Gov. Brian Sandoval
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Gov. Brian Sandoval told tourism leaders that they’ll be working arm in arm with economic development experts to rebuild Nevada’s economy as he opened the 26th Governor’s Conference on Tourism at the Rio on Tuesday.
The 1 1/2-day conference, the first staged in Las Vegas in four years, brings tourism leaders from across the state together to discuss strategies to attract visitors. While much of the program is geared to rural Nevadans, several topics on the conference agenda will address the economy, advances in social media and medical tourism.
The conference will conclude today with a presentation on the state’s proposed branding plan.
Sandoval encouraged attendees to publicize the state’s many tourism attractions to the world. He noted that the state’s Tourism Commission now oversees the Division of Museums and History, the Nevada Arts Council and the Nevada Indian Commission, opening the door to opportunities to promote the state’s culture.
“Nevada is on the move again and you are going to be a big part of that,” Sandoval said, noting that sales tax revenue has increased every month for the past 14 months.
Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki, who chairs the state’s Tourism Commission, introduced Claudia Vecchio, the new director of the Nevada Department of Cultural Affairs, a cabinet-level position.
Vecchio, former head of Ohio’s tourism initiatives, said she plans to tap the expertise of the Arts Council and Indian Commission for creative ideas to drive marketing of the state.
“I’m thrilled to get the opportunity to work with this new combined agency,” said Vecchio, in her first public appearance as director. “I treat tourism having a seat on the governor’s cabinet with great respect.”
One of the highlights of the first day of the conference was a panel of gaming industry executives.
Three Tourism Commission members — Ryan Sheltra, general manager of Reno’s Bonanza Casino, Ferenc Szony, president of Affinity Gaming, and Chuck Bowling, president and chief operating officer of Mandalay Bay — were panelists.
Sheltra said the state could go a long way toward helping the state’s tourism industry by restoring funding originally earmarked for marketing the state. In the 2009 session, the Legislature redirected room tax funds to the state’s general fund to help solve a budget shortfall.
Sheltra said the Tourism Commission lost 42 percent of its funding last year, is losing 30 percent this year and will lose 35 percent next year.
Panelists said the state’s gaming companies have survived the recession by learning to operate with fewer resources.
“I think my company was the poster child of what happened to many companies,” Szony said of Affinity, formerly known as Herbst Gaming. “Affinity is much wiser now in how we approach things and we’re leaner by about 25 percent.”
“I think all of us are a lot better at what we do today than the way we were four years ago,” Sheltra added.
Bowling said he hopes Nevadans will get some perspective on how the industry is performing because “in Las Vegas, we still do more in a weekend than most cities do all year.”
Sheltra said the state has some new opportunities in medical tourism, the building of visitor experiences around a growing roster of impressive medical facilities. A session on medical tourism, one of the strategies economic diversification experts are touting, is scheduled today.
Economic development officials also are boosting a potential connection to tourism through the film and motion picture industry, and Sheltra laughed off a minor controversy in Reno over the recent release of “The Muppets.” The film has some disparaging remarks about “the biggest little city,” where Kermit the Frog discovers Fozzie Bear performing.
The Reno scenes were shot in Sheltra’s Bonanza Casino.