Paul Szydelko
Nevada's gradual easing of mandated Covid-19 capacity restrictions is welcome news for the hospitality and entertainment industries in Las Vegas.
Limits in effect since November that capped public events at 50 people or 25% of venue capacity have been raised to 100 people or 35% of venue capacity, whichever is less, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced Feb. 11. On March 15, that capacity will be raised to 250 people or 50% capacity.
After March 1, large gatherings will be permitted to be held in venues with a fixed seating capacity of 2,500 or more, though capacity will be limited to 20% of seats. The Vegas Golden Knights NHL hockey team, which plays at 17,500-seat T-Mobile Arena, has been among the organizations that has submitted a required crowd plan for local review and state approval.
If trends continue to improve, Sisolak said, the state will start allowing gatherings for trade shows, conferences, conventions and professional seminars starting on March 15 for events in excess of 250 people, with attendance capped at 1,000.
Since Sisolak's announcement, a number of positive developments have been announced.
MGM Resorts International will resume 24/7 hotel operations at Mandalay Bay, Park MGM and the Mirage on March 3. Those properties had implemented selective midweek closures because of decreased business during the pandemic.
"As we begin to see positive signs around the public's sentiment about traveling, coupled with important progress on the vaccination front and decreasing Covid-19 case numbers, bringing [those properties] back to full-week operations is an important step for us," said Bill Hornbuckle, MGM Resorts' CEO and president.
A number of shows at MGM Resorts properties will also return next month. They include David Copperfield at the MGM Grand on March 21; the Australian Bee Gees at Excalibur on March 15 and Terry Fator at New York-New York on March 18.
Brad Garrett's Comedy Club at MGM Grand and Thunder From Down Under at Excalibur, which were already underway, will expand seating capacity. Carrot Top and "Fantasy" returned to the Luxor stage Feb. 19.
"Bringing entertainment back to the Las Vegas experience is key to our city's recovery, and we will work closely with our partners to do so, with the health and safety of our employees and guests as a priority," said George Kliavkoff, MGM Resorts' president of entertainment and sports.
Guidelines require guests to be masked and physically distanced at six feet between parties and at least 25 feet from on-stage performers.
"Everyone's ready to go," Circa Resort & Casino's CEO Derek Stevens said. "We've gone through an awful lot of directives. We've been able to adjust, keep everybody safe and still have the opportunity to give people a chance to let a little stress go, have a couple of drinks and gamble a little bit."
Stevens said he's noticed a different vibe and pent-up demand since the governor's announcement and the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine. "We've seen now for the last couple of months business is starting to really start to spike up. We've sold out the last few weekends, but we're going to sell out, I would say, all weekends going forward. The general consensus is that everyone's happy with the loosening of restrictions."