ZZZ - GMG - VEGAS INC 2011-2014

D E C E M B E R 9 , 2 0 1 3 / Y O U R b u s i n e s s - t o - b u s i n e s s w e e k ly SPECIAL FOCUS THE YEAR IN REVIEW This month, VEGAS INC looks back at the news of 2013 and ahead to 2014. METRO'S use of force COSTLY TO TAXPAYERS christopher devargas reinvented: From left, John Miller, daughter Christi McKee, great-grandson Rocco Mills, wife Ann Miller and granddaughter Erin Mills pose in front of a 1939 Ford at their family-owned wedding venue, the Secret Garden, on the grounds of the Las Vegas Racquet Club, a former tennis club. BEATING THE ODDS Successful entreprenuers share their secrets for running healthy, resilient businesses S By VEGAS INC Staff tarting a company is hard. ¶ As many as 85 percent of businesses fail during their first year in operation. Even after 10 years running, companies can fold at the drop of a hat due to a dwindling customer base, shaky business plan or overambitious expansion. ¶ In the wake of the recession, finding a winning formula has been even more difficult for entrepreneurs. ¶ But companies across the valley are making it. ¶ Some have been around for decades. Others formed — and thrived — just as the economy began to crash. ¶ How'd they do it? Here's a look at seven companies and the secrets of their success: INSIDE Las Vegas Racquet Club, 50 years A closer look at: n Red Rock Riding Stables n Magoo's Bar and Grill n The Cannery n Slater Hanifan Group n Alex's Shoe and Jewelry Repair n Meadows Bank John and Ann Miller's tennis club was the place to be in old Las Vegas. Movie stars, casino owners, judges and politicians frequented the Las Vegas Racquet Club, founded 50 years ago as a desert retreat. Celebrities drank, lounged about and hid from the press while showgirls played tennis topless. In the '70s, John Miller gave a tennis lesson to a porn star in front of 15 to 20 onlookers, most of them men. 20131209_VI01_F.indd 1 "She had on tennis shoes," Miller said. "That's it." But by the '80s, membership seemed poised to fall. Racquetball was one of the fastestgrowing sports in America, local casinos were building tennis courts at warp speed, and gated communities sprouted up around town with tennis facilities on site. So the Millers decided to change course. They had watched President Richard Nixon's see businesses, page 14 By Bethany Barnes and Conor Shine staff writers Cases of excessive force by Metro Police, whether in a traffic stop gone awry or a fatal shooting, take their toll in lost lives and lingering physical and emotional trauma suffered by victims. Such instances of police misconduct also are costing taxpayers at an increasing rate in the form of expensive litigation and high-dollar settlements. Since 2011, Metro has paid out more than $5 million in legal settlements. That figure grew on Oct. 28 when officials agreed to a $1.5 million settlement with the widow of Stanley Gibson, an unarmed veteran who was shot and killed by a Metro officer in December 2011. The number of federal lawsuits filed against the department has been on the rise in recent years, with 43 filed in 2012, compared with a low of 24 in 2008. Metro currently is defending 153 open lawsuits in state and federal courts, according to records provided to VEGAS INC. About half of those are federal civil rights complaints; the rest mostly involve auto accidents and employment disputes. The amount the department has spent also has been increasing compared with the previous four-year see METRO, page 16 INSIDE TODAY TAX CRUNCH | P. 6 Should Las Vegas' room tax revenue be used to support the rest of the state? MARKET GROWTH | P. 7 Broadacres Marketplace offers culture, family fun and business opportunities THE LIST | P. 22 Heavy equipment dealers 12/5/13 12:49:58 PM

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