Las Vegas Raiders stadium construction exceeds minority hiring goals

Construction crews working on the $1.8 billion Las Vegas stadium project have exceeded minority hiring goals since the project began in November.

The seven-member Community Benefits Oversight Committee received an update on how the project is progressing Monday at its inaugural meeting.

Lynn Littlejohn, director of community affairs for Minneapolis-based Mortenson Construction Co., the general contractor for the project, said 54 percent of the work hours performed on the project at Interstate 15 and Russell Road were completed by minorities, women and military veterans, well ahead of the 38 percent goal.

Littlejohn, a member of the Oversight Committee, said 80,000 work hours were performed between November and March.

Senate Bill 1 requires a minimum 15 percent of subcontracts be awarded to small-business-enterprise companies as a condition for $750 million in public financing for the project.

Of the $509 million in subcontracts awarded on the project, $91 million, or 18 percent, has gone to 32 qualified small-business-enterprise companies with half going to minority- or women-owned companies. Some companies received multiple contracts.

Littlejohn said about 225 workers have been hired on the project and that will expand to 500 by fall when steel construction work begins.

Crews already have begun concrete work on the site, which will continue into next year.

Raiders President Marc Badain told the committee that work is on schedule for the 65,000-seat indoor stadium project, which has a projected summer 2020 completion date.

Most of the Oversight Committee’s Monday meeting was dedicated to first-session topics explaining the purpose of the group, its mission as outlined by Senate Bill 1 and compliance to the state’s open-meeting laws.

The committee is expected to meet quarterly under Chairman Ken Evans and is under the direction of the Oakland Raiders, who were required to create the committee as a requirement of the public financing legislation.

The volunteer committee is charged with monitoring the Raiders’ community benefits plan that assures that businesses operated by small companies, minorities and veterans get a share of jobs and subcontracts on the construction of the stadium. The committee also will oversee the Raiders’ philanthropic efforts in Southern Nevada.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on Twitter.