City Cast Las Vegas
😶🌫️ The era of marijuana smoking lounges has arrived
February 20, 2024
Welcome back, Las Vegas. It’s been a long three-day weekend. Hope you did something fun to celebrate your favorite presidents. Anyway, you may have noticed a new name attached to this newsletter. My name is Rob Kachelriess and I have the good fortune to take the baton from the talented Scott Dickensheets, who’s done an amazing job establishing the voice of this daily publication, while he sails off into (semi?) retirement. Meanwhile, Las Vegas continues to change and evolve. It’s hard to keep up sometimes, but we’re going to try.
What's CITY Talking About?
😶🌫️ Going to Pot
The first non-tribal cannabis lounge in the state is likely to open near the Strip later this month. The Smoke and Mirrors lounge, attached to the Thrive Cannabis Marketplace, cleared the final stage of licensing last week. Operators say there will be more than just smoking at the site, including a cannabis-forward mixology program. Look for it on Sammy Davis Jr. Drive, adjacent to Resorts World. [KVVU]
- Related: Are fake “cannabis” stores the city’s biggest tourist scam? [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]
💰 F1 Lawsuit Threatened
Randy Markin, who owns the iconic Battista’s Hole in the Wall restaurant, says he’ll sue F1 if it doesn’t compensate him and his employees for lost business and wages due to the track’s construction. (He didn’t disclose the figure he’s asking for.) His deadline for an agreement? The end of this week. [KTNV]
- A local casino boss tells us how F1 could do better. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]
🐺 Why Coyotes Are Back in Town
Or did they never leave? After recent news of coyote bitings and nippings near Lake Las Vegas, tensions over canids and humans coexisting have surfaced again. So we’re bringing back a talk City Cast co-host Dayvid Figler had last year with UNLV wildlife ecologist Dr. David Choate about why we’re seeing more coyotes, and what to do if you encounter one. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]
⚾ Playing Ball
It appears Henderson officials have decided what to do with the huge, barren gouge where the Fiesta hotel-casino used to be: a youth sports complex. Not only will it serve local athletes, but it’s meant to have an economic-development angle: attracting major tournaments in the lucrative youth-sports sector. [Las Vegas Sun]
What To Do
Tuesday, Feb. 20
- 🍿 ‘Nope’ Screening at West Charleston Library | 12 p.m. | Free | West Charleston
- 🖊️ Blackout Poetry Workshop at Avantpop Bookstore | 7 p.m. | $20 | Winchester
- 🎼 The Best of Hans Zimmer at The Industrial Event Space | 8 p.m. | $59 | Downtown
Wednesday, Feb. 21
- ⚛️ The Evolution of Miss Atomic Bomb at The Atomic Museum | 1 p.m. | $15+ | University District
- 💥 Weeb Wednesday at Player 1 Vegas | 8 p.m. | Free | Winchester
- 🤝 Networking Night at Triple Crown Cigar Lounge | 5 p.m. | Free | Town Square
Thursday, Feb. 22
- 👩👧 Moms Stroller Walk at Tivoli Village | 9:30 a.m. | Free | Angel Park
- 🎙️ Jazz with Ruthie Foster at The Smith Center | 7 p.m. | $39+ | Downtown
- 📖 Tajja Isen: A Reading at The Beverly Theater | 7 p.m. | Free | Downtown
Today on City Cast
What’s Up with All the Coyotes?
Last year, co-host Dayvid Figler sat down with UNLV wildlife ecologist Dr. David Choate to discuss coyotes roaming free in Las Vegas. And coyotes are back in the news: Just last week, a two-year-old was treated for a coyote bite. Listen and learn learn why coyotes are becoming more comfortable around residential neighborhoods, the threat they pose to people and pets, and what to do if you run into one.
Need some homework? You can now open the books for the state of Nevada and view the budget in real time. I’ll give extra credit to any amateur CPA who finds all the leftover money for the A’s ballpark.
That’s it for today. See you tomorrow!
Rob Kachelriess
😀Thanks to Scott Dickensheets for putting the news headlines together one last time and Sonja Cho Swanson for the edits!
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