Nevada’s casinos reported a 1.3 percent increase in gaming revenue for 2016 to .3 billion?a modest rise but the second in consecutive years in which win was better than the previous 12 months’.
There was more good news in the fact that most of the gains, almost 64 percent, came from slot machines, and they were shared by casinos across the state and not driven exclusively by the Las Vegas Strip.
“This is what we want to see,” said Mike Lawton, senior analyst with the Control Board. “It’s growing again, and it’s widespread.”
Strip win actually was up less than 1 percent to $6.3 billion, while Downtown Las Vegas posted a 4.2 percent increase to $565 million and the Reno market generated $596 million, a 4.5 percent increase over 2015.
Though the state has yet to approach the $12.8 billion revenue record set prior to the recession in 2007, gaming has increased in six of the last seven years, and Lawton said the board anticipates that factors including higher wages, increased employment and tourism will contribute to a strong year in 2017.
“We are pretty optimistic,” he told the Associated Press.
One of the most positive signs is the continued surge in tourism and convention attendance in Las Vegas as reflected by record passenger accounts at the city’s McCarran International Airport.
Last year was the second busiest in the airport’s 68-year-history. More than 47.4 million passengers came through in 2016 as the facility approaches the record of nearly 48 million set in 2007. It was a healthy 4.5 percent jump over 2015 and the sixth consecutive year of increases.
Domestic passenger volume grew by 4.8 percent, accounting for 1.96 million additional Las Vegas passengers in 2016, with market-leader Southwest Airlines serving 18.2 million passengers. International volume was up 2.2 percent, led by Canadian carriers Westjet Airlines and Air Canada and boosted by new weekly non-stop service from China on Hainan Airlines.
Downtown Las Vegas rose more than any Nevada jurisdiction and several operators of the Downtown properties gathered at a press conference to discuss the trend. Mayor Carolyn Goodman credited reinvestment in the existing properties—to the tune of $500 million in the last 10 years—with the improved gaming revenues.
Joe Woody, chief financial officer of the El Cortez, said the split between gaming and non-gaming revenues Downtown is basically 50-50, but some properties have little room for expansion and depend more on gaming revenue. Seth Schorr, the chairman of Downtown Grand, says the inclusion of eSports at his property has attracted younger customers.
Derek Stevens, who owns the D Casino and the Golden Gate, says there are three challenges facing Downtown casinos—safety, marketing and better access.
