As gambling spread, Las Vegas reinvented itself once again, this time giving people new reasons to visit, the latest metamorphosis successful, judging by the response. Flip side are local casinos, those booming neighborhood joints catering to residents. With a current population of 1.25 million, population experts project 2 million by 2005. Roadways built for several hundred thousand are forced to handle maximum daily overloads. Water, electric and telephone systems are strained beyond belief.
Air quality is measured in spoonfuls while health and human services are a crapshoot.
I'm not intending to weave a pessimistic tapestry, just telling it like it is. In 1955, five casinos opened amidst doomsayers predicting the end of Las Vegas in short order. A local economic downturn following the building boom then made many forecast crumbling castles. Some places were shuttered, but many casino owners were resourceful, supporting each other to boost vulnerable properties, offering loans, banding together to bring business back to town. I believe it's fair to say the city has thrived in the 46 years since.