CLARK COUNTY, NEVADA

'Clark County' is a county located in the U.S. state of Nevada. It is the most populous county in Nevada (2006 population estimate 1,912,654), and contains the city of Las Vegas. Las Vegas has been the county seat since the county was created by splitting off a portion of Lincoln County on February 5, 1908. Much of the county was originally part of Pah-Ute County, Arizona Territory before Nevada became a state.
Residents of the Las Vegas Valley area often do not make a distinction between the Clark County and the city of Las Vegas, using ''Las Vegas'' to describe both.
Clark County is a major tourist destination, with 150,000 hotel and motel rooms.

Contents

Geography

Adjacent Counties

Demographics

Law and government

Clark County Commission

Regional Agencies

Clark County Regional Flood Control District

Clark County School District

Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada

Southern Nevada Water Authority

Las Vegas Wash Coordination Committee

Cities and Unincorporated Places (townships)

Incorporated cities

Unincorporated Areas (Census Designated Places) or Townships

Federal land

Transportation

Major highways

Parks and Recreation

Gaming areas

Environmental factors

Notable government buildings

See also

External links

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 20,955 km² (8,091 mi²). 20,488 km² (7,910 mi²) of it is land and 467 km² (180 mi²) of it (2.23%) is water.
The Colorado River forms the county's southeastern boundary, with Hoover Dam forming Lake Mead along much of its length. Las Vegas is frequently, yet incorrectly labeled a ''valley.'' By definition, Greater Las Vegas is a land basin or bowl, surrounded by four mountain ranges, with nearby Mount Charleston being the highest elevation at 11,918 ft, located to the northwest. Other than the forests on Mount Charleston, the geography in Clark County is a desert. Creosote bushes are the main native vegetation, and the mountains are mostly rocky with little vegetation.

Adjacent Counties

★ Lincoln County, Nevada - north

★ Nye County, Nevada - west

★ Inyo County, California - southwest

★ San Bernardino County, California - south

★ Mohave County, Arizona - east

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 1,375,765 people, 512,253 households, and 339,623 families residing in the county. The population density was 67/km² (174/mi²). There were 559,799 housing units at an average density of 27/km² (71/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 71.58% white, 9.08% black or African American, 5.27% Asian, 0.79% Native American, 0.47% Pacific Islander, 8.61% from other races, and 4.20% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents, who may be of any race, were 21.96% of the population.
By 2005 Non-Hispanic whites were 54.5% of Clark County's population. 10.1% of the population was African-American. 1.0% was Native-American. Asians were now 6.7% of the population. 0.6% of the population was Pacific Islander. 26.1% of the population was Latino. By 2006 the population had risen 29.2% since 2000 to 1,777,539 people.
In 2000 there were 512,253 households out of which 31.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.70% were married couples living together, 11.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.70% were non-families. 24.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the county the population was spread out with 25.60% under the age of 18, 9.20% from 18 to 24, 32.20% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 10.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 103.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $44,616, and the median income for a family was $50,485. Males had a median income of $35,243 versus $27,077 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,785. About 7.90% of families and 10.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.10% of those under age 18 and 7.30% of those age 65 or over.

Law and government

Clark County Government is run by the Clark County Commission which consists of 7 members who are elected to serve staggered 4 year terms in biannual nonpartisan elections. After each election, the members elect a Chairperson who runs the Commission Meetings. Actual day to day operations are handled by the County Manager who is hired by the Commission.
Its unincorporated townships also have appointed boards that provide advice to the Clark County Commission.
The County operates out of the Clark County Government Center located in the City of Las Vegas. The building is unusual in shape, and includes an outdoor amphitheater where concerts and other events are held.
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department provides most law enforcement services in the county. Exceptions include agencies that have their own police forces including; UNLV, the Clark County School District, and some other cities like Henderson, Mesquite, Boulder City and North Las Vegas. The Clark County Park Police is responsible for all of the parks operated by the county and some selected special venues, such as the Clark County Amphitheater, Clark County Archery Range, and the Desert Rose Golf Course.
The Regional Justice Center replaced the Clark County Courthouse in 2005, and is located about 3 blocks from downtown Fremont Street, at 200 Lewis Avenue. 'Marriage licenses' are issued at the Clark County Clerk's Marriage License Bureau located on the Clark Street side of the Regional Justice Center. The Marriage License Bureau is open from 8:00 am to Midnight Monday through Thursday, Friday 8:00 am to Midnight Sunday, and is open 24 hours on holidays. See the Clark County Clerk Marriage License Bureau Homepage

The Clark County Detention Center (CCDC) is located another block away at 300 S. Casino Center Blvd. Visitation is by a schedule defined by the housing location of the inmate. Visitors ''must'' arrive one hour prior to visitation for check in. Visits are 30 minutes long. Two persons per visit. Each inmate is allowed two visits per week. Valid state or federal issued picture identification is required for all visitors. Persons entering will be searched and checked for warrants (and if needed, arrested). Inmate conversations are monitored since all communications are done via closed-circuit television.

Clark County Commission

Main articles: Clark County Commission

Regional Agencies

Clark County Regional Flood Control District

The Clark County Regional Flood Control District (CCRFCD) was created in 1985 by the Nevada Legislature allowing Clark County to provide broad solutions to flooding problems.

Clark County School District

Public primary and secondary education is the responsibility of the Clark County School District.

Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada

Operates the Cat Bus and does planning for most major roadways.

Southern Nevada Water Authority

A multi-agency group that manages the water distribution for the Las Vegas valley.

Las Vegas Wash Coordination Committee

The group that manages and protects the Las Vegas Wash.
Since 1999 the group has added more the 15,000 plants to stabilize the wash's banks and restore and expand the wetlands surrounding the wash. As part of the effort to restore the wash to a more natural state, they have also removed more than 500,000 pounds of trash.

Cities and Unincorporated Places (townships)

and unincorporated areas in Clark County]]

Incorporated cities

★ Boulder City

★ Henderson

★ Las Vegas (County seat)

★ North Las Vegas

★ Mesquite

Unincorporated Areas (Census Designated Places) or Townships

★ Arden

★ Blue Diamond

★ Bunkerville

★ Cactus Springs

★ Cal-Nev-Ari

★ Cottonwood Cove

★ Enterprise

★ Glendale

★ Goodsprings

★ Indian Springs

★ Jean

★ Laughlin

★ Logandale

★ Moapa Town

★ Moapa Valley

★ Mount Charleston

★ Mountain Springs

★ Nelson also called 'Nelson Landing'

★ Overton

★ Paradise

★ Primm

★ Sandy Valley

★ Searchlight

★ Sloan

★ Spring Valley

★ Summerlin South

★ Sunrise Manor

★ Whitney (Formerly East Las Vegas)

★ Winchester

Federal land

★ Creech AFB

★ Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest

★ Lake Mead National Recreation Area

★ Mount Charleston Wilderness Area

★ Nellis AFB

★ Spring Mountains National Recreation Area

Transportation

Major highways

★ Interstate 15

★ Interstate 215

★ Interstate 515

★ U.S. Route 93

★ U.S. Route 95

★ Nevada State Route 157

★ Nevada State Route 159

★ Nevada State Route 160

★ County Route 215

Parks and Recreation

Main articles: Las Vegas metropolitan area#Parks


★ Clark County Parks Dept.
:
★ 'Sunset Park' located at Sunset and Pecos is one of the largest^[1]

Gaming areas

The State of Nevada divides the state into several gaming districts. The reporting districts affecting Clark County are:

★ Boulder Strip: This region includes 33 casinos on Boulder Highway, such as Sam's Town, Boulder Station, Arizona Charlie's Boulder, and the Magic Star. Casinos within the Henderson city limits are included as well, such as Green Valley Ranch, Sunset Station, Fiesta, Eldorado, and Jokers Wild.

★ Downtown: There are 19 casinos in this reporting area.

★ Las Vegas Strip: This region is composed of all the casinos on Las Vegas Boulevard, from The Stratosphere at the north end to Mandalay Bay on the south end. Also included are resorts located near this area, such as Treasure Island Hotel and Casino, The Palms, The Orleans, The Rio, Gold Coast, and the Hard Rock.

★ Laughlin: This area has 10 casinos.

★ Mesquite

★ North Las Vegas: This region has 11 casinos and include the Fiesta, Texas Station, Jerry's Nugget, and the Santa Fe Station.

★ Remainder of County: There are 66 casinos in this category that includes casinos at Lake Las Vegas, Jean, Primm, the Railroad Pass and Hacienda casinos, along with other casinos that don't fit any other category such as Arizona Charlie's Decatur, Suncoast, South Point, Rampart, and Red Rock Resort Spa and Casino

Environmental factors

Clark County contains a diverse desert flora and fauna, including higher elevation mountain areas, the desert floor and the Colorado River/Lake Mead ecosystems. Variations in diurnal temperature as well as seasonal swings in temperature create demanding adaptation elements on the species of this county. Additional pressure has been placed on species survival by the rapid human population expansion, especially since 1970.
Correspondingly air quality levels prior to the 1960s were in a favorable range, but the proliferation of automobiles with the human population expansion created circumstances where some Federal Air Quality Standards began to be violated in the 1980s.
To plan for the wave of development forecast by 1980, Clark County embarked on a regional Environmental Impact Assessment funded by a Federal Section 208 program, with Sedway Cooke conducting the planning work and Earth Metrics performing environmental analysis. This endeavor projected future population growth, land use changes and environmental impacts.

Notable government buildings

★ Clark County Government Center

★ Regional Justice Center (opened October 3, 2005)

See also

A list of Clark County Airports.

★ Clark County Fire Department

External links

★ Clark County, Nevada Government and Services

★ Clark County Television (County of Clark owned television station with Live Internet Feed)

★ [ftp://dataworks.library.unr.edu/NVdemog/ftp/counties/clark/maps/CBC32003.pdf Detailed map of Clark County] (Census Bureau Map, little street detail) (pdf, 32 Mb)