LAS VEGAS — The Las Vegas City Council has identified public safety, economic development, health care, and housing as its top priorities for the next five years.
Following a day-long session at the Smith Center for the Performing Arts facilitated by former Clark County manager and university chancellor Thom Reilly, the city council created a five-year roadmap detailing the top priorities to focus on. The priorities included public safety, economic development, health care, and housing.
After the session, Mayor Shelley Berkley emphasized the importance of preparing for growth, saying, “We need to prepare the city now so that we can accommodate the growth and make sure that we’re providing adequate and accessible health care, education for our kids, transportation.”
Housing in particular is a pressing priority as the city is currently battling surging home prices and a shortage of affordable housing. According to a September report from the American Enterprise Institute and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Las Vegas Valley is short around 58,100 homes. The National Low Income Housing Coalition also reports that Las Vegas faces one of the most severe shortages of rental homes affordable to low income households.
Financial analyst Jeremy Aguero of Applied Analysis told the council members that around 80% of households in the city can’t afford the median priced Las Vegas home.
With priorities now identified, the council plans to gather community feedback via a new survey to help shape the next steps.
