Obama Gets Upgrade at Caesars Palace
June 11, 2009 by Steve Haight
As you’ve probably heard by now, Obama made a quick visit to Las Vegas the other week. He stopped about 25 minutes away from my office… and took a tour of Nellis Air Force Base.
While most people probably think his tour was just another story on the evening news, I think there’s something much deeper going on… an opportunity for the savvy land investor.
In today’s issue of the Dirt Report, I’ll reveal what the big deal is. So let’s get started:
While most of the press was focused on the impending GM Bankruptcy filing, Obama was busy touring the 140 acre solar energy facility with Senator Harry Reid. (And he even got a room upgrade at Casesars Palace.)
Obama was in Las Vegas to promote the Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. That’s the $787 Billion program he created to help stimulate the economy.
$13 billion of that is directed to stimulate investment in renewable energy. ($13 Billion is a LOT of money.)
And the Nellis Solar installation is a perfect example of the type of investment Obama wants to see.
If you missed this whole story, here’s a link to a transcript of the speech he delivered:
Here’s the link to the story in the Las Vegas Review Journal:
And here’s a short cut (courtesy of Harry Reid’s YouTube channel) from the event:
This is a MUST watch video!!
Now I’ve been talking a lot about solar energy in the last few issues of the Dirt Report. And that’s because I feel it’s going to create a HUGE opportunity for the savvy land investor.
(Apparently, Senator Harry Reid thinks it’s a huge opportunity too. And he’s a major land owner in Nevada. MAJOR. Do you think he knows something about land? You bet he does.)
The Nellis solar installation is the largest solar electric plant of its kind in the western hemisphere. It’s got approximately 72,000 solar panels, which is enough to provide about 25% of the electricity for the entire base.
Senator Reid: Pushing for a
Renewable Energy BOOM in Nevada
If you watch the YouTube clip I gave you above, it’s clear that Harry Reid sees renewable energy as a HUGE opportunity for Nevada.
He realizes what kind of wealth Nevada is hiding in terms of renewable energy, and now that he’s got the support of a President who is committed to green energy, he’s moving forward as quickly as possible.
He’s even gone so far as to create maps of Nevada’s renewable energy, including the land status of each area. (If you weren’t aware, about 86% of Nevada’s land is currently managed by the federal government. That’s a HUGE barrier to moving quickly.)
Some of these maps are pretty surprising, because they really make it clear the amount of renewable energy resources Nevada is dealing with. You can take a look here:
Just to make it clear, in case Senator Reid’s energy policy is new to you, here’s a quote from Senator Reid’s website at Senate.gov that pretty much sums up his goal:
“Nevada has the potential to be the nation’s renewable energy epicenter. In fact, I strongly believe that Nevada can become a net exporter of renewable power with the right partnership between federal and state government and the private sector. Southern Nevada’s abundance of clear sunny days make it one of the best locations for solar energy in the world, and northern Nevada holds the largest amount of untapped geothermal resources in the United States. There are also tremendous wind resources throughout the state.
That is why I have consistently supported a national renewable electricity standard, as well as fair and stable federal tax incentives for development of clean energy resources, like geothermal, solar, and wind. I have worked hard to add geothermal energy to the list of renewable energy projects eligible for the renewable energy production tax credit and loan guarantees.”
In fact, during his speech at Nellis, Reid referred to the U.S. as the “Saudi Arabia, potentially, of renewable energy…”
Does that give you any idea of the SIZE of the dream he’s got?
As you’ll see in the information notes on the YouTube video, “Reid believes thousands of jobs will be created as Nevada leads a clean energy revolution with its vast solar, wind, and geothermal energy resources… “
Okay… so what does this mean for the land investor?
Jobs, Money, Investment = a Recipe for Growth
I sound like a broken record here, but here’s the bottom line:
All of these renewable energy stories are CLUES. Clues that tell me that growth is on its way.
Investment in infrastructure creates jobs. People work those jobs. People need somewhere to live. Houses have to be built. And the builders need LAND to do it.
That’s the simple recipe I mention ALL THE TIME.
Invest in the path of growth…
Invest in the path of growth…
Invest in the path of growth…
Got it?
That’s how you make smart choices in the land investing business. It’s NOT difficult. You just need to be paying attention.
So here’s what we know…
In the year 2009, there’s absolutely no reason that a sitting President has to travel across the country to take a tour of a solar energy base.
And with Senator Harry Reid in Washington, there’s no reason Obama has to get on a plane and travel to Nevada just to talk to him.
So this tour was not about the tour. It was about commitment. And it was about making a public showing of that commitment.
When Presidents want to make a big deal out of something… they SHOW UP. And where they choose to invest their time sends a pretty clear message about their priorities.
With the Hoover Dam Bridge and all of the solar and renewable energy activity that’s on the horizon, it’s shaping up to be a VERY interesting few years for the smart land investor.
Are you prepared?
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