As more and more people are losing their jobs and the gambling industry suffers, a new development will help create Las Vegas casino jobs and improve the city’s image.
MGM Mirage has been working on a $9.2 billion resort and condominium project that is expected to open by the end of 2009. The facility, dubbed CityCenter, is expected to create 12,000 new jobs. However, sales of the condominiums have slowed as the nation’s housing market continues to decline. City and business leaders recently held a panel, sponsored by the Las Vegas High-Rise & Condominium Association, to discuss the importance of the project, according to an article by In Business Las Vegas.
The completion of CityCenter is expected to be vital in creating outsider confidence in Las Vegas, as the media and other outsiders will analyze its effect on job creation and the local economy.
“CityCenter is the bellwether of how this market goes,” Tim Sullivan, president of Sullivan Group Real Estate Advisors, said in the article. “Whether or not I agree with it, that is how the media and outside world will look at it.”
If CityCenter isn’t viewed as a success, that could cause further damage to Las Vegas’ economy and outside investment. Not everyone shares that view. Other industry leaders don’t think the development’s success will be so important, as CityCenter will be opened in stages from August through the end of the year.
“What happens around it is much more important, and what happens with the mortgage credit repair in this country is far more important,” Steve Bottfeld, executive vice president of Marketing Solutions, said in the article.
While it is hopeful that the recent government bailout will help the economy and instill confidence in markets such as Las Vegas’ gaming industry, experts don’t expect things to get better overnight. That being said, there are differing opinions as to whether home buyers and other investors should wait out the storm or take a chance on a volatile market.
Most importantly, the city needs to get back to the fundamentals that made it an attractive city, such as being a hub for jobs and business and having a low cost of living and affordable housing, all of which helped spur growth for many years.
“I think Las Vegas will continue to evolve over the next five to 10 years, and it will get back to fundamentals with affordable housing,” Sullivan continued, adding that no longer will a $600,000 home be the core of the housing market, but rather a home costing $250,000. “We forgot that for a while. It is back to basics, and that is a good thing.”
