LVCVA taps firm to land marketing deals tied to monorail, Boring Co.

Las Vegas’ tourism bureau awarded a $3 million contract to Intersection Media to assist in its advertising and marketing efforts tied to the Las Vegas Monorail and Boring Co.’s underground transportation system.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority chose the New York-based agency over five prospective firms Tuesday to lead the advertising, marketing and naming rights deals tied to transportation options under the authority’s umbrella.

The authority noted Intersection was appealing because of its past work with other transportation-related groups such as the Chicago Transit Authority, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and United Airlines.

“We look forward to finalizing the agreement and working with LVCVA to bring top brands to Las Vegas,” Scott Goldsmith, president of Intersection said in a statement provided to the Review-Journal.

Intersection will work to land deals for the Monorail whose trains and stations provide opportunities for marketing deals.

The monorail is a nearly 4-mile elevated electric transit system the stretches from near the Sahara to the MGM Grand, with seven stations located at various resorts and the convention center. The LVCVA purchased the system out of bankruptcy in December for $24.3 million.

The authority noted opportunities with Boring’s Convention Center Loop, an 0.8-mile dual tunnel system that shuttles conventiongoers between three stations located near different convention halls.

The LVCVA purchased the monorail largely to eliminate at non-compete contract to allow Boring to eventually bore the Vegas Loop, a planned 15-mile network of tunnels underneath the Strip with stops at major resorts, downtown and Allegiant Stadium.

The 5-year agreement requires Intersection to generate a minimum of $1 million in revenue for the LVCVA beginning in 2023. The revenue guarantee will grow 3 percent annually thereafter. If the net revenue guarantee is not met in 2023 and after, the LVCVA can terminate the deal.

“It’s a commission based structure,” said Ed Finger, chief financial officer for the LVCVA. “The financial impact represents an estimate of $7.5 million of revenue and $3 million in cost… More revenue than commission.”

The deal was opposed by two LVCVA board members in attendance for Tuesday’s meetings — Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and Las Vegas City Councilwoman Michele Fiore.

Fiore said she had reservations about awarding such a large commission-based contract to a firm the LVCVA hasn’t dealt with before.

“I’m just not comfortable with this item,” Fiore said at Tuesday’s meeting after questioning the structure of the contract.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.