Problem at the TI

We have stayed & played at the TI for a number of years & have always enjoyed our stays.

Recently we stopped in to play & while I was playing elsewhere my wife was accosted by a homeless man demanding money.  She called me to come over & as I was coming over a second homeless came over.  

We then went looking for security & it turns out there was no security on the floor for 30 minutes.  After finally locating security they explained that they had been doing a shift change.  The proper procedure would have been to leave 1 guard on the floor instead of leaving the floor unprotected for such an extended period of time.

We filed a report but the TI seems disinterested.  We spoke to the security manager, front desk & wrote a letter to customer service & have not heard back.

Due to a lack of security & customer service we will not be back

How do you know that either man was homeless?

It's unrealistic to expect that security will always be instantly available to meet your demands. The casino floor has a lot of area to cover and there are no more than a dozen or so guards on the floor at any one time. I very much doubt that as you claim, there was "no security on the floor for 30 minutes." You just were unable to find a guard, which isn't the same thing.

A person asking casino patrons for money isn't a critical or dangerous situation, as annoyed as you and your wife may have been. What did those men do when your wife refused to give them anything? Did they leave? If so, what's the big deal? You were mildly annoyed for a minute or two. It seems to me that you escalated this yourself, in a surge of misplaced outrage that TI didn't instantly, oh, I don't know, send troops, tanks, and helicopters after those men.

What you experienced is extremely common in Vegas, or in any large city for that matter, and if you decide not to visit TI any more because of it, you're just as likely to have it happen somewhere else. By the way, asking people for money isn't against the law, expect in certain public spaces and in indoor or outdoor dining areas.

We have been at the TI for years & this has never happened before. Homeless people roaming the TI & other strip casinos is new & should not be tolerated. 

Amazing how kevin can come to conclusions when he wasn't there.  He admits he doesn''t go on the Strip. Security mgmt admitted they didn't have any security on the floor, which is dangerous.

As a lifelong New Yorkers, we know homeless people.  There is asking for money & being threatening.  As soon as the second person saw me coming over, he took off. 

kevin ALWAYS makes up scenarios about events he never witnesses. He "thinks" that he knows everything - when in reality he has no clue about what he is talking about. Tom, I suggest you pay no heed to kevin's musings - it really is a waste of time reading his comments. You have a legitimate complaint and do not need kevin weighing in and making up his scenario as to what happened. Picture this, if this event had of happened to kevin, he would be bad mouthing and bashing the T.I. while throwing a fit.

Wow, I guess that being a New Yorker allows you to instantly tell at a glance whether someone has a home or not...ooooookay.

I'd like to point out that it's not against the law to be homeless; it's not against the law to be inside a casino; and it's not against the law to ask someone for money, except in certain public places, which does not include the gaming area of a casino.

As to whether being asked for money in a casino is "new"--well, again, oooookay.

If, as Tom relates, the person(s) went away as he approached, what was the problem? The (mildly annoying) incident was over. Why make a huge fuss about it and ruin your own enjoyment in the process?

If I hollered for security every time someone annoyed me, I'd be spending 3/4 of my Vegas vacation time hollering for security. And y'know--this sort of thing might be why Tom was unable to summon casino security to apprehend/beat up/kill the foul miscreants. They might have been busy soothing someone else.

Panhandling and begging are naturally going to occur where there are crowds of people and lots of cash is present. It was common in ancient Rome, and it's common in Vegas. Expecting to never be asked for money while you're there is unrealistic. I recommend to anyone experiencing what Tom and his wife did: just say "no" firmly and disengage. Three seconds, it's over. As opposed to having a volcanic eruption, calling security, writing letters, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. and spending half an hour or more of your vacation time in the process.

Confine your personal attacks to the Kitchen Sink. You know the rules and have been warned before.

Originally posted by: Kevin Lewis -How do you know that either man was homeless? It's unrealistic to expect that security will always be instantly available to meet your demands. The casino floor has a lot of area to cover and there are no more than a dozen or so guards on the floor at any one time. I very much doubt that as you claim, there was "no security on the floor for 30 minutes." You just were unable to find a guard, which isn't the same thing. A person asking casino patrons for money isn't a critical or dangerous situation, as annoyed as you and your wife may have been. What did those men do when your wife refused to give them anything? Did they leave? If so, what's the big deal? You were mildly annoyed for a minute or two. It seems to me that you escalated this yourself, in a surge of misplaced outrage that TI didn't instantly, oh, I don't know, send troops, tanks, and helicopters after those men. What you experienced is extremely common in Vegas, or in any large city for that matter, and if you decide not to visit TI any more because of it, you're just as likely to have it happen somewhere else. By the way, asking people for money isn't against the law, expect in certain public spaces and in indoor or outdoor dining areas. ---  This dismissive and accusatory posting was uncalled for and could be taken as a personal attack on Tom. This type of behavior should not be allowed, and if allowed, warrants a response. 

Nice try to dodge your guilt, David.

I suggest that Tom's concern is valid, the absence of security personnel, and astoundingly their own admission that they have no contingency for coverage during shift change.  (Good time to hang around the cashier cage with a gun, huh?)  And do they all 'change shifts' at the same time?  Perhaps the real problem was shortage of staff which they don't want to admit to customers.  And though Tom hasn't received a response yet, I'm betting his reports will get some attention.  I've reported things on post-stay surveys.  Sometimes I get an apologetic email with promise to "elevate this to the appropriate department", sometimes nothing.  The place might also have a shortage of overall customer service staff to reply to complaints.

The issue is security in the property, an element normally included on post-stay surveys.  In my many casino hotel visits in Vegas and other cities over the years I've seldom if ever experienced hard core panhandling inside any of them.  Certainly never had any "demand" money.  Occasionally have had a stranger "congratulate" me for a jackpot or good hit,and then hang around chatting me up in a friendly way which I figure they are hoping I would have a generous impulse to share some wealth.  I just ignore them and they go away.  But very infrequently does this happen either.

As for the "right" to panhandle inside any place, most businesses would rather not have it happening as it can sour customers, whether they have Kevin's heart for the homeless or not.

I once had a guy, seemingly intoxicated, going around in the casino asking players if they would order a drink for him (asking in a friendly way, BTW, not persisting when the player declined).  He had apparently already been warned about it at least once.  I don't know if someone reported him again but several security guys magically appeared.  They treated him very politely, "Hey, buddy" etc., then had him turn and stand in a certain spot where his photo could be taken by the eye in the sky camera, said "good job man" then again in a friendly manner walked him out the door, talking in "buddy buddy" tone the whole way.  Perfect way to handle such a situation, the panhandler didn't get upset and start a ruckus, etc.  Maybe if he kept coming back and begging for drinks they might escalate action against him.  I really don't know but it would be reasonable to do so IMO.  But I digress.

Candy

Yeah, sure, but is someone asking people for money a security issue? Is someone who is asked for money being threatened in any way? If not, then the worst you could say is that that person is being annoying. And if you flung everybody out the door who was annoying someone else, well...there would be a huge heap of bodies in front of the casino.

But come to think of it, that would be a way to get rid of all the smokers. "Hey, security, this guy's annoying me!" TROMP TROMP TROMP *grab* *fling* End of problem. If only I had such an inflated sense of self-importance as to think that annoying me warrants being ejected from the casino...

My stance on this issue isn't related to sympathy for the homeless, though I do have that. It's related to free speech. People have no civil rights in Nevada, where the casinos are the government, but I still think a person asking another person for money is not committing a crime.