Joe Downtown: Listen to Tony Hsieh and a regular local take on downtown’s changes

Zappos Downtown Tour

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh looks out a window from the Monkey Room where he has his office at the new Zappos headquarters in the old city hall building downtown Monday, Sept. 9, 2013. The downtown headquarters officially opened Monday. Launch slideshow »

Everyone has heard of Tony Hsieh, chances are you’ve never heard of Leah Ballard.

On today’s broadcast of the “Joe Downtown Show,” I talk to both about their views of Las Vegas. The audio is posted below.

Hsieh grew up in San Francisco but moved here almost a decade ago and is transforming downtown Las Vegas with his Downtown Project and through the movement of his headquarters and more than 1,000 employees into the old City Hall.

Ballard, 23, grew up here, graduated from Clark High School then college in Portland, slung coffee, worked as a whitewater raft guide and came back to Las Vegas this summer. Hers is a story of someone still seeking a place to plant roots and giving Las Vegas a chance now that she sees what is happening downtown.

Among others, Hsieh answers the question: Downtown Project will be a failure if … ?

The show is currently taped inside The Beat coffeehouse downtown. It airs Wednesday mornings at 7 a.m. on KUNV 91.5 FM, The Source. Recordings can also be found on the Joe Downtown page of the Las Vegas Sun.

Joe Downtown Radio

Two views of downtown's changes

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Joe Schoenmann talks to Zappos head Tony Hsieh, who is moving his company into the former City Hall, and Leah Ballard, who grew up here, left, and then returned this summer to see a transformed downtown.

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