Cortez Leaves After 21 Years

LVCVA head is credited with building Las Vegas into top tradeshow town

By Heidi Genoist -- Tradeshow Week, 5/17/2004

LAS VEGAS—Manuel J. Cortez is retiring as president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority, effective July 2. The 65-year-old Cortez, known as "Manny" to those in the city and the trade-show industry, said he has had a good run and is simply ready to move on.

A Las Vegas institution, he moved to the city in 1944, joined the LVCVA board in 1983 and became authority president in 1991.

During his tenure, the largest convention authority in the United States saw its visitor traffic grow from 21 million people per year in 1991 to 35.1 million in 2002.

"Under Manny, we've had 13 years of very strong marketing of Las Vegas," said Rossi Ralenkotter, LVCVA executive vice president and Cortez's presumed heir apparent. "He gave us what we needed over the years. He was the one who pursued and completed the build-out of our master plan for the Las Vegas Convention Center, which has allowed us to achieve No. 1 ranking in the Tradeshow Week 200, and stay there for 10 years."

Before joining the LVCVA, Cortez held a string of political positions in Las Vegas – all tied to his interest in business and leisure travel. After working as administrator of the Nevada Taxicab Authority, then at the Clark County District Attorney's and Public Defender's offices, he served four terms as a Clark County commissioner. During that time, he headed the county's Sanitation District and Liquor and Gaming Licensing Board. He also has held positions on governing boards of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Medical Center, the Las Vegas Valley Water District and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

"I've worked with Manny since he was county commissioner. I remember when he took over," recalled Dennis Slater, president and CEO of the Assn. of Equipment Manufacturers and chairman of the Intl. Assn. for Exhibition Management. "In the 12-plus years I've worked with him, I've always found that if we had issues affecting our show – from expanding the building, to labor and freight problems – Manny would always sit down and talk with us about it. CONEXPO-CON/AGG grew with the convention center, and he was a big driver behind that."

Ralenkotter, who has been with the LVCVA for 30 years, said it has long been his goal to become president and CEO of the organization. "I will present my credentials to the board, and I hope they will give it sincere consideration," he said. "I'm very interested in the position."

The LVCVA board of directors met May 11 to discuss Cortez's replacement.

"When you look around the country at people who are viewed as well-respected leaders, Manny is one of them. His record in Las Vegas speaks for itself," said Spurgeon Richardson, current chairman of the Intl. Assn. of Convention & Visitors Bureaus, and president of the Atlanta CVB. "When I think of Manny, I think of someone who's given a lot to his city and the industry."

A number of organizations and publications have honored Cortez for his marketing acumen. Among them are Travel Agent magazine, which named him Person of the Year in 1999, and UNLV, which named him Industry Executive of the Year in 2003. Recently, the U.S. Department of Commerce appointed Cortez to its 15-member Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.