NLV mayor offers businesspeople reassurance

New North Las Vegas Mayor Shari Buck is rolling out her plan to guide the city through the recession. In her first major speech as mayor Thursday, Buck gave businesspeople what they desperately needed: reassurance.

The mayor said she is working to recruit about 50 new companies and promised to help local businesses survive. She pointed to the closure of three Dunkin' Donuts restaurants and her own dry cleaner, which closed after consolidating, as a few of the increasing number of failures in North Las Vegas.

"I am going to work with the North Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce to put forward (ways) to help North Las Vegas businesses," she said. "When we have everyone taking part, we keep their local businesses open, so we don't have to see the dry cleaner close up, so we don't have to see the Dunkin' Donuts close."

Buck made her remarks in front of close to 300 people at the Directions 2009: Economic Outlook of North Las Vegas event. The Las Vegas Business Press and the North Las Vegas Chamber sponsored this eighth-annual rendition of Directions.

The crowd also heard Applied Analysis Principal Jeremy Aguero; First American Title Co. Vice President and Director of Public Relations Richard Lee; and North Las Vegas Economic Development Manager Mike Majewski discuss prospects for the city.

But Buck's speech was the most anticipated by business leaders. She took office in June, and the makeup of the North Las Vegas City Council also changed. Companies wanted to know whether the new city government would be business-friendly, North Las Vegas Chamber Chairman and MedicWest Ambulance General Manager John Wilson said before the event.

Buck's speech at Aliante Station was a statement of support for local companies. She pledged the assistance of the city council and the chamber. She also promised to streamline the city's development process.

Professional organizations and homebuilders "are looking to determine what is wrong so when the economy comes back, you won't have those problems," she said. "That is very important to me."

Neither Aguero nor Lee was too optimistic that a local recovery would come soon.

North Las Vegas' unemployment rate is 14.8 percent, compared with 13.1 percent in the rest of Southern Nevada and 12.5 percent statewide. One in 24 homes in North Las Vegas is facing foreclosure, compared with one of every 46 homes in Clark County. One out of every 56 homes in Nevada is now in foreclosure, Aguero said.

"North Las Vegas is really the epicenter for foreclosure," he said.

Some good news: Housing prices for homes priced at less than $250,000 may have stabilized, Lee said.

"Anything under $250,000 is probably not going to go any lower," he said. "We have more demand than we have inventory."

Contact reporter Valerie Miller at vmiller@lvbusinesspress.com or 702-387-5286.