Roberta LaRocca REALTOR® Las Vegas Broker Salesperson Property Management

Miss America has found a new home in Las Vegas at Planet Hollywood, moving from Atlantic City in 2006. This year's pageant will be held in the resort's Theater for the Performing Arts, with the competitions running each night beginning Tuesday, January 20, 2009. The finals will be broadcast on Saturday the 24th on TLC.

The contestants arrived in Las Vegas late last week. They have been making some appearances around town, including the opening of the new fountain in the Miracle Mile shops at Planet Hollywood, formerly the Desert Passage. The fountains go through a series of colors and fog and can shoot up nearly 5 stories high, all part of the new look and rebranding of the property.

This past Saturday, the lovely young ladies made an appearance at the Fashion Show Mall on the Las Vegas Strip. As you can see, it stands in the shadows of the pageant owner's Trump Las Vegas. The contestants appeared from the stage and runway that emerges from the floor of The Great Hall. After each was announced, they returned as a group to the runway as the stage was retracted. Then they were all available for a meet-and-greet and autograph signing.

So here are some of their pictures in a Photoshow, and you can see if you might catch a preview of the next Miss America. To watch full screen, instead of using PLAY, click the HD / Full Screen button on the bottom of the player below, and when finished click it again or use the ESC key to return.

The XML Flash player NOT embedded in the current posting? Click here to view these pictures , or for all my Las Vegas Photoshows that include some of the interesting neighborhoods and events found in and around the Las Vegas Valley, CLICK HERE.

This is just another of the unique events that makes Las Vegas such an interesting place to live. There's always so much to see and do here in the valley, it's why it's such a great place to call home.

If you are interested in relocating to Las Vegas or would like more information on Las Vegas real estate, please email me, Roberta LaRocca, at roberta@search4lasvegashomes.com, or call 702-354-8988. I look forward to hearing from you!
 

That's according to a national report for 2008 by Relocation.com, and found in a recent article in the Las Vegas Review Journal. Las Vegas ranked as #1 relocation destination in big-city long distance, out-of-state moves. They're predicting it will remain on top again for 2009.

The only issue I have with the article is the general media's insistence on saying that Las Vegas has 'lost' 10,000 residents in the last year. The county bases it's population estimate using a formula that includes the number of vacancies, which would include the increase from foreclosures. They have also said that because many could have moved in with family or friends, the population decrease may not be as dramatic as this amount. Still, the media seems to want to blast the gloomy figure and side-steps the county's admission that their estimates are just that...estimates.

Jeremy Aguero of local consulting firm Applied Analysis also has been quoted with another potential explanation that also doesn't get much press. He seems to think that it's possible that previous year's estimates may have been high and there isn't any actual population loss. I think we'll have to wait until the actual 2010 census head-count to have a closer idea of what the actual population is.

For the story they also tracked down some of the new Las Vegans to find out their reasons for moving to the valley. Some of them included that they find Las Vegas full of opportunity in spite of the national economic downturn. It even quotes one as saying he feels Las Vegas will be booming again once the economy recovers.

Other reasons include the climate, and our sunny mid January temperatures that have been running in the mid 60's as of late, likely reinforces that thought. They also include the vibrance of Las Vegas and how it compares to other large cities. Another mentions the "sheer volume of activities", that supports what I've recently posted about Las Vegas....the "there's nothing to do but Gamble" is a myth.

If you are interested in relocating to Las Vegas or would like more information on Las Vegas real estate, please email me, Roberta LaRocca, at roberta@search4lasvegashomes.com, or call 702-354-8988. I look forward to hearing from you!
 

This is actually for any real estate, not just Las Vegas, and for any picture. The question becomes, is what you're seeing real or are you distorting the image? It's something that both home buyers and listing agents might need to check.

Now I know that some of the Las Vegas Multi-list home listing pictures are very good, but as I've posted before, some are pretty bad. As they say, a picture is worth 1000 words. So a good picture says 1000 good words and a bad picture...well you get the idea.

The Las Vegas MLS photos also are displayed resized, appearing as thumbnails and enlarging to a maximum of 512 x 400 pixels. Some end up being even smaller, and with today's larger monitors they almost look like a postage stamp.

Especially where dark images are concerned, that reduction in size can make them appear even darker. The 400 x 266 night shot of MGM's City Center from my Picasa Las Vegas Pictures below was done as a panorama, and the cylindrical bow was intentional for an artistic look, something that you wouldn't want to do with listing pictures. You'll see that the image in the small size appears dark, but if you click on it for the larger images, I think you'll see that you wouldn't want it much lighter.

From Las Vegas, NV

Now if the above picture looks exceptionally dark, or light and washed out, the problem may be on your end. You might need to calibrate your monitor. Doing so will give your images a standard to go by. This makes it better for editing, viewing, and even printing you pictures.

Some editing and imaging or display software have monitor calibration built in. For those that don't have it, you can do some quick visual adjustments of your display settings. For accurate colors you'll typically want your monitor set at the color temperature of 6500k for making adjustments. Below is a color bar with grayscale. See if you can distinguish the subtle changes in the blocks. You may need to do this in a darkened room and give your eyes a moment to adjust. The darkest blocks have only a very slight change. Also note that the block on the bottom right is solid black, there won't be any variation.

If you can't see the shades of grayscale, there may be some simple adjustments you can make to correct the situation. You can try some online sources with instructions like Photo Friday or here at PhotographerUSA.

Of course all monitors will have some differences in their displays, just as you'll see when you walk into the TV section of an electronics store. Still, by calibrating your monitor as close as possible to standard, it will help keep everyone on the same page for both editing and viewing pictures. For listing agents it offers the potential to better present the home, and for home buyers not passing by a home because the images didn't look quite right.

Also keep in mind that you may want to change your settings when not working with photos should it produces a more personally appealing general display, or less eye strain.

If you are interested in relocating to Las Vegas or would like information on Las Vegas real estate, please email me, Roberta LaRocca, at roberta@search4lasvegashomes.com, or call 702-354-8988. I look forward to hearing from you!
 

On the Clark County agenda for a use permit approval on January 7, 2009, is what could become the world's largest hotel if built according to the current plans. It would be larger than the 6118 room First World Hotel in Malaysia, and the proposed 6500 room Asia Asia Hotel in Dubai. The permits sought for this U-shaped Las Vegas hotel and it's 3 adjoining high-rise towers would total 6,745 rooms.

The AIG Group, formerly known as Africa Israel, is looking to build it on approximately 60 acres on Harmon Ave. It's next door to the Hard Rock Hotel and it's current expansion, and just off the Strip to the east of Planet Hollywood.

The tallest tower would top out at 520'. According to what has been presented to the county, AIG Group has already received an FAA determination of no hazard for the site. The plans submitted include 2 podium levels that would vary in height, and the buildings combined with the parking garage space would be in excess of 8.15 million square feet.

This land was the proposed site of the W Hotel that had George Clooney on board with Edge Resorts. Then a new group led by AI purchased the property in 2007 at a reported $12.5 million an acre. It has also been transferred to a new LLC ownership this past year. Since the time of purchase, they have worked on the design, as well as mapping to combine the separate parcels on the site.

Part of this submission also includes a road alignment to Howard Hughes to the north on Flamingo, and a private road that would border the neighboring Hard Rock. These would tie into the project's 6 proposed Porte Cocheres slated for the entire development.

According to a quote from an article in the Las Vegas Review Journal, this project would be built in phases and probably wouldn't break ground until at least 2013. Just as with any project, good times or bad, there are no guarantees that it will be completed or as currently planned. Still, I find it interesting that they are continuing to invest in these development costs during these difficult economic times. As reported in the RJ, this is occurring even as AIG Group is selling off other real estate interests to help their balance sheets.

These approvals also come just as MGM City Center began it's hiring of 12,000, and a new $618 million purchase option agreement was inked for the former Wet n' Wild property on the Strip, up from the previous price of $475 million. It would appear there is some continued strong interest, and investment, in the future of Las Vegas.

If you are interested in relocating to Las Vegas or would like information on Las Vegas real estate, please email me, Roberta LaRocca, at roberta@search4lasvegashomes.com, or call 702-354-8988. I look forward to hearing from you!
 

Thought I'd share some more of my Las Vegas pictures. Since I've been doing some Las Vegas myth busting in my last few posts, this is also a fit. I've covered "There's no arts and culture" and "There's nothing to do but gamble". Now I'll add this one..."Las Vegas Locals never go to the Strip". Well...I do, and have pictures to prove it!

I don't think I'm alone, either. One clue might be the Vegas Locals Specials that are offered at various times. I'd even bet there might just be a few locals that work there! Sure, there is plenty to see and do off the Strip, so a matter of personal choice. I'm also including some of those off-Strip options in this new photo album.

Of course I have my Las Vegas Photoshows in a player and you can grab the feed here on my Active Rain Blog, but this is something different. My 'in-house' photographer has a large collection of pictures and panos from the Las Vegas Valley. Some are individual shots, or just too few to really put in a show. Others are pictures from the shows that have drawn requests for a copy.

There's even several from the recently opened Wynn Encore if you'd like to take a sneak peek at that fantastic new resort. If you enlarge the shot of Paris, you'll see the ramp used for the New Year's eve jump of the Arc de Triomphe by Robbie Madison. Check them all out in my Las Vegas Picasa Web Album, just Click Here.

On my Picasa page you can view the full window sized slideshow, or check out individual pictures and view them 'full size" (up to 1600 px wide) by clicking on the magnifying glass at the top right hand corner of each picture. Even though they are resized and compressed from the originals, they tend to be a little more crisp than the ones in the photoshow XML player. They are also mapped on the right side of the page to give you an idea of the locations around the Las Vegas Valley.

You can even order prints, share, or download them and use them for a screen wallpaper if you'd like. I put them under a Creative Commons License to make them a tad more accessible without the confusion of the © violations issues. Of course, for any commercial use you'll have to get in touch with me.

I'll be adding to the pictures from existing files and updating with some new ones from time to time. For those that enjoy Las Vegas, you may want to bookmark the page and stop back once in a while. Either that, or you can pick up the rss feed by clicking on the image below.

I hope you enjoy this online Las Vegas Vacation. For those that are interested in relocating to Las Vegas or would like information on Las Vegas Real Estate, please email me, Roberta LaRocca, at roberta@search4lasvegashomes.com, or give me a call at 702-354-8988. I look forward to hearing from you!
 

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