By Steve Wolford / News 3 Las Vegas (KSNV)
Tourism remains the economic engine of Southern Nevada, but when the nation’s economy slows and people have less disposable income, trips to Las Vegas can drop — and the region can feel it. About 30 percent of the workforce in Las Vegas is in hospitality and tourism, but there are signs the local economy is diversifying, creating more opportunities outside hospitality and making the area more resilient to future visitor slowdowns.
One of the sectors drawing workers is construction, including projects tied to the Athletics’ planned relocation to Las Vegas and a new ballpark on the Strip.
Antonio Quinones moved to Southern Nevada from Minnesota in February for construction work connected to the ballpark project. “I’ve had distant family members who live here and I’ve talked to them, and they say there’s a lot of work coming to Vegas,” Quinones said.
Economist John Restrepo said construction has been expanding outside the hospitality sector and has helped drive in-migration to Nevada. “We had some pent-up demand in construction for a while, so we had a shortage of construction workers,” Restrepo said. He added that growth looks especially large because the sector is climbing back from a steep decline.
The A’s relocation is also contributing to growth in business services. The team has an office at UnCommons, and a sales experience center is planned there. UnCommons General Manager Mike Wethington said demand for corporate space has been strong, with approximately eight more tenants expected to open throughout the year. The development has also attracted tenants including Boston-based DraftKings.
Business services growth is also coming from Utah-based Kiln, which provides office and meeting space for other businesses. Kiln now has 400 members and sold out in its first seven months.
The region is also seeing tech growth, including Triple-A20 Robotics, which recently relocated to Las Vegas. Co-founder Marcus Kurle said that as he looked to leave the Midwest, high taxes in California helped make Southern Nevada stand out. “It’s kind of crazy to have a huge building in Chicago downtown, right? So it was a natural move to come to a different city to expand. Now we have like 50,000 square feet in Las Vegas,” Kurle said.
Restrepo said Nevada still faces competition for relocating companies, particularly from other Western and Sun Belt states. He noted that factors beyond taxes — including quality of health care, housing costs, and workforce skills — all play a role in where companies ultimately choose to locate.
Source: News 3 Las Vegas / KSNV, June 1, 2026. Reported by Steve Wolford.