Gaming Revenue Rising on Strip, Dropping Downtown

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LAS VEGAS-Casino gaming revenue in Nevada rose 7.5% in August from the same period a year earlier, the state Gaming Control Board said Tuesday. The increase was due in large part to a 14.3% increase in gaming revenue from the Strip, which typically accounts for more than half of the statewide total.

Statewide gaming revenue increased to $1.06 billion in August 2006 from $989.05 million in August 2005. The Strip alone saw gaming revenue increase to $556.29 million in August 2006 from $486.64 million in August 2005.

Meanwhile, gaming revenue from Downtown Las Vegas continued its downward trend. August revenue was down 14.3% from the same period one year earlier, marking the third straight month that Downtown revenue has been below 2005 results. Downtown gaming revenue was off 5.33% in July and off 13% in June.

Through the first eight months of the year, statewide gaming revenue was $11.27 billion, up 12.15% compared to 2005. Strip revenue is up 16.65% year-to-date while revenue from Downtown Las Vegas is down 0.84%.

Gaming revenue from Clark County as a whole–which includes the Strip, Downtown, Laughlin, Henderson and Boulder–was up 10.68% in August and through the first eight months of the year it is running 13.36% ahead of 2005. Washoe County, home to Reno, Sparks and North Lake Tahoe, experienced a 3.12% bump in gaming revenue in August and through the first eight months of the year is running 5.75% ahead of 2005. In South Lake Tahoe, gaming revenue was off 7.62% in August but remains 3.73% ahead of 2005 on a year-to-date basis.

Along with August’s gaming revenue results, the Gaming Control Board reported that state government collected $67 million in percentage fees in September, up 8.3% from a year earlier.