Officials for Southwest Airlines said they don’t want a football stadium built near McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.
The University of Nevada-Las Vegas owns a 42-acre vacant lot located on the north side of Tropicana Avenue and across from
The airline flies the most passengers to and from McCarran airport and in a letter to Clark County Commission Chair Steve Sisolak said its passengers likely would be delayed going to and from the airport on football game days.
The airline also is concerned about potential bright lights and potential fireworks and other pyrotechnics at the site, which is among four currently under consideration.
Other potential sites include the former Riviera Casino site, which the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority is leveling to make way for an expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center, Cashman Field north of downtown, and another site on East Sahara Avenue at the city limits.
Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis wants to bring his team to Las Vegas, if a 65,000-seat stadium with a retractable roof can be built.
The Tropicana Avenue site is located about a half mile from two airport runways, and Southwest Airlines says that would create potential safety concerns and could disrupt airport operations.
As the airport’s busiest airline, Sisolak says Southwest Airline’s concerns carry a great deal of weight and will be considered if a stadium site eventually is selected.
