LAS VEGAS, NV – At a recent Clark County Commission meeting, Commissioner Jim Gibson noted that local residents need not worry about the solution to the municipality’s housing crisis inducing sprawl, which is defined as low-density development expanding outward from a city, characterized by single-use zones and heavy reliance on cars.
Gibson issued that statement as a reply to University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Lied Center for Real Estate director Shawn McCoy, who was engaging in a presentation on the remaining developable land in the Las Vegas Valley and who, exactly, controls it currently.
Speaking as a private consultant, McCoy said that 88 percent of the land in Clark County is controlled by the U.S. federal government.
But as portions of that land are released for housing development, members of the public at the meeting expressed worry that the risk of sprawl – which can include negative aspects such as increased automobile dependence, higher energy consumption, air and water pollution, loss of agricultural land and natural habitats, higher infrastructure costs, and reduced community cohesion – will increase.
However, Gibson stated that he is not worried about sprawl becoming an issue as the housing crisis in the valley is addressed, noting that there are a lot of misconceptions surrounding it.
There are lots of misunderstandings out there,” he said. “Sprawl is something that has been studied in this valley many times over the years, it’s not what we face and it’s not who we are. The availability of land is something that is suppressing economic opportunity in the valley, it’s driving housing costs to a place where we can’t tolerate them anymore.”
McCoy also addressed the decrease in the amount of land developed each year in the valley for residential housing since 1995, with the largest drop happening during 2006; development has yet to return to the levels they are at prior to the mid-2000’s recession. He also called for additional research into understanding Southern Nevada’s situation when it comes to land and development and how it impacts the local economy and real estate industry.
I’ve been working as an academic for more than 15 years and I’ve never seen a more understudied research space than land,” McCoy said.
Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.
Christopher Boyle is an expert investigative journalist for SEARCHEN NETWORKS® and reports for independent news and media organizations in the United States. Christopher keeps a keen-eye on what’s happening in the Vegas real estate market on behalf of Shelter Realty Property Management










