I was just in Las Vegas -- gambling is admittedly not my thing, but this desert mecca always amazes in small doses, helped by a visit or two to the smile-inducing Bellagio fountain (Frank Sinatra is always in fine form). Observers have yellow flagged all the development activity for several years now, especially for condos and foreclosure activity has hit the local single family market big time. Nevertheless the city resembles an Abu Dhabi-US. I've never seen such a concentration of cranes and development sites anywhere, from one end of the Strip to the other -- mega hotel-condo-casino complexes, condo-styled resorts, hotel expansions, and a big new mall push out of the ground. Trucks and concrete mixers line up at vast project sites, around the clock, racing to completion, as bleary-eyed touristas traipse back and forth along Las Vegas Boulevard, pondering their next roll-of-the-dice.
The development companies like to point out that glitzy-themed expansions and new destinations have "always" drawn more business (gamblers) into the desert metro from around the world. They claim no worry about enough future demand. But the intensity of current development appears over-the-top and existing infrastructure strains with current volumes. Sidewalks are already too congested at peak evening hours and cab drivers complain about gridlock around the prime hotel district.
And then there is the water issue. Lake Mead sinks below half its total capacity as arid Western states compete for the precious Colorado River resource that everyone has taken for granted. Las Vegas actually needs to lower intake pipes into the reservoir and institutes stricter water use and landscaping policies. The city hopes it doesn't turn into a poster child for the Mountain West -- where rapid population growth, limited water, recurrent droughts, and global warming consequences could spell long term trouble.
With any luck, they'll never need to turn off the Bellagio fountain (at least the water is re-cycled). But Sin City excess may soon hit outsized limits with or without climate worries. You can't count on luck or an endless hot hand. People revisit those truths every day and night in Las Vegas.
Is Las Vegas a big gamble or a sure thing? What's your bet?
© Miller Ryan LLC 2007
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