Vegas growth spurs boom in SW Utah

Friday, March 23, 2001 | 11:03 a.m.

Nevada isn't the only state that faces changes because of high population growth in the Las Vegas area.

Southwestern Utah is an area growing as fast or faster than parts of the Las Vegas area. One of the reasons, say observers, is that the neighboring area in Utah has the best of all worlds -- clean air and wide-open land for development, but is just about two hours away from a major metropolitan area.

Washington County, the county closest to Las Vegas, had its population double in the past decade -- from 48,560 to 90,354, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2000 count. St. George, the county seat and largest city, grew from 28,502 to 49,663.

With its 86 percent growth rate, the county grew faster than any in Nevada, narrowly edging out Clark County's 85.5 percent growth rate. Utah's overall growth rate was 29.6 percent, far short of Nevada's 66.3 percent rate.

But St. George grew by 74 percent over the decade, the second-fastest in Utah and much faster than most cities in Nevada.

Still, that growth rate trailed that of nearby Mesquite, which led Nevada's cities with a growth rate just short of 402 percent.

The growth in Las Vegas has a lot to do with the growth in St. George, said Neil Ashdown, director of demographic and economic analysis for the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget in Salt Lake City.

"I think a lot of what we're seeing in Washington County and St. George in particular is an outgrowth of what's happening down there," Ashdown said. As the population throughout Southern Nevada continues to grow, people should expect further growth in St. George and other nearby communities, he said.

Carl Haub, a demographic analyst with Washington, D.C.'s Population Reference Bureau, agreed. The growth in Southwestern Utah is following the same patterns that define suburban growth coast-to-coast he said.

"It's absolutely classic," he said. "In the 20th century, all of our population growth has been in suburban communities."

One of the factors spurring growth in those areas is proximity to interstate highways, which give commuters easy access to urban cores -- centers of employment and services -- but allows them to live in scenic, rural areas.

The population growth is likely to have an effect on Utah politics. Ashdown said faster population growth in the southern part of the state will lead to calls for more representation in the state Legislature.

Salt Lake City's Deseret News predicted that Utah's capital will lose at least one seat in the 75-member state House to Southwestern Utah.

Marc Mortensen, a St. George government spokesman, said he believes people are moving to his city to find scenic vistas, recreational opportunities, small-town lifestyles and weather that is almost identical to that of Las Vegas.

His list of the city's assets might make a jaded Vegan envious.

The air is clean, traffic congestion isn't a problem, the city is surrounded by state and national parks within a 45-minute drive, and hiking, boating and skiing are short drives away, Mortensen said.

And many of the retirees flocking to the area enjoy golfing on one of the city's 13 courses.

"The quality of life here is unbelievable," he said.

The fact that St. George is 110 miles away from Las Vegas, an international airport and everything else that a huge urban area can offer doesn't hurt, he said.

The area's economic mainstay used to be agriculture, but in recent decades the emphasis has shifted to building retirement communities and serving their tenants.

St. George is looking to diversify the local economy, Mortensen said. The Dixie State College, a four-year institution, will serve as a magnet for attracting high-tech industries, he said.

The pace of growth might slow down but will continue to draw people, Mortensen said.

The county population is projected to grow to 150,000 by 2010 and the city population to 110,000, he said.

One of those who agrees that the population will continue growing is retiree Heber Hall, a volunteer who works at the St. George Chamber of Commerce offices.

Hall said he sees a lot of people from Las Vegas coming up to play golf on the community's courses. They like the fact that greens fees are half of what they are in Las Vegas.