Bryan Horwath

Story Archive

Wynn to open several restaurants at Strip resorts
Friday, May 22, 2020
Wynn Resorts will open five of its Las Vegas restaurants next week, according to a news release. Allegro, Jardin, Lakeside, Mizumi, and SW Steakhouse will open ...
Caesars Palace, Flamingo to open first in Las Vegas, company says
Operator to scrap parking fees, offer lodging, dining and access to pools
Thursday, May 21, 2020
When Las Vegas casinos are allowed to reopen, Caesars Palace and the Flamingo will be the first Caesars Entertainment resorts to do so. The company made the announcement ...
Some restaurants at 3 Station Casinos properties reopening
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Some restaurants at three Station Casinos properties in the Las Vegas Valley will reopen starting Tuesday, according to a news release from the company. At Green Valley Ranch Resort ...
Boyd Gaming to reopen Kansas casino this weekend
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
The Kansas Star Casino will reopen Saturday with slot machine availability only ...
MGM, Caesars, Boyd partner with UMC on COVID-19 testing
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
Employees of MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Boyd Gaming will receive free coronavirus testing starting Thursday at the Las Vegas Convention Center. It’s expected that up to 4,000 samples will be taken daily ...
Venetian anticipates reopening on June 1
Tuesday, May 19, 2020
The Venetian is taking hotel reservations for stays starting June 1, when it plans to reopen its casino, more than a dozen restaurants and shops, parent company Las Vegas Sands said today. The company ...
Boyd Gaming set to reopen casinos in Louisiana, Mississippi
Monday, May 18, 2020
Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming Corp. will reopen three casinos in Louisiana Wednesday and two in Mississippi on Thursday, according to a news release. Two additional properties shuttered by ...
Employees laid off ‘indefinitely’ at Colorado Belle casino in Laughlin
Monday, May 18, 2020
When casinos reopen in Nevada, the Colorado Belle in Laughlin won’t be among them. The resort’s 400 employees have been laid off “indefinitely,” Charles Protell, chief financial officer for ...
Station Casinos to scan employees, guests for fever
Monday, May 18, 2020
Station Casinos plans to check the temperatures of its employees and guests, and anyone with a fever will not be allowed on property, the company said. Under a coronavirus health and safety plan released today, employees will also be ...
Virtual networking offers benefits that could last beyond pandemic
Monday, May 18, 2020
Peter Guzman, head of the Latin Chamber of Commerce in Las Vegas, is a self-proclaimed hugger. His business meetings usually start with a handshake or a hug, but over the past two months ...
Vending machines dispense masks, hand sanitizer at Las Vegas airport
Friday, May 15, 2020
For those in a rush at the airport, there’s usually the option to buy snacks, headphones, charging cords — almost anything — from a vending machine. At McCarran ...
Amid pandemic, some Las Vegas businesses are still hiring
Friday, May 15, 2020
Despite record-setting unemployment in Nevada, there are still pockets of opportunity for job seekers. Essential businesses like grocery stores and ...
MGM Resorts to open hotels at maximum 25% capacity
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
MGM Resorts International will reopen its first Strip resorts after the coronavirus shutdown with only a quarter of hotel rooms available for guests.
Station Casinos testing employees for coronavirus before reopening
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Station Casinos has started a free testing program to screen employees for the coronavirus before they eventually return to work. All employees ...
Allegiant, still burning cash, hopeful it will bounce back when pandemic wanes
Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Allegiant Travel Co. is burning through more than $2 million per day as it copes with the industry’s struggles because of the coronavirus crisis. In a quarterly earnings report released Tuesday, the parent company for Allegiant Air listed a 9% drop in operating revenues ...
Las Vegas Sands plans in Japan are 'unreachable,' Adelson says
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson has decided to stray from plans to open a resort in Japan. The resort company indicated it will no longer ...

MGM Resorts releases safety plan for reopening casinos
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
MGM Resorts International has released a seven-point safety plan for reopening its U.S. casinos closed since March because of the coronavirus pandemic. The plan includes employee health screening and temperature checks, masks for all workers, and ...
All employees will wear masks when casinos reopen, Caesars says
Monday, May 11, 2020
All employees will wear masks when Caesars Entertainment resorts in Las Vegas eventually reopen after the coronavirus shutdown, according to a company statement. Caesars said it will also provide masks to guests and will “strongly encourage” patrons to wear them. The measures to combat ...
Venetian, Palazzo expected to reopen in June
Employees, families getting free coronavirus testing
Monday, May 11, 2020
The Venetian and Palazzo will likely reopen sometime in June, parent company Las Vegas Sands said in a statement today. The company has also started ...
Virus prompts businesses to rethink office spaces to enhance employee safety
Monday, May 11, 2020
Before the coronavirus pandemic, James Swanson’s Las Vegas printing company was busy making advertising wraps that go on buildings and big signs for events like the Electric Daisy Carnival and Life is Beautiful music festivals. And in Las Vegas, ground-zero for massive conventions, concerts, rodeos, sporting events, you name it, business was ...
Pandemic pushes Nevada unemployment to an all-time high
Friday, May 8, 2020
The unemployment rate in Nevada has reached a record high of 22%, according to a report today from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. As recently as February, the state unemployment rate was less than 4%. The national rate is 14.7%.
Despite getting green light, many Las Vegas businesses not rushing to reopen
Friday, May 8, 2020
Before Lotus of Siam reopens its popular Las Vegas eateries for business after the coronavirus shutdowns, there’s plenty of work to do. First and foremost: Making sure the two area restaurants are disinfected up to federal standards and have ...
Wynn likely to reopen both its Strip resorts together
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox said the company will probably reopen both its Strip resorts together at a limited capacity and predicted a “pent-up demand in the ...
April house sales fall 31% in Las Vegas amid pandemic
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Sales of existing houses in the Las Vegas area fell more than 30% in April compared to the same month last year, while prices dipped ...
Thousands of furloughed MGM workers seek help via company's relief fund
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
More than 5,000 employees have applied for assistance through an MGM Resorts International program to help furloughed workers pay basic living expenses ...
MGM Resorts boss: Some employees 'may not return to work this year'
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Some of the 60,000 MGM Resorts International employees furloughed during the coronavirus pandemic may not be recalled, at least not anytime soon. CEO Bill Hornbuckle said a forecast for continued weak tourism portends some furloughed workers might not be back this year ...
'Proper' social distancing, meticulous sanitizing mulled in casino reopening plans
Tuesday, May 5, 2020
Gamblers standing shoulder-to-shoulder laying bets while a crowd gathers around to see a hot dice-thrower make point after point would be a relic of the past, if proposed new health and ...
Allegiant Air to issue passengers masks, gloves
Monday, May 4, 2020
Beginning this week, Allegiant Air will hand out health and safety kits to passengers as they board flights, according to a news release issued today. The Las Vegas-based discount air carrier will ...
Southern Californians are ready to scratch post-pandemic itch for Las Vegas
Sunday, May 3, 2020
Just over half of visitors to Las Vegas in 2018 arrived by car from places like Phoenix, Salt Lake City and Denver. But Southern California clearly represents the golden goose of…
Korbulic ready to tackle tech woes at struggling unemployment agency
Saturday, May 2, 2020
The new head of the agency that handles unemployment claims in Nevada says an antiquated phone system is partially to blame for the inability of many to receive benefits ...
Health officials to begin 'targeted' virus testing at Allegiant Stadium site
Friday, May 1, 2020
Builder Mortenson-McCarthy said Friday that voluntary COVID-19 testing will be available for some workers at the Allegiant Stadium construction site beginning next week ...
Station Casinos to make 'significant' staff cuts, delay opening 4 properties
Friday, May 1, 2020
Station Casinos is laying off a “significant” number of employees and will delay reopening four valley properties after the coronavirus shutdown is lifted, according to a letter to employees. There will also be layoffs at the company’s corporate headquarters, according to the letter from ...
Bellagio, New York-New York likely to be among first MGM resorts on Strip to reopen
Friday, May 1, 2020
“We’re probably looking at two or three offerings initially,” CEO Bill Hornbuckle said. “We tend to lean into New York-New York because it’s one of our simpler places to run and we’re probably looking at Bellagio on the other end (of the Strip).”
Gaming agents to monitor virus guidelines at casinos
Thursday, April 30, 2020
When Las Vegas casinos reopen, state gaming agents will be stationed at resorts to make sure coronavirus safety guidelines are being followed. “We won’t have agents out ...
Wynn employees to get free coronavirus testing
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
Wynn Resorts employees in Las Vegas will have access to free coronavirus testing through a partnership with University Medical Center. Workers will have access to testing at ...
Boyd CEO: Locals casinos could help lead way for Las Vegas recovery
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
When Las Vegas casinos reopen, properties that count heavily on locals could initially lead the way to a recovery from the coronavirus-induced economic downturn. That’s how Keith Smith, Boyd Gaming’s president and CEO, is picturing the pending reopening of Southern Nevada’s gaming industry. Casinos and other nonessential ...
Four more virus cases identified at Allegiant Stadium site
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
Four more people at the Allegiant Stadium construction site have tested positive for coronavirus, according to a news release from builder Mortenson-McCarthy. With the new cases identified since April 17, seven people who ...
Venetian, Palazzo to screen guests for temperatures
Tuesday, April 28, 2020
The picture of what casinos might look and feel like once Strip resorts reopen became a little clearer today with the release of guidelines by Las Vegas Sands. The company said it will screen all guests at ...
Questions abound in post-pandemic Las Vegas
Sunday, April 26, 2020
More than a month ago, the neon blinked off, the slot machines stopped chirping and hundreds of thousands of tourists vanished amid the coronavirus pandemic.
When they will return and what they will find when the do are the kinds of questions Las Vegas has …
MGM cancels reservations for Las Vegas resorts through May 21
Friday, April 24, 2020
MGM Resorts International has canceled room reservations at its Las Vegas properties through May 21, a company spokesman said on Friday.

Caesars announces employee assistance fund
Friday, April 24, 2020
Caesars Entertainment today announced a new employee assistance fund to help employees suffering hardships because of the coronavirus crisis. The Caesars Cares Fund will be supported by contributions from ...
Nevada unemployment rate hits record 17%
Friday, April 24, 2020
Nearly 370,000 Nevadans have filed for unemployment benefits so far this year, according to a report today from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. The state’s unemployment rate ...
Passenger traffic plummets at Las Vegas airport in March
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Passenger traffic at McCarran International Airport was down more than 50% year-over-year in March as the coronavirus pandemic has devastated the travel industry. According to a monthly report released by ...
New COVID-19 cases confirmed at Resorts World construction site 
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Three new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed at the Resorts World Las Vegas construction site, according to a news release. The latest cases, which bring to total to seven, were confirmed in ...
Unpausing Las Vegas: What might our valley look like after the shutdown lifts?
Thursday, April 23, 2020
As at properties up and down the Las Vegas Strip, a makeshift Treasure Island crew is working to have the property ready for when Gov. Steve Sisolak lifts his shutdown order to restart business. Reopening could begin as ...
Gaming regulators outline steps for reopening casinos
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
In anticipation of reopening Nevada casinos, state gaming regulators issued a six-page memo outlining steps to resuscitate an industry shuttered amid the coronavirus pandemic. “A safe, thoughtful, and ...
Las Vegas-based TV network to offer free advertising to small businesses
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
ACTV, an independent television network based in Las Vegas, is offering free advertising for area small businesses for two months.
MGM's Hornbuckle: Virus to change gaming industry for 'foreseeable future'
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
MGM Resorts International acting CEO Bill Hornbuckle told the company’s employees in a recorded message on Tuesday that “our industry will likely change for the foreseeable future” because of the coronavirus.  

Allegiant getting over $170 million in payroll help
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
Allegiant Travel Co. is getting more than $170 million in federal emergency relief funds to help pay its workers, the company announced today. The funding will support salaries and other ...
Virus shouldn’t crash Las Vegas home prices, economist says
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
While much is unknown about how badly the coronavirus pandemic has damaged Southern Nevada’s economy, one economist doesn’t foresee a major housing market crisis here. Mark Vitner, a senior economist for ...