Las Vegas Mayor Disagrees With the Governor’s Casino Shutdown

6.04.2020, 23:24

On Tuesday, March 17th, Nevada governor Steve Sisolak mandated that all non-essential businesses within the state must be shut down for 30 days. This measure was implemented in order to flatten the curve of coronavirus cases. Sisolak’s shut-down directive encompasses all casinos, gyms, malls, theaters, and more.

COVID-19: Las Vegas Casinos Close Down

Regardless of the official mandate, there were still numerous businesses that refused to comply with Sisolak’s orders. The weekend after the order went into effect, Southern Nevada authorities ended up suspending seven businesses that did not comply with the shut-down orders. In addition to this, 36 warning letters were sent out to other non-essential businesses that had not yet shut their doors.

Business owners are not the only people rebelling against the governor’s directive. Carolyn Goodman, the mayor of Las Vegas, has been quite vocal about her disagreement with Sisolak’s actions. Goodman gave a speech on Friday, March 20th, in which she declared her beliefs that the governor should reduce the length of the closures by 50%. She stated that the city’s economy wouldn’t be able to survive a shut-down that lasts longer than one or two weeks.

The mayor would like Las Vegas to keep restaurants, casinos, sports betting facilities, and entertainment areas open despite the coronavirus because the city’s income is drastically dependent on tourism. After all, 40 million tourists visit Las Vegas each year.

Goodman backed up her beliefs by pointing out the fact that many Las Vegas residents live paycheck to paycheck, and that their livelihood is dependent on casinos – as well as on other businesses that have been shut down.

The American Gaming Association released a projection that appears to back up Goodman’s sentiments. Their figures show that a 30-day shutdown of casinos across the state will result in a revenue loss of $4.7 billion. Furthermore, the closing of casinos will directly impact the jobs of 205,000 employees across the state of Nevada.

Goodman’s words did not go unnoticed. In fact, Governor Sisolak fired back a response on the very same day as the mayor’s speech. Sisolak stated that human lives will always be more important than a city’s economic gain. He continued on to say that businesses are no longer being politely requested to close. Now, they will receive a harsher warning that they must close their doors or face the consequences.

Not all mayors across Nevada share Goodman’s reluctance to close their cities. For instance, Hillary Schieve (the mayor of Reno) implemented a 30-day shutdown of non-essential venues in her city before Governor Sisolak had declared the state’s shutdown.