North Las Vegas Plans Casinos For Local Gamblers
As the Las Vegas Strip becomes more and more the playground of the jetsetting ultrarich, purposely pricing out the average gambler, other areas are eager to build casinos designed to draw locals and travelers not on an unlimited budget. North Las Vegas, an area in which many of the city's newer residents have settled, is undergoing an evolution into a casino-rich community that might be seen as a mini-strip.
Five new casinos are proposed for the region roughly ten miles from the Strip, adding 2500 new hotel rooms and 330 acres of casino development. The success of establishments like Red Rock Hotel Resort and Casino, located just west of North Las Vegas, at attracting middle-class crowds away from the Strip giants has spurred others to appeal to the same demographic..
Expansion of commercial and retail properties has not kept pace with the residential boom in the area, and now casinos will help close the gap. Access to the district is well-provided by both the Las Vegas Beltway and Interstate 15, and major draw Las Vegas Speedway is in the neighborhood. City manager Gregory Rose said of expansion, "We hope that gaming will be a part of it. But not the only part. We hope there will be theaters and restaurants and bowling alleys and spas.”
The first casino projected to open is Aliante Station, owned by Station Casinos, a company famed for its marketing toward locals and budget vacationers. Along with upgrades and remodeling to the Silver Nugget Casino and the Fort Cheyenne Casino, North Las Vegas is attempting to position itself as an area that is both friendly to locals and yet still seen as a destination.
Considering the Strip's growing disaffection for the hordes which fill its rooms, preferring the whales that dominate high-roller rooms, it is excellent to see the niche filled that Harrah's and MGM have abandoned. Noth Las Vegas can only prosper from this approach.
