

City Cast Las Vegas
City Cast
City Cast Las Vegas is a daily podcast and newsletter created by and for locals (and locals-at-heart) that’ll challenge the easy narratives about our city … and, okay, maybe confirm a few of them, too. Las Vegas is a city of reinvention, bursting at the seams as it welcomes newcomers into its various incarnations as a service-worker union town, a military town, a college town, and, most recently, a sports town.There’s a four-mile street testifying to our entrepreneurial genius, not far from pockets of staggering inequality. Great wealth runs through our city, but how much of that actually stays in Vegas? We’re independent in spirit, but also ruled by orange traffic cones. Our 2.5 million residents anchor an ever-changing city of 42 million visitors.Join us every morning for the messy, delightful, complicated conversations that Las Vegans are having: You’ll hear us ask hard questions about where we’ll get our water when Lake Mead runs out, and how we’ll keep housing affordable. We’ll argue over our favorite Chinatown bars, and share insider tips on the best tacos in town. City Cast Las Vegas will show you how loving a city means celebrating it and also holding it accountable, while having some fun along the way—because Las Vegans know how to have a good time.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 19, 2024 • 24min
What Culinary Really Thinks of “No Taxes on Tips”
When presidential candidate Donald Trump proposed “no taxes on tips” in Las Vegas this June, the mighty Culinary Union responded with deep skepticism. But now that a bipartisan bill has been introduced to Congress and Kamala Harris has endorsed the measure, they’ve come out in favor. So is this all just politicking? What about economists’ concerns about the impact of “no taxes on tips,” and why aren’t we talking about the problem with tipping culture to begin with? Co-host Dayvid Figler sits down with Culinary 226 Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge to get his insider take on why they support the policy and where they hope it goes.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 16, 2024 • 37min
The Sphere Gets Loud, Why Heat Deaths Doubled, and the Aces Get Sued
Summer may be winding down in some places as the school year begins, but we’re still going strong here in Las Vegas. For this Friday’s weekly news roundup, the summer heat is taking its toll on locals as heat-related deaths spike this year, a former player is suing our champion Las Vegas Aces for discrimination, and residents complain the Sphere’s new sound feature is way too loud. Co-host Dayvid Figler is joined by food and justice advocate Kim Foster and City Cast executive producer Sonja Cho Swanson to add context and discuss this week’s headlines.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 15, 2024 • 25min
Has Vegas Hit Peak Caviar?
Caviar — it’s the latest culinary status symbol, the padding on your dinner bill, the glittering cherry on top of your Vegas vacation Instagram posts. But with caviar showing up on donuts, hot dogs, and even ice cream … has caviar in Vegas gone too far? Executive producer Sonja Cho Swanson sits down with food critics John Curtas of the Eat, Talk, Repeat podcast and Gemini Stevens of the Food and Loathing podcast to talk about the latest crimes against caviar in our city of excess, and which restaurants are actually doing it right.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 14, 2024 • 23min
Whatever Happened to that Airbnb Dispute, the Badlands Payouts, and Mt. Charleston’s School?
Just because the news cycle has moved on doesn’t mean our communities have, too — so what’s the latest on some of the biggest stories of the last year? Today, we’re trying something new and catching you up on the latest developments in three big stories we’ve previously covered on the show: The status of short-term rentals in Clark County and their Supreme Court limbo; the newest real-world impacts of the City of Las Vegas’ Badlands lawsuit payouts; and the school board’s latest decision on the fate of tiny Lundy Elementary School on Mt. Charleston, one year after Hurricane Hilary battered the mountain. Executive producer Sonja Cho Swanson and co-host Dayvid Figler sit down to discuss.You can find Darcy Spears’ story on the latest Badlands payouts here.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 13, 2024 • 24min
The Best (and Weirdest) Mascots in Las Vegas
Even though professional sport teams are fairly new to Las Vegas, mascots are not. Whether they are at schools or attached to local businesses, mascots have been bringing joy (and fear) to locals for decades. Co-hosts Dayvid Figler and Sarah Lohman are joined by former mascot and Nevada Current journalist April Corbin Girnus to discuss the best mascots in Las Vegas and the purpose that they serve.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 12, 2024 • 21min
Time is Running Out for Your Ornamental Grass
No one would describe Vegas as a green place, but you might notice the city looking even more desert-y than usual thanks to AB356. This bill from the 2021 legislative session tackles our low levels in Lake Mead by prohibiting the use of Colorado River water on “nonfunctional turf” in public spaces by 2027. So what public grass will disappear and how will this affect our water shortage as Vegas gets hotter and more crowded? Today, we’re revisiting a conversation with co-host Dayvid Figler and JC Davis from the Southern Nevada Water Authority to talk about what exactly “nonfunctional turf” is and why JC thinks AB356 is critical for the future of Las Vegas.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 9, 2024 • 30min
New School Safety Measures, Hackers in Vegas, and Even More 1-15 Construction
Ahead of the new school year starting this Monday, Clark County School District police and other officials held a press conference highlighting new safety measures they have planned, including cell phone pouches, social workers, and new scanners that can detect even non-metal weapons. Is it all just a bit … too much? Co-hosts Sarah Lohman and Dayvid Figler are joined by TheList.Vegas creator Andrew Kiraly to discuss. Next, they get into Resorts World’s baffling implication that mandatory “non-intrusive” visual inspections of guest hotel rooms will somehow keep us safe from all the hackers in town for two hacker conferences, and lastly (oh joy), even more construction on the I-15.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 8, 2024 • 23min
How Tiki Got Huge in Vegas
Tiki bars are classic Americana — the mai tais, plastic leis, and faux-tropical decor are embedded into our culinary history. But why and how? Co-host Dayvid Figler and Sarah Lohman, a culinary historian, take a deep dive into Las Vegas history to talk about how tiki came to Vegas, the right (and wrong) ways to do it, and where to treat yourself to an excellent rum punch today. Is it possible that Vegas, with our penchant for transportive flair, is actually doing tiki better than anywhere else in America?Read the L.A. Times article about tiki and appropriation that Sarah cites here.Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Aug 7, 2024 • 22min
Why the Odds Are Getting Worse for Vegas Gamblers
Casino expert Scott Roeben, known as Vital Vegas, shares his insights on the shifting odds in Las Vegas gambling. Recent trends reveal casinos are subtly tilting the odds in their favor, with changes like triple zero roulette and cuts to player perks. Roeben discusses the difference between casual and strategic gamblers, highlighting the psychology behind player choices. The impact of analytics on casino strategies and how they cater to lower-stakes players in a competitive landscape are also key topics, shedding light on the evolving nature of gambling in Sin City.

Aug 6, 2024 • 23min
Is Laughlin Like Vegas … but Better?
The tiny riverside community of Laughlin is Nevada’s southernmost town (though it’s technically an unincorporated township), and it’s one of our youngest towns, too — so what exactly is there to do here? A lot, it turns out. Hey Las Vegas newsletter editor Rob Kachelriess recently wrote a guide to Laughlin for Thrillist and shares his favorite gems with co-host Dayvid Figler, from casino deals and water sports to a Guy Fieri (yes!) outpost. Is it possible that Laughlin knows how to Vegas … better than Vegas?Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.