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Inside gaming column: Nonprofits probably sorry to see Stardust go

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, but unfortunately a lot of business organizations are going to get lumps of charcoal in their holiday stockings. That's especially true for cash-strapped nonprofit organizations. Many rue the Nov. 1 closing of the Stardust. Not only are alternative sites generally less convenient, but most hotel-casinos, even off the Strip, charge as much as double the price for an event. Many charge even more, and some are gouging with charges for microphones, speakers and the like they've never charged for before. Out-of-town organizations that plan holiday meetings seem much less affected. They never had a bargain back home with quality meeting rooms and staffing like the Stardust anyhow.

Rumor has it MGM Mirage Chairman Terry Lanni will move into one of the penthouse suites in the Mandarin Oriental as soon as the $7 billion Project CityCenter opens in 2009. A few years ago he bought a posh palace in Southern Highlands, moving his personal home out of Southern California and into Nevada, where MGM Mirage is headquartered. Before that, talk of the town had him running for the U.S. Senate from California, a dream he seems to have forsaken. On the other hand, the Rev. Jesse Jackson recently touted Lanni for president, a goal he could chase about as realistically from the Mandarin as from Southern California beaches.

What's in a slogan? A new survey from tripadvisor.com found nearly 20 percent of respondents invoked the famous Las Vegas slogan to justify vacations, well, anywhere. "What happens in, say, Wichita (Kan.), stays in Wichita." Ha-ha. By comparison, the specific threat of terrorist attack -- not privacy -- shaped 60 percent of destination decisions among respondents, up from 52 percent a year ago. And 26 percent say they vacation where they do to dress more provocatively.

A local spokesman for the Las Vegas Hilton denied our report last week that the Las Vegas icon likely would be the target of wrecking balls in the next 12 to 18 months. The spokesman said owner Colony Capital has invested too much in frills such as a new porte cochere to make an implosion reasonable. Sources close to owners, however, say "starting over" may simply be the best long-run solution to making profitable one of the world's best hotel-casino sites -- a challenge a string of companies have failed to meet.

Steve Wynn sat down with employees last week to try to quell growing discontent and union talk among dealers upset by his new tip policy, sources at the Strip resort said.

Gaming Wire Editor Rod Smith can be reached by e-mail at rsmith@reviewjournal.com or by phone at 477-3893.

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