VEGAS INC Magazine - Latest Las Vegas business news, features and commentaries about gaming, tourism, real estate and more
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/41819
COVER STORY PAUL BELL President, Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors WHERE WERE YOU? We were at home, and all of a sudden I saw the news flash on the Internet. We were shocked. I was concerned for some time that this might happen. We called our son in boarding school in Alexandria, VA, to make sure he was all right. He was two miles from the Pentagon. We couldn't get through on the phone, but we got an e-mail that he was safe. He had heard the explosion. HOW DID IT AFFECT US? Las Vegas was definitely impacted with major hotel room cancellations, but I think our economy rebounded quickly. Las Vegas is one of the safest cities in the country, and it created greater security awareness for all of us. STEVE HOLLOWAY Executive Vice President, Associated General Contractors of Las Vegas WHERE WERE YOU? I was at work and was able to watch some of it on the Internet. It was a pretty lost day for me and the staff. That's all we could talk about. I was alarmed and angry that terrorists could somehow pull that off on our soil. HOW DID IT AFFECT US? There was an immediate dip in the economy and slowdown in construction jobs for a period of time there. I don't think it had any continuing effect on our industry. We have bigger economic problems than that, but Homeland Security and wars contributed to our deficit and economic problems. STEVE SCHORR Vice President for public and government affairs, Cox Communications, Las Vegas GARY LOVEMAN CEO, Caesars Entertainment WHERE WERE YOU? I was in San Francisco at the Bank of America Investor Conference, along with 200 other CEOs and CFOs. I was in the gym when the first plane hit and in a ballroom with lots of other attendees when the rest of the tragedy played out. Of course, I checked on our businesses and began to work with operators to consider what to do logistically about the fact that guests could not get home and our arrivals could not travel into our properties. Personally, like everyone else, I was stunned and fearful of what this would mean to our safety and way of life in a future when we would be concerned with subsequent attacks within the US and especially in prominent places such as Vegas. Further, several people from my town in the Boston area died in the planes that left from Boston, including the father of a child in my kids' school. I had flown from Boston to San Francisco on the same airline and a similar flight (two hours later) from one of the ones that was taken by the terrorists. I was unable to leave San Francisco by plane for five days and spent lots of time reassuring family and friends, as we all did. 20 WHERE WERE YOU? I was getting dressed for work when I heard the first reports on one of the morning TV shows. I stopped what I was doing and became glued to the TV. I remember saying over and over "I can't believe this is happening in America." As a former firefighter—and with a son who's also a firefighter—I was touched by the displays of heroism, but also filled with pain watching so many lives being lost. HOW DID IT AFFECT US? Like most cities in America, the Las Vegas community was affected. Local businesses and our primary industry suffered dramatically because of the crippling effect on international and domestic travel; likewise, this hurt us all. I was, however, proud to see the business community rebound, and I have hope the same will happen following today's economic challenges. | 12 SEPTEMBER 2011 | STEVE MARCUS