A City-County Showdown

Sure, we tell folks that we’re “from Las Vegas” when we’re traveling… but how many of us are actually from the city itself? The majority of the Valley lives in either one of the adjacent municipalities (like Henderson and North Las Vegas), or in unincorporated Clark County. So how did we get this weird patchwork of townships and jurisdictions, and how did it set up the city and the county for their many tensions today? Why do celebrities get the “Key to the Strip” and not the “Key to the City,” and how were mobsters involved in keeping the Strip (a Vegas icon!) out of the City of Las Vegas?

Today, Dayvid chats with UNLV history professor Michael Green about the last century of Las Vegas (and Clark County) history, and how a city-county showdown brought us to this utterly unique arrangement.

Do you have a story like Dr. Green’s, about a time you observed a clash between jurisdictions in the Valley? Or had to explain to out-of-towners why you don’t actually live in Las Vegas? Tell us about it! Leave us a voicemail or a text message at 702-514-0719. Don’t forget, you can also find us on Twitter! Follow us @CityCastVegas.

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