City Cast Las Vegas

Homelessness can feel like an insurmountable problem — one so big it drowns out the people actually solving it. Brent Nowak, engagement liaison for the Shine a Light Foundation, joins us to pull back the curtain on the estimated 1,500 people living underground in Vegas's flood channels — and what it actually takes to help them find a way out. Plus, our executive producer Layla Muhammad shares what...

With the June 9th primary election fast approaching, host Jesse Merrick and creative producer Jacob Solis break down everything you need to know before casting your ballot. They cover a Clark County Commission race full of mudslinging, labor unions primarying their own Democrats over last year’s failed film tax credits bill, and how to vote in a primary election for the many locals who skip it. Pl...

Helldorado Days is back and with it comes the annual parade through Downtown Las Vegas celebrating the city’s Western roots. But how deep do those roots actually go? Turns out, Las Vegas’s relationship with the Wild West is a lot more complicated than the cowboy hats and rodeo vibes might suggest. We’re revisiting our conversation with UNLV history professor Michael Green hosted by food historian...

Last month, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson sought death warrants for three convicted murderers – once again thrusting a spotlight on capital punishment in a state that hasn’t executed a death row inmate in 20 years. Despite the lack of executions, a Las Vegas Review-Journal investigation found prosecutors pursued the death penalty at least 220 times over that span. It raises the ques...

A big shakeup is coming to the Strip as plans emerge to transform the struggling Las Vegas Monorail into part of Elon Musk’s Loop system. Host Jesse Merrick is joined by Spotlight Poetry founder Elle Hope and creative producer Jacob Solis to ask a simple question: why turn a train into a road? They also dig into why falling rent prices aren’t easing the burden for many residents and whether walkin...

Consider May in Las Vegas a kind of pre-game for summer – the pools are open, the sun is out and the heat hasn’t forced us to seek the nearest AC (yet). What better time to take advantage of great hiking, luxuriate at the spa or get a headstart on the summer movie season? We’ve got insider tips and tricks for finding the hidden gems, eating your fill of everything from an exclusive chef-y brunch t...

That gigantic guitar rising on the Strip is the latest milestone in the growing story of tribal casinos in Las Vegas. The Hard Rock Hotel, soon to replace the former Mirage, is owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, making it one of a small but growing number of tribal-operated properties on the Strip. Host Jesse Merrick sits down with visiting UNLV Boyd School of Law professors Kathryn Rand and...

In her annual State of the City address, Las Vegas Mayor Shelly Berkely vowed not to let the city become “another San Francisco or Los Angeles” on the issue of homelessness. But what does that even mean – and can the city finally meaningfully address the problem? Nevada Current Editor April Corbin Girnus and Executive Producer Layla Muhammad join Host Jesse Merrick to dig into the details. Plus, w...

Last week, facing one of the worst snowpacks on record, federal water regulators took an emergency step that would divert huge amounts of water to Lake Powell. The move will preserve the reservoir’s ability to generate power and avoid nearing deadpool – at the cost of dramatically cutting water to Lake Mead, likely sending the lake to its lowest level ever and cutting power output from Hoover Dam...

Are DIY urban projects the key to improving the infrastructure in cities like Las Vegas? The grassroots group To Nashville, With Love has built and installed 60 benches at bus stops around Nashville, all without government approval. City Cast CEO David Plotz talks with City Cast Nashville podcast host Marie Cecile Anderson about what this guerrilla campaign is doing, why it’s gotten pushback from...

Airfare is climbing fast as jet fuel costs surge, and higher ticket prices could squeeze tourism to Las Vegas, especially for international visitors and budget travelers. We also dig into lingering funding questions around the latest flashy NBA arena proposal on the Strip. Then, a new report shows more young Nevadans are living with their parents, raising bigger questions about housing, wages, and...

For years, Summerlin North has been something of a dining no-man’s land. But with burgeoning hotel food halls and fresh new spots at Tivoli Village and Boca Park, is the neighborhood finally a gourmand’s paradise? Al Mancini & Gemini Stevens, co-hosts of the podcast Food & Loathing, join host Sonja Cho Swanson to break down the best spots, tastiest dishes and finally answer the question: Where sho...

Henderson’s Ward 3 City Council race is shaping up to be one of the most chaotic contests in Southern Nevada, with a three-way primary fueled by personal feuds, a recording scandal, and deep divides over local issues. Beneath the drama, debates over affordability, policing, and an ICE detention contract reveal real stakes for one of the region’s fastest-growing cities. Host Jesse Merrick talks wit...

A judge vacated Rickie Slaughter’s conviction, but he remains behind bars as the DA weighs a retrial, raising big questions about power and accountability. Nevada’s $12 million settlement with Roblox also raises new concerns about kids’ safety online. And the slow disappearance of Strip buffets has locals wondering what Las Vegas is becoming. Breaking down the biggest local headlines are host Jess...

With 4/20 and Earth Day landing in the same week, City Cast Las Vegas revisits a lively conversation about the valley’s most polarizing plants, palm trees. Nevada Plants master arborist Lisa Ortega talks with Dayvid Figler about the surprising variety of palms that thrive in the desert and whether they really deserve their reputation as water hogs. Learn more about the sponsors of this Monday, Apr...

Could public financing get more Las Vegans involved in local elections? For the last decade, the City of Seattle has issued $100 in vouchers to every voter to donate to the candidate of their choice in municipal elections. City Cast CEO David Plotz talks with City Cast Seattle podcast host Jane C. Hu about how these Democracy Vouchers work, how many people are participating, and what the impact on...

An Arts District dispute over patio concerts got louder this week, as a landlord is now ⁠suing his own tenant⁠ in an effort to quiet early-evening concerts. It comes after noise complaints from a single neighbor – and it raises the question: Can new arrivals to the Arts District handle what the neighborhood has to offer? Host Jesse Merrick sits down with longtime Vegas writer Scott Dickensheets an...

Strip clubs promise spectacle, but in Las Vegas they also promise a full menu, from late-night nachos to white-tablecloth steaks. Food writer and hedonist Gemini Stevens breaks down where the city’s clubs actually deliver, and why keeping diners in their seats is part of the business model. In conversation with Sonja Cho Swanson, they explore how Vegas blends indulgence and practicality, and wheth...

Las Vegans love proving they’re the real deal. We give that instinct the merit badge treatment with a playful checklist of local status. From surviving triple-digit summers to knowing secret parking hacks and late-night diner rituals, these badges capture the quirks that separate tourists from true residents. Beneath the humor, it reveals how pride and community shape belonging in a city people of...

We’ve all heard it by this point: Vegas needs more housing to drive down the price of homes. But where exactly are developers supposed to build? Today on our City Cast Las Vegas podcast, reporter Patrick Blennerhassett from the Review-Journal explains how federal land policy, local zoning laws, and the rising cost of building homes makes for a complicated answer.  Learn more about the sponsors of...

When a confirmed case of measles hit the Las Vegas Convention Center last month, did Vegas get lucky by avoiding a widespread outbreak? And if so – what happens if that luck runs out? Today on City Cast Las Vegas, host Sonja Cho Swanson sits down with Jeff Quinn, Public Health Preparedness Officer at the Southern Nevada Health District, to discuss whether Vegas learned its lesson from the COVID-19...

Las Vegans, what do you do when your night life starts to dwindle? Nightlife is a huge economic driver for cities, but city offices are often closed when those businesses need help. That’s why Portland is considering hiring a Night Mayor. City Cast CEO David Plotz talks with City Cast Portland podcast host Claudia Meza about what this new position would do, and if it is the answer to the pandemic’...

Clark County has hundreds of ATMs that exchange cash for cryptocurrency (or "crypto kiosks") and scammers are swindling Nevadans out of millions with these machines. So what kinds of guardrails make sense — or are even possible? Sonja Cho Swanson sits down with Nevada Current editor April Corbin Girnus and our brand new host at City Cast Las Vegas, Jesse Merrick, to discuss. Plus, the team looks a...

The Las Vegas Review-Journal is no longer printing the Las Vegas Sun in its pages — at least for now. The longtime rival newspapers published competing op-eds to mark the change, which came after continued legal battles. But why was the Review-Journal printing the Sun in the first place, and should it continue doing so? Host Sonja Cho Swanson is getting the scoop on this modern newspaper war from...

More tech companies are eyeing Southern Nevada for data centers, as the state’s AI boom continues. But new proposals are getting local pushback over water and power usage, and raising questions about how to regulate these companies. So just how resource-draining are data centers, and is this boom actually a good thing for Nevada? Host Sonja Cho Swanson is getting the details from Review-Journal re...