2014-08-15 09.57.44According to Eureka Casino owner Greg Lee, the town of Mesquite is all about convenience.

But that critical component in the town’s tourism and gaming dollars has been lacking lately because of all the road construction on Interstate 15 between Las Vegas and Mesquite and then between Mesquite and St. George.

And with another holiday weekend approaching, it’s bound to impact the town again as well.

“We’re getting hit as a destination location, especially for our convenience.” Lee said. “People like to come into town for a weekend dinner, maybe a little entertainment. It’s a big piece of our convenience, especially from St. George.”

Lee sits on the board of directors for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and he gave them a report on the traffic concerns a few weeks ago.

It seemed to help, as an extra lane was opened on the grade coming into Mesquite near Moapa Valley. The second lane, which actually merges into the southbound lanes, is helpful because big trucks may not be able to get up to speed on the grade and other travelers could get stuck behind them.

However, there doesn’t seem to be an easy fix for Interstate 15 between Mesquite and St. George. The Arizona Department of Transportation is urging motorists traveling on Interstate 15 in the far northwest corner of Arizona to allow for extra travel time due to expected heavy traffic during this upcoming Labor Day weekend (Aug. 29 – Sept. 1) and be aware of an existing work zone through the Virgin River Gorge.

Delays of up to two hours have been reported on previous holiday travel weekends through the gorge.

ADOT is currently working on a major reconstruction project on Virgin River Bridge No. 6 (milepost 16).