior research analyst at Navigant Research
UNLV collects top-line results for the past six months in five Nevada reporting areas Here are some stats from February through July 2018 Statewide, gaming revenues are up 4.58% for the past six months, with a 3.33% increase in slot win and a 6.91% increase in game win. The Las Vegas Strip is up 5.16% for the period, with slot win up 2.05% and game win up 8.32% Downtown Las Vegas is up for the period (0.16%), with a higher slot win (+1.44 %) offset by a lower game win (-2.73%). The Boulder Strip is up 5.97% for the period. Slot win is up 6.42%, helped by an improving game win (+2.45%) Washoe County is up, with a higher total win (+5.37%), higher slot win (+5.88%), and higher game win (+2.97%) Source: UNLV center for gaming research https://gaming.unlv.edu/reports/6_month_NV.pdf
Rancho High School is one of 31 Shining Star schools in the state, which serve a high population of low-income students while also achieving academic success. But this year, the school lost half a million in weighted funding to help poor students or English language learners. The funding applies only to underperforming schools. Budget cuts and funding mechanisms have led some educators to feel they’re being punished for performing well.
Steve Wynn, the founder of Wynn Resorts, stepped down as CEO and chairman of Wynn Resorts in February amid investigations of sexual impropriety. Wynn released a statement at the time saying “In the last couple of weeks, I have found myself the focus of an avalanche of negative publicity.” “Therefore, effective immediately, I have decided to step down as CEO and Chairman of the Board of Wynn Resorts, a company I founded and that I love.” Wynn Resorts also released a statement saying, “Wynn Resorts remains as committed as ever to upholding the highest standards and being an inclusive and supportive employer.”
Miami developer Related Group is looking to build apartment complexes in the Las Vegas suburbs. The company had ventured to Las Vegas during the mid-2000s bubble to build condo towers. It never built them and instead flipped the project sites for big paydays. Related is returning amid an apartment-construction boom that’s heavily concentrated in the suburbs, especially the southwest valley.
November 2017: the White House imposed 20 per cent tariffs on imported Canadian lumber March 2018: 25 percent tariff on steel and 10 percent tariff on aluminum go into effect with exemptions for selected countries July: US tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports go into effect August: US imposes tariffs on $16 billion of imports from China September: US tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports take effect Source: Peterson Institute for International Economics, https://piie.com/system/files/documents/trump-trade-war-timeline.pdf
Las Vegas home prices were up 13.7% in July from a year earlier, compared to 6 percent nationally, according to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller index. The valley’s growth rate was fastest among the 20 metro areas listed in the report for the second straight month. But amid affordability concerns, there are signs locally and nationally of a pullback, including reduced sales totals and slower price growth. Cheryl Young, senior economist, Trulia
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned a ban on sports betting in most states on May 14 Four states — New Jersey, Delaware, Mississippi and West Virginia — have joined Nevada in offering legalized sports betting since And more than 20 states are looking to legalize it when their legislatures convene next year. Research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming predicts 44 states will have approved sports betting by 2023. Credit Suisse expects U.S. sports betting net revenues to surge to $4.5 billion by 2023
Santa Fe Station will host a gun show Saturday and Sunday, just before the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 1 Las Vegas Strip shooting. The gun show is six years old and draws over 1,000 people from across the country. The scheduling has offended some survivors. Some believe shows allow gun buyers to avoid federal background checks. Other survivors are indifferent or say people should remember a man carried out the attack. Guns were just his tools.
Gold prices rose nearly threefold during the financial crisis Between November 2008 and September 2011 the price of gold reached $1,875 an ounce Investors bought the metal as a safe haven during the financial crisis and as a hedge against surging global money supply However, prices have tumbled more than 35% since then as the global economy slowly recovered and inflation remained tame
Photo by Marcus Villagran Photo by Richard Brian Photo by Chase Stevens Photo by Chase Stevens Photo by Heidi Fang Photo by Benjamin Hager Photo by Richard Brian Photo by Benjamin Hager Photo by Erik Verduzco Photo by Bizuayehu Tesfaye
Officials plan to finish the Raiders’ Henderson headquarters by spring 2020. The planned facility would be home to offices, training facilities and 4 1/2 football fields.
Nevada’s Gaming Control Board is considering new sexual harassment prevention rules Under consideration are: -A comprehensive written policy addressing prevention -A statement setting forth procedures and methods of reporting harassment -A statement setting potential consequences for violators -An unequivocal statement that sexual harassment is not tolerated -An easy-to-understand description of examples of prohibited conduct -A reporting method of system available to employees who experience or observe incidents or patterns of sexual harassment -A requirement to communicate sexual harassment policies and procedures -A requirement that all records relating to sexual harassment prevention and procedures and validated claims be retained for no less than five years
Rental prices for Las Vegas houses are climbing at the second-fastest rate in the U.S. CoreLogic reported that rents were up 5.7% year-over-year in July in Las Vegas, compared to 3% nationally. Orlando, Florida, led the pack at 6.4%. Investors bought cheap homes in bulk to turn into rentals after the market crashed. Despite Las Vegas’ fast-rising sales prices, landlords are holding on to their properties amid strong demand from tenants.
Before David Perisset looked like this He looked like this Perisset worked at Lehman Brothers when it went bankrupt on September 15, 2008 “We started hearing rumors that the balance sheet was full of very bad assets. Nobody imagined though at the time that this would be the end of Lehman,” he said. The collapse of Lehman Brothers – an event that shattered the dreams of some of the bank’s employees – stimulated others like Perisset, to give their true passions a shot. He moved to Las Vegas within a year to begin building a business: Exotics Racing
Las Vegas will be adding another European destination soon: Amsterdam Right now, McCarran offers service to eight European cities Cologne, Germany (Eurowings) Frankfurt, Germany (Condor) Glasgow, Scotland (Thomas Cook) London-Gatwick (British Airways, Virgin Atlantic) London-Heathrow (British Airways) Manchester, England (Thomas Cook, Virgin Atlantic) Munich, Germany (Eurowings) Zurich, Switzerland (Edelweiss)
Friday, Sept. 21 is National POW/MIA Day. The day of remembrance honors those who are missing in action and prisoners of war. Last month, 55 containers with remains from North Korea were received at Pearl Harbor. Two have been identified. There are 5 Nevadan MIA’s still missing from the Korean War. Their families are hopeful this remembrance day they may one day get closure.
Nevada’s government employees are selling their unused paid time off at retirement. Former Henderson City Manager Mark Calhoun got nearly $475,000 when he retired. Local governments in Clark and Washoe counties owe employees more than $600 million for unused time off.
Lucky Dragon was designed to cater to the Asian-American and Asian immigrant crowd in Las Vegas and West Coast cities Lucky Dragon was positioned to become that community’s locals casino The Dec. 2, 2016, launch of the first direct flight between Beijing and Las Vegas right before the official opening gave the casino another potential customer base. But things didn’t go according to plan The Review-Journal investigated signs of financial struggles in December 2017 The company filed for bankruptcy in February 2018 Lucky Dragon has been losing roughly $200,000 per month throughout its bankruptcy case, according to court papers
CG Technology operates sports books for the M, Hard Rock, Tropicana, Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, The Venetian, Palazzo, Palms and Silverton The Nevada Gaming Control Board accused CG Technology of taking wagers from outside the state, taking bets after events had concluded, making incorrect payouts to more than 1,000 bettors and misconfiguring a satellite sports book betting station for the 2018 Super Bowl. CG Technology admitted to all charges in the settlement Nevada Gaming Commissioners unanimously rejected a $250,000 settlement because commissioners felt the fine wasn’t severe enough. The complaint is still pending
Clark County coroner John Fudenberg spoke with the Las Vegas Review-Journal this month in his only extensive interview since the Oct. 1 attack. “We call ourselves the last of the first responders,” Fudenberg said. “When the police are done securing the scene, when the firefighters and hospitals are done saving who they can, we’re just getting started.” Fudenberg arrived at the Route 91 Harvest festival grounds with his team about three hours after the attack. It was as if everyone vanished, he said. Food still sat half-cooked on grills. Phones lit up across the field.
The final victim died Oct. 3. The last of the 58 families was notified Oct. 4 at 9:34 p.m. Telling the families is the hardest part of the job. “We see in our office what 99 percent of people never will,” he said.
A woman was hospitalized with serious injuries on Thursday morning after being shot inside a North Las Vegas house. Police responded about 11 p.m. to a shooting at a home on the 5600 block of Tropic Breeze Street, near Ann Road and Bruce Street.
The wounded woman, police believe, was shot by a man, who later barricaded himself inside the house. SWAT was called to assist, and when officers entered the house, they discovered the man dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
UNLV coach Marvin Menzies enters his third season in charge. Rebels to play Cincinnati on CBS Sports Network. ESPN2 to televise UNLV’s home game against UNR. UNLV’s game at New Mexico also will be on ESPN2. Game at San Diego State will be on CBSSN.
Caesars Entertainment Corp. is the latest major resort on the Strip to eliminate plastic straws and stirrers from all U.S. properties. Currently, plastic straws and stirrers are only available upon request at Caesars’ properties. The next phase of removal will bring sustainable options to all U.S. locations. The company estimates this will remove nearly 200 million straws per year. Ryan Voss, vice president of beverage at Caesars Entertainment
The Gaming Hall of Fame was created in 1989 It now holds more than 60 members, including William Boyd, J. Terrence Lanni and Steve Wynn. According to the AGA website, the association “solicits nominations from its members, and then AGA staff and members of the Board of Directors confer to make the final selections.” “Over the years, the Hall of Fame’s mark of distinction has been expanded …to include culinary visionaries and entertainment legends, such as Wolfgang Puck, Frank Sinatra, Wayne Newton, Debbie Reynolds”
Sprouts has opened several Las Vegas area locations so far this year It will open its next location Oct. 3 at 7375 S. Rainbow Blvd. The first 200 shoppers will receive 20 percent off their initial total purchase.