KVIG Informative

The city says its crews and sewer lines serve county land that the county, not the city, taxes. The county calls the city’s push to renegotiate a money grab. The agreement that decides who can annex what comes up for renewal in December.

The City of Las Vegas and Clark County are in open conflict over the Northwest Area Interlocal Agreement, the document that governs land use, parks and trails, sewer service, firefighting, annexation, flood control and transportation in the northwest valley, where pockets of county-controlled land sit inside the city.

The first agreement between the two governments took effect in 2002. A five-year version followed in 2008 and ran to 2013. The current 12-page agreement was adopted in 2016 and comes up for another five-year renewal in December. It renews automatically unless either side forces a public hearing and renegotiation.

The Las Vegas City Council did that at a Sept. 16 hearing. Councilmembers Francis Allen-Palenske, who represents Ward 4, and Nancy Brune said their northwest districts are absorbing costs for county land. Allen-Palenske said the current agreement does not serve northwest residents and said she welcomed talks with the county. Brune said the county funds no parks in the area.

City staff brought data. Fire & Rescue Chief Fernando Gray presented figures showing that residents of the county islands use city fire services. Seth Floyd, the city’s director of community development, presented figures showing the same residents use city sewer. The city’s numbers put the demand at more than 13,000 service calls into the islands since 2023. The people receiving that service live on county land and do not pay city taxes, according to the city’s presentations.

Clark County Commissioners Marilyn Kirkpatrick and April Becker answered in a joint statement. They said the county pays more than its fair share, that the city’s information was wrong and one-sided, and that the renegotiation is a money grab that has nothing to do with services.

Terrence Farr, a real estate valuation expert and UNLV adjunct lecturer, told the council the two governments calculate property taxes differently and that the city has a smaller tax base even though it provides more services.

On Oct. 7, the City of Las Vegas issued a statement saying Las Vegas Fire & Rescue will keep responding to residents in both the city and the county regardless of how the talks with the county turn out. The statement also described public safety in the northwest as a priority for all Southern Nevadans, whichever side of a boundary line they live on.

The people living in the islands are watching a different part of the agreement. Residents want Clark County to keep control of the land and to hold off heavier development, and they want to know a fire truck or an ambulance will come when they call 911.

Gail Powers owns an equestrian farm on county land that her family has held since the 1950s, bordered by city parcels. She opposes annexation and said the city is looking for revenue. Her property is taxed at a rate of 2.7 per $100 of assessed value. Her neighbor across the street, on city land, pays 3.2.

Annexation has been fought over before. In 2018, Las Vegas tried to annex 872 acres of county land surrounded by city property, and the effort drew about 1,200 protest letters.

The agreement also keeps annexation in check. Today it requires a county property owner to request annexation and bars the county from introducing legislation that would impede the city’s annexation efforts. If it lapses, state law lets the city annex land by council vote without the owner’s consent, unless a majority of owners in the area object within 15 days.

The city has said its crews will keep answering calls in the islands whatever the talks decide. What the talks decide is who pays for that service, and whether the rule that kept annexation tied to an owner’s request survives December.