Oakland News Now – MGM Resorts International President Bill Hornbuckle takes center stage in Las Vegas Stadium Authority Raiders Meeting Livestream For Sept 20 2018.
The stream started off rather weird because the link from the Stadium Authority website led to another video altogether. I noted this problem on Twitter and an account called “Bruce Sierra” said it was on, but did not provide a link. I asked for it and he did post it – which turned out to be the right one. Very strange.
At any rate, Don Webb, the Raiders Stadium construction boss, give a report that indicated that while certain processes were taking longer than anticipated, the stadium would be finished “ahead of schedule.”
It was an interesting double speak, where Webb constantly pointed to specific issues that he said slowed down the process, but then assured the board the stadium would be finished in 680 days from today, or July 31, 2020.
Near the end of Webb’s presentation, Steven Hill, the new Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Executive Director, said “That’s the head of construction giving notice to the contractors on his expectations,” or words to that effect. In other words, Webb was telling everyone, “Yeah, we have these problems, but we’re going to be open on time, we’re just not ready now.”
Before he finished Webb got into a testy disagreement with MGM Resorts International President Bill Hornbuckle. Mr. Hornbuckle is the one board member who’s not afraid to question the Raiders on the Stadium Project. He let it be known that MGM Resorts International believes, as do others on the Las Vegas Strip, that their events and properties would be, as he put it “choked out” by the traffic demand for Raiders games. He was not a fan of the Raiders Parking Plan, which Webb said would be in a constant state of flux for the next “30 to 40 years” of the life of the stadium (wow). They agreed to keep working toward a plan that solved the problem, but it’s very clear MGM Resorts International is not happy.
The meeting ended with the transfer of $1.7 million to the Debt Service Fund that was reported here. There was no discussion of the bond issue or the hotel stadium tax revenue or where it is, or what the stadium’s real cost is – just a presentation of reports that were three months old.
Stay tuned.
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