Carson City gaming win up 3 percent; attributed to special session

Nevada casinos reported a 14.6 percent drop in total win for January, but the Carson Valley area was one of the few bright spots, posting a 3.33 percent increase to $9.2 million.

Total statewide win was $908.6 million. It was the state's 13th straight monthly decline, and the fourth straight double-digit drop.

The Carson Valley area includes Carson City and valley portions of Douglas County. Gaming Control Board Analyst Frank Streshley credited the bump to the 2009 Legislature which began Feb. 2. Before that, there was a full week of preliminary budget hearings which drew not only lawmakers but several hundred lobbyists to town.

Gaming tax collections were $47 million, a dismal 42.3 percent below collections for January 2008. But Streshley said that number is skewed because Chinese New Year fell on the last weekend of the month. As a result, much of the gaming win generated by the holiday won't be reported until February.

Stateline casinos at South Shore reported a 23.7 percent decline for the month to $20.3 million. The most likely cause, he said, is the opening of Redhawk Casino near Placerville. North Shore casinos at Crystal Bay didn't fare much better, reporting an 11.3 percent decrease in win to $2.24 million.

Both Tahoe reporting areas can be expected to do better in February's report, however, because of the snow drawing crowds to ski resorts.

The healthiest market in the state was Elko County which reported a 9.77 percent increase. Most of that was in Wendover on the Utah border. Total win for the county was $22.5 million.

Every market in Clark County, from the Strip to Mesquite, reported a double-digit drop in win for January. The countywide average was 16.3 percent down with downtown and the Boulder Strip both approaching 23 percent. The Las Vegas Strip reported $510.4 million in win for a 14.8 percent decline.

Reno was the only bright spot in Washoe County, which has now suffered its 19th straight month of declining gaming win. Overall, the county was down just a tick " a difference of less than $10,000 " at $65.95 million.

Reno itself was up about four-tenths of a percent to $47.8 million in win.

Slot win totaled $579.2 million, down 17.5 percent. Table games did a bit better, dropping just 9 percent to $316.7 million. Fully a third of that came from baccarat win which was up 17.2 percent to $96 million.

- Contact reporter Geoff Dornan at gdornan@nevadaappeal.com or 687-8750.