Better Things to Come: Re-Development of Blighted Downtown North Las Vegas Begins With New Movie Theater
LAS VEGAS, NV – For years, the blighted downtown area of North Las Vegas has stood in stark contrast to the glitzier areas of the city as a whole, but along with the resurgence of the local economy, job and real estate market, this neglected region of Southern Nevada is poised for a comeback of epic proportions…and the first step has already began as a new 14-screen movie theater in the middle of one of the region’s many vacant dirt lots has taken ground; a sign of better things to come for an area that has endured a great deal in the past decade or so.
For a number of years, a prominent part of North Vegas’ downtown area has consisted of abandoned storefronts and large, vacant dirt lots, and its overall reputation was essentially the part of town one should strive to avoid. Local government have been working on redevelopment efforts, first by approving a larger fiscal budget in order to restore vital services and manpower positions lost during the recession brought on by the housing bubble burst that occurred in the mid-2000’s. As a result of the city’s $601.2 million 2018-2019 budget, North Las Vegas has announced plans to hire as many as 29 employees on a full-time basis; this marks the second year in a row that North Vegas has made headway in their efforts to grow and enhance their workforce.
Meanwhile, development of the new $75 million, two-story, 65,000 square-feet movie theater – dubbed the Maya Entertainment Center, and located across the street from North Las Vegas City Hall – is expected to be open by Christmas of 2018, and is intended to attract, in part, Las Vegas’ increasing Latino population. The project is seen as the starting point of an overall revitalization of the downtown area that city officials are currently tentatively referring to as Lake Mead Village West.
And on White Street just a few blocks away, city officials are in the process of starting to convert an abandoned Canyon Electric Building into a 7,000 square-foot library, a process that so far is being funded via a $1.2 million federal community block grant.
In addition, the North Las Vegas Redevelopment Agency – part of the City Council – previously purchased a 3.65-acre plot of land at the corner of Las Vegas and Lake Mead boulevards in 2017; this acquisition, along with other neighboring properties that the city owns, essentially fits together to form a 10-acre piece of land that is intended to be the site of a yet-undisclosed large-scale master planned project, with the goal being to attract retail stores, restaurants, a library, and more, transforming the area and raising the standard of living.
Thus far, North Las Vegas’ downtown region has lagged behind the growth and resurgence experienced by Las Vegas as a whole in the last few years, but it appears that city officials finally have a solid plan to putting it back on the map and are taking the first tentative steps to making that achievement a reality.
If you are considering relocating in or around the Las Vegas area, which clearly is experiencing huge growth and a booming job market, give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any real estate and home relocation questions you may have.
About the Author
Christopher Boyle is an investigative journalist for SEARCHEN NETWORKS® and reports for independent news and media organizations in the United States. Christopher helps keep a keen-eye on what's happening in the Las Vegas Nevada community on behalf of Shelter Realty Inc.