LV area makes Money list of best places

Dan Kulin

Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2002 | 11:02 a.m.

Money magazine has named the Las Vegas metropolitan area one of the 10 best places to live in America, the magazine announced this morning.

Summerlin, downtown Las Vegas and Boulder City were highlighted as the best places to live in the area. The magazine also noted the area's fast growth and hot weather in its article in the December issue, which begins reaching subscribers today and hits newsstands Monday. It also is available on the magazine's website (money.cnn.com).

"It's great. Phenomenal," Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said this morning.

Money magazine also named Las Vegas one of the best places to live in 1995.

"I love what they said about the three places people should move. Summerlin is a natural and downtown shows that our revitalization efforts are catching someone's attention," said Goodman, who lives downtown.

"It's wonderful to once again be recognized as one of the premier cities in America," said Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald, a Summerlin resident.

Boulder City Mayor Bob Ferraro said he was "extremely pleased" the city was mentioned as one of the better places to live in the Las Vegas area.

"It's something that complements what I've always believed, that Boulder City has a place in the hearts of many people," Ferraro said.

Pat Regnier, a Money senior editor, said picking this year's top 10 places to live "began with a popularity contest."

Money editors first looked at population growth and the affordability of real estate to narrow the list to 30 top cities. Then a Money reporter spoke with residents, real estate professionals and others, he said.

What they found was that "Vegas has gone from being a tourist place to a real big city," Regnier said.

"Vegas is certainly not for everyone ... Yet there is something that is really attracting people there," Regnier said, noting that while an estimated 10,000 people move into the area every month, about 4,000 people move out.

Money contributing writer Scott Dickensheets chose the three communities to highlight, Regnier said.

In selecting Summerlin, downtown and Boulder City, Dickensheets, who is also senior editor of Las Vegas Life, was highlighting places with a good sense of community that are also "different neighborhoods for different kinds of people," Regnier said.

Las Vegas Life is produced by the Greenspun Media Group, which is owned by the Greenspun family, who also publish the Sun.

The Money article describes Summerlin as having a mix of residential, commercial and civic features that results in "a pleasant neighborhood that keeps property values up."

"Meanwhile, Las Vegans seeking an alternative to such rigidly planned suburbs have sparked a revival of downtown.

"Just southeast of the valley lies Boulder City, the only township in Nevada to ban gaming. A slow-growth ordinance safeguards its small-town quaintness and props up prices," the article says.

The other top 10 places to live on Money's list are Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco's Bay area, Phoenix, Denver, New York, Chicago, Charlotte, N.C. and Austin, Texas.