💔 Why Las Vegans are single

📈 ICE Detainments Up in the Silver State

Nevada saw more than 2,100 detainments by immigration enforcement officers during the first 10 months of President Trump’s second term. That’s a sharp increase from President Biden’s entire final year in office, which saw less than 700 arrests. [Nevada Current]

• The numbers are expected to grow even higher in 2026. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]
• The Nevada DMV is in the process of turning over communications with federal immigration officials for a private review following a lawsuit by the ACLU of Nevada. [Nevada Independent]

⚖️ Nevada (Might) Get a New Top Federal Prosecutor

The White House nominated Las Vegas lawyer George Kelesis to become the next U.S. Attorney for Nevada. If approved by the U.S. Senate, he’d bring some stability to the position, currently held by vocal Trump ally Sigal Chattah in an ongoing interim role. [KTVN]

• Fun fact: Kelesis is the former boss of lawyer and City Cast contributor Dayvid Figler, who describes the nominee as “an excellent legal mind known for successfully taking on a wide range of cases over a long and storied career.”

🤑 Goodbye Poker Palace, Hello Club Fortune

After closing last year, renovations are underway at the North Las Vegas casino formerly known as Poker Palace. It’s now Club Fortune, after being purchased for $20 million by Truckee Gaming. [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

• Correction: I described the shuttered Eastside Cannery as a “Henderson casino” in yesterday’s newsletter when it’s very much within city boundaries on the eastside of Las Vegas. Maybe I should’ve paid more attention to the name? 🤔

👠 Sex Workers of Pahrump, Unite!

Most of the nearly 75 sex workers at Sheri’s Ranch in Pahrump have agreed to join the Communications Workers of America after taking issue with new contracts. If this gets finalized, it would be the first time brothel workers have unionized in the United States. [Nevada Independent]

💔 Las Vegas, Burned Out on Love

We wish everyone a happy Valentine’s Day tomorrow, but we also want to shout out the singles navigating a tough landscape of high prices and questionable dating app profiles that complicate romance in Las Vegas. [KLAS]

• City Cast Las Vegas looks at why so many Las Vegans are staying single, plus the latest on school district budget cuts and a tight race for Nevada governor that’s just starting to pick up steam — all in today’s Friday news roundup. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

😃 Hey!

The City Cast Las Vegas news quiz is back to test how well you pay attention to our newsletter. As always, the questions are based on stories featured over the past week.

Here’s the first multiple-choice question to get you started:

Which notorious mob location was recently sold in Las Vegas?

A. The Flamingo Hotel & Casino, originally run by Bugsy Siegel

B. The former home of Tony “The Ant” Spilotro

C. A lot where mobster Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal survived a car bombing

D. The Dive Bar, formerly a mobster hangout named My Place

Only one answer is correct.

Each week, our City Cast Las Vegas Neighbors have a chance to give a members-only shoutout to their favorite locals.

• 📣 Tami H.L. has high praise for Communities In Schools of Nevada, pointing out how the nonprofit “works inside our low income schools, providing basic needs” and “attendance, academic and mental health support for our elementary, middle, high school students.” She also says 97% of case-managed seniors graduate “with a plan to achieve in life.”
• 📣 Jen S. wants you to know about Suzuya Patisserie in the Southwest Valley, which has “the most unique Japanese desserts & drinks — locally owned and operated too!”

Become a City Cast Neighbor to share a shoutout of your own!