North Las Vegas, Nevada

Coordinates: 36°13′43″N 115°8′48″W / 36.22861°N 115.14667°W / 36.22861; -115.14667

North Las Vegas, Nevada
—  City  —
Seal
Motto: Your Community of Choice
Location of North Las Vegas in Clark County, Nevada
Coordinates: 36°13′43″N 115°8′48″W / 36.22861°N 115.14667°W / 36.22861; -115.14667
Country	United States
State	Nevada
Government
– Type	Council-Manager
– Mayor	Shari L. Buck
– Mayor Pro Tem	Vacant
– Acting City Manager	Maryann Ustick
Area
– Total	78.5 sq mi (203.3 km2)
– Land	78.5 sq mi (203.3 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation	2,205 ft (672 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	216,961
– Density	1,471.0/sq mi (567.9/km2)
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
– Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
ZIP codes	89030-89033, 89036, 89081, 89084-89087
Area code(s)	702
FIPS code	32-51800
GNIS feature ID	0847435
Website	CityOfNorthLasVegas.com

North Las Vegas is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, located in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The city was incorporated on May 16, 1946.

Geography

Mountains of the Las Vegas Range surrounding the exterior of North Las Vegas, 2006

Located in the desert southwest, in the Mojave Desert, North Las Vegas sits north and east of Las Vegas. According to the United States Census Bureau, North Las Vegas has a total area of 78.5 square miles (203 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1970	36,216		—
1980	42,739		18.0%
1990	47,707		11.6%
2000	115,488		142.1%
2010	216,961		87.9%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2010, the city's population was 216,961, making it the third largest city in Nevada after Las Vegas and Henderson; all three cities are in the Las Vegas metropolitan area.^[1]

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 115,488 people, 34,018 households, and 27,112 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,471.0 people per square mile (568.0/km²). There were 36,600 housing units at an average density of 466.2 per square mile (180.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 55.93% White, 19.02% African American, 0.82% Native American, 3.24% Asian, 0.53% Pacific Islander, 15.78% from other races, and 4.68% from two or more races. 37.61% was Hispanic or Latino, of any race.

There were 34,018 households out of which 47.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.3% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.3% were non-families. 13.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.36 and the average family size was 3.67.

In the city the population was spread out with 33.9% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 16.4% from 45 to 64, and 5.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females there were 104.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $46,057, and the median income for a family was $46,540. Males had a median income of $32,205 versus $25,836 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,023. About 11.8% of families and 14.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.6% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over. The United States Census Bureau listed North Las Vegas, as well as the Las Vegas metro area, as one of the fastest growing regions in the country.

Government and infrastructure

In July, 2011, The Las Vegas Review Journal reported that North Las Vegas appeared to be headed for state intervention, disincorporation and/or insolvency. The housing crash has hit Southern Nevada hard and North Las Vegas in many ways is the center of the storm. In spite of having the highest property tax rates in Clark County, city leaders have been unable to pass a balanced budget for the 2011-12 fiscal year. The city's operating budget is out of balance to start the new fiscal year, with a deficit of $8.6 million. A budget balanced through personnel layoffs was passed in May, but judges reversed some of those pink slips, creating a financial emergency that could require the state to take over North Las Vegas' finances.

The state Department of Taxation has not had to put a local government into receivership since 2005, when rural White Pine County nearly went bankrupt. The state has never taken over a government the size of North Las Vegas, which has a total budget of roughly half a billion dollars and a population of more than 200,000. Another small possibility could be the annexation of North Las Vegas by the city of Las Vegas.

However, should the state of Nevada step in, it has sweeping powers. The Department of Taxation could raise North Las Vegas city taxes across the board, without a direct vote of the City Council, the Legislature or the citizens of North Las Vegas. North Las Vegas appears to have an agreement with firefighters on pay cuts that would cut the budget deficit to $6.6 million. Other public employee unions, especially police, need to make more compensation concessions. The council were scheduled to consider an amended budget in late July that will further reduce expenses.

The Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center of the Nevada Department of Corrections is located in North Las Vegas. The facility, originally the Southern Nevada Women's Correctional Facility opened September 1, 1997. It was built and operated by Corrections Corporation of America. Since then the state took direct control of the facility.^[3] It houses the female death row.^[4]

Transportation

The Las Vegas Strip, as seen from North Las Vegas

Both domestic and international airline travel for the entire metropolitan area is handled at McCarran International Airport, south of North Las Vegas and Las Vegas, and adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip.

The North Las Vegas Airport, formerly known as Sky Haven Airport, was established on December 7, 1941. A division of Vision Airlines operates a tour to the Grand Canyon from this airport.

RTC Transit provides bus service in the city, as it does throughout the Las Vegas metropolitan area.

The major highways/roads serving North Las Vegas are I-15 and CC-215.

Economy

According to a study by Sterling's Best Places, the city of North Las Vegas had an unemployment rate of 15.20%, compared to the national average of 9%. The city had a sales tax of 7.75%, compared with a national average of 6.80%. Future job growth for the city is anticipated at 20.12%, compared with a national average of 31.25%.

North Las Vegas is currently experiencing an economic crisis as such that the state of Nevada is considering taking over the city's financial affairs.

References

1. ^ "7/1/2008 Subcounty Estimates File: Nevada 2000-2008" (CSV). United States Census Bureau, Population Division. 2008-12-27. http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/files/SUB-EST2008-32.csv. Retrieved 2009-09-20. 
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ "Florence McClure Women's Correctional Center." Nevada Department of Corrections. Retrieved on January 6, 2010.
4. ^ "Lone woman on Nevada's death row dies in prison." Associated Press at North County Times. January 31, 2005. Retrieved on September 5, 2010.

External links

Las Vegas portal

• North Las Vegas
• 24 unique aesthetic images of North Las Vegas
• City Data.com statistics