8 Ten Inc.
Garth Brooks and drummer Mike Palmer perform at Allegiant Stadium on July 10, 2021.
Wednesday, July 14, 2021 | 2 a.m.
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For thousands of Las Vegas residents, their first taste of T-Mobile Arena came days after the Oct. 1 shooting when the Vegas Golden Knights made their NHL home debut. It was an unforgettable evening, highlighted by a moving tribute to the victims, their families and first responders that helped our community take an important step toward healing.
Saturday marked another occasion when many locals got their first glimpse of a new arena, this time Allegiant Stadium. And while the occasion was a Garth Brooks concert as opposed to a hockey game, the experience was another chance to reflect on the strength and resilience of our community.
The roars of the sold-out crowd of 68,000 people were for Brooks, and deservedly so, but they also spoke to our community’s enduring appeal as a tourism and entertainment capital of the world. After so many dismal months of pandemic-related business closures, job losses and uncertainty about our economic future, the sight of a rollicking crowd in Las Vegas again was a reason for cautious optimism.
We say “cautious” because, as we know too well, the coronavirus crisis isn’t over. And amid the rise of COVID-19 variants and vaccine resistance here and elsewhere, we hope that Las Vegas can stay on a positive trajectory in our recovery. One thing that events like the Brooks concert makes abundantly clear is that vaccine holdouts who are either living here or are planning to visit our community should get their shots for the protection of themselves, their families, their neighbors and for the economy of the region and the state of Nevada, to avoid any future closures or restrictions.
The combination of maskless crowds and unvaccinated bodies is still a dangerous stew. Masking up and vaccinating — or possibly both — are necessary for more successes like Saturday’s, and for further growth of Las Vegas.
But for one night, anyway, Brooks’ energetic performance and the crowd’s reaction was a chance to imagine a return to full normal.
The evening was also a testament to the boldness that put Las Vegas on the global map.
The stadium was an audacious project involving a massive $750 million investment of public funding — far too much, in the opinion of some critics in our community.
But Saturday offered a glimpse at what we’ll get for our money. Allegiant provides us with an ultramodern stage for the world’s most popular performers, plus a full slate of NFL games and a site for mega-events like NCAA postseason basketball tournaments. Each one of those events is like adding a good-sized convention to our calendar, under the safe assumption that they are sold out.
With that said, the Brooks show was akin to the first operational test of an aircraft, and it showed that there’s some room for improvement. Getting there wasn’t particularly easy, for instance, including for fans who braved Saturday’s record heat to walk the half-mile pedestrian route on Hacienda Avenue. Perhaps more shuttle transport could be arranged?
And here’s a request for community leaders: Please put up signs along the walkways reminding visitors about the stadium rules. Several Brooks fans arrived at the stadium Saturday only to learn that their bags were too big to be taken inside, and that there would be a $20 fee to store their bag during the concert. Dozens simply emptied their bags into their pockets as best they could and tossed them in piles on the ground, rather than pay the money or walk all the way back to their cars to secure their belongings.
Granted, the stadium rules are posted online, but some additional signage nearby wouldn’t hurt.
Once issues like these are worked out, though, look out. The stadium more than passed the test in its lighting, sound and visuals, which were dazzling in the Brooks show. The concert included razor-sharp video displays and an oval-shaped stage so wide you could practically run a track meet on it.
Brooks came away from the show raving about the stadium and the audience, which he called one of the loudest he’d experienced. In a nod to the cathartic nature of the event, he said he was struck not necessarily by the noise coming from the seats but by “the joy of the crowd.”
As for the stadium, he said Allegiant “checks all the boxes” as a performance venue.
With that, the stadium is off to a good start as an addition to Las Vegas’ lineup of attractions. Better yet, local residents benefit from it even if they’re not in the seats, as it’s expected to generate $620 million in economic impact annually now that it’s running at full capacity.
This is Las Vegas — our history is filled with moments when we did big things that other communities might not have gone for. But our willingness to push the envelope set us apart and made our city the international gathering place that it has become.
Allegiant Stadium is a reflection of that type of thinking, and it’s off to a roaring start.
To keep the fun rolling there and throughout Las Vegas, though, it’s critical for local residents to do their part by getting vaccinated. The more we protect ourselves, our families and our guests, the more we’ll keep our recovery chugging along.
