Michael Nutter visits Vegas to talk business

Mayor Michael Nutter is spending some time in Las Vegas this weekend to promote the city’s retail sector.

Nutter is attending the International Council of Shopping Centers’ RECon 2012 Global Retail Real Estate Convention yesterday and today. He is expected to meet with more than 20 major retailers and property developers to encourage them to establish or expand their operations in the city, according to his office. The mayor is also expected to participate in a panel with other mayors titled “America’s Cities – Rebuilding, Revitalizing and Redeveloping.”

In keeping with his address earlier this year to the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, Nutter has several other trips planned over the next 12 to 18 months to promote investment in Philadelphia. They include traveling to the China and South America.

“I intend to be very aggressive in telling our story, promoting our city and bringing jobs and investment to Philly,” Nutter said in a statement. “It’s not enough to wait for people to knock on our door and tell us they’re interested. We need to go out there, grab them and bring them here.”

Nutter’s spokesman Mark McDonald said the mayor will be traveling with a few staffers and that the trip is all business, declining to elaborate on any personal activities Nutter may have planned.

Nutter is scheduled to return tomorrow morning.