IN BRIEF

Analysis: City Hall project would generate jobs, activity

The City Hall building proposed for downtown Las Vegas would create about 475 construction jobs a year, along with 266 indirect jobs related to construction, an economic consultant said in an independent analysis.

Construction wages and benefits from those jobs are estimated at nearly $33 million a year, about $69,000 per worker, said John Restrepo, principal of Restrepo Consulting Group.

Using a communitywide multiplier of 0.41 for each dollar paid in construction wages, Restrepo calculated $13 million in indirect wages and benefits per year.

The project's estimated $145 million construction cost would potentially generate an additional $70 million of economic activity for Las Vegas. It could also be a catalyst for private development downtown, Restrepo said.

The 310,000-square-foot City Hall is planned for Main Street and Clark Avenue on land now owned by Cleveland-based Forest City Enterprises.

Mandarin Oriental may buy more brands, executive says

Mandarin Oriental International Ltd., the operator of 25 luxury hotels including one at CityCenter, may buy more brands as lodging companies struggle amid a decline in spending, Chief Executive Officer Edouard Ettedgui said.

"We probably can reach 80 to 100 hotels on our own, but if we want to get to 200, we have to do that through brand acquisitions," Ettedgui said in an interview at the opening of the 392-room Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas. "If a luxury brand becomes available at a reasonable price, we're interested."

Asia and South America may present the best opportunities for expansion, Ettedgui said. As falling travel spending pressures hotel owners, Mandarin Oriental has no plans to sell assets and considers the current market an opportunity, the CEO said. The company had $563 million of cash and net debt of $120 million in the first half of 2009, it said in September.

Mandarin Oriental International, based in Hong Kong, owns properties in Asia, the Americas and Europe and is developing hotels in cities including Macau and Beijing. The company has a market value of $1.2 billion.

WASHINGTON

Fed chief says it's too early to tell whether recovery will last

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned Monday that it's too soon to know whether the economic recovery will last and again pledged to hold rates at record-low levels for an "extended period."

The Fed chief's speech to the Economic Club of Washington made clear he thinks the economy will struggle even as it recovers from the recession. He said the economy confronts "formidable headwinds" -- including a weak job market, cautious consumers and tight credit.

Those forces "seem likely to keep the pace of expansion moderate," he said.

The central bank has leeway to keep rates low because inflation is under control and is expected to stay tame because of the economy's weakness. Some private forecasters even fear that the recovery could fizzle late next year.

WASHINGTON

Tropicana Las Vegas hires second Planet Hollywood exec

The Tropicana Las Vegas has hired its second executive away from the apparently about-to-be-sold Planet Hollywood Resort.

Thomas Recine will be the Tropicana's new vice president of food and beverage, joining new property President Tom McCartney whose hiring was announced last week.

The announcement was made Monday by Tropicana Las Vegas.

Recine was senior vice president of property operations and food and beverage at Planet Hollywood Resort where McCartney was president and chief executive officer.

Both departures come as Harrah's Entertainment has filed an application with state gaming regulators to buy Planet Hollywood Resort through a debt transaction.

Tropicana Las Vegas, which has been owned by an investment group led by Toronto-based investment firm Onex Corp. since July, is in the early stages of a $125 million renovation.