Nevada legalized recreational marijuana in 2017, but gamblers can't use it at the state's brick-and-mortar casinos.
However, that could change soon if one casino executive gets his way. Fifth Street Gaming CEO Seth Schorr believes that allowing weed at casinos could increase slumping Las Vegas tourism rates.
Increased tourism typically results in increased casino revenue. Other states legalized online casinos to boost revenue. However, Nevada's only online gambling option is poker.
Seth Schorr told the Cannabis Policy Institute and International Gaming Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, that Sin City should consider catering to guests looking for marijuana lounges.
“I think there is a market, but you don’t know until you try it,” Schorr said. “A large part of my career has been identifying niche opportunities and creating experiences for a subset of the population that wants or expects different things than the general population.
“I have to assume a large population would like a casino-resort with all of the amenities and consumption lounges. Yes, other people would stay far away from that. Not every property would go all in, but I think it’s large enough that it would work. We can’t afford to miss any opportunity. We can’t rest on our laurels.”
Marijuana Lounges Need Legal Changes
Fifth Street Gaming is a Las Vegas-based gaming company that owns several properties around the city, including the Downtown Grand and Gold Spike.
Some changes in law would need to be made for Schorr’s plan to be put in place and some of those properties to feature weed lounges. Nevada officially legalized recreational weed usage in 2016, following passage of a ballot initiative in 2016. The law requires 1,500 feet between a cannabis dispensary and a casino.
Furthermore, Clark County prohibits deliveries to casinos, according to CDC Gaming. Schorr sees weed as just another option for gamblers to enjoy while hitting the tables or bars in Las Vegas.
“People go on vacation and want to do the vices,” he said. “We allow them to drink and gamble and when they take a vacation some want to smoke marijuana. Las Vegas is about creating an experience that’s better than the one you can have at home. As other jurisdictions find a way to introduce this into their experience, it’s a handicap.”
Cannabis operator David Goldwater agreed with that assessment and believes adding cannabis to the mix simply gives visitors another option.
“Nevada is one of the few states where you can have a drink, visit a prostitute, gamble 24 hours a day seven days a week,” he said. “Yet we have this western independent conservative bent to the population where we need to separate these vices.”
In other weed and gambling-related news, October federal prosecutors announced criminal charges in October against a cannabis company owned by poker player and social media personality Dan Bilzerian along with his father Paul Bilzerian and an executive in the enterprise.
