Las Vegas Has Put About $150 Million Into the Medical District, and Nearly $1 Billion in Private Money Followed

by Ryan Rose

What Happened

The Downtown Vegas Alliance hosted the State of Medicine in Southern Nevada panel as part of its Successes and Insights series. It brought together city leaders and the heads of the valley's medical schools. The Las Vegas Sun covered the event in a story published Sunday, Oct. 4.

Councilman Knudsen led with the big money figures. Dina Babsky, the city's director of economic and urban development, then walked through what is actually being built. She also said Southern Nevada's healthcare economy has been growing faster than the region's economy as a whole. Here is the project list she and others laid out:

A research lab from Touro and the health district. Touro University and the Southern Nevada Health District are partnering to build a research laboratory inside the Medical District.
An academic lab next to UNLV's medical school. The Nevada Health and Bioscience Corp. is building it right beside UNLV's medical school building. It is expected to be finished by the end of this year, with an official opening in early 2027.
A CSN training center. The College of Southern Nevada plans to run a 30,000-square-foot Medical Education and Training Center near Wellness Way and Shadow Lane. It will offer healthcare training programs. The city has pledged $17 million to the project, and the first floor will include a childcare center.
The district's first hotel. Construction will soon start on a five-story Home2 Suites by Hilton with 130 rooms. It is meant for healthcare workers and for families of patients.
A new medical office building in Symphony Park. It is planned next to the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health in downtown Las Vegas. Construction is expected to begin late this year or early next year.
A pediatric clinic tenant. The City Council is set to vote on a lease with UNLV Health that would bring its pediatric clinic into that building.

Babsky added that several other medical office buildings and apartment complexes are in the works. The district already has three big anchors: University Medical Center, Valley Hospital Medical Center and UNLV's Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine. It stretches west from downtown along Charleston Boulevard.

Knudsen summed up why the city keeps spending there. "The city of Las Vegas is invested in the quality and access to healthcare because it is the quality and access of just life in general, not only in the downtown core but all of Southern Nevada and Nevadans," he said.

Why It Matters to Las Vegas Residents

If you have ever waited months to see a specialist in Las Vegas, this story is about you. The panel was blunt about the gap. Dr. Alison Netski, interim dean of UNLV's Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine, said about 40% of UNLV medical students stay in Nevada for residency. The other 60% leave, because the state does not have training programs in certain specialties.

That number matters more than it sounds. Residency is the hands-on training a doctor does after medical school. Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley said graduates who leave for that training are more likely to build their careers where they did their residency. In other words, when a new doctor trains in another state, they often put down roots there. Berkley said "hundreds of medical school graduates" from Southern Nevada have to finish their training somewhere else each year because there are not enough residency spots here.

The flip side is the hopeful part. Netski said that among graduates who complete a residency or fellowship in Nevada, 65% stay to practice in the state. Keep them here for training, and most of them stay for good. That is the whole case for more training programs in one number.

There is good news coming from Henderson, too. Dr. Stacey Pierce-Talsma, dean of Touro University Nevada's College of Osteopathic Medicine, said a record 72 of the college's graduates matched to Nevada residency programs this year. She asked for better tracking of where residents and fellows end up, so leaders can use the data to add training spots and widen access to care.

For everyday families, the new buildings bring practical changes. A pediatric clinic in Symphony Park would add another place for kids' care near downtown. A 130-room hotel gives out-of-town families a place to stay close to a loved one in the hospital. And a CSN training center with childcare on the first floor makes it easier for working parents to train for healthcare jobs. That last point lines up with what Dr. Pedro "Joe" Greer Jr., founding dean of Roseman University College of Medicine, told the panel. He said students are more likely to pursue a medical career when they get help with things like student loan payments, public transportation to class or childcare.

Greer also made a point that reaches well past the hospital doors. He said Roseman and other schools teach students how things outside of medicine, like steady access to food or housing, can affect a person's health, especially in underserved communities. Help with those basics, he said, can lower the chance that someone gets sick or that an existing illness gets worse. That keeps patients out of doctors' offices in the first place. "If you're going to work for a healthy community, you've got to make social changes," Greer said. "We've got a lot of work in front of us, but it's helping people, so that's good stuff and that's what we want our students to be; we want them to be servant leaders."

Put it all together and the takeaway is simple. New buildings are the easy part to see. The harder, slower part is keeping the doctors, nurses and techs who will work inside them. Both pieces have to move at the same time for wait times to get shorter.

Background and History

The Medical District is not new. It sits west of downtown and Interstate 15, and Las Vegas Weekly reported in 2022 that it covers 674 acres. The area has been the valley's hospital hub for decades, home to UMC, Valley Hospital and, more recently, UNLV's medical school. The school earned full accreditation in 2021.

The current push picked up speed a few years ago. In August 2022, the city presented a $130 million infrastructure upgrade plan for the district at City Hall. Las Vegas Weekly reported that the plan called for safer, more walkable streets, better transit and landscaped sidewalks and medians. At the time, the city's community development director said $358 million in projects were already underway in the district.

That 2022 plan was about more than hospitals. Knudsen described student housing and community amenities along Charleston Boulevard that would "infill" the spaces between some of the city's most historic neighborhoods, like the Scotch 80s, which sits between Rancho Drive and Oakey Boulevard. He also pointed to the Charleston Boulevard interchange work, which would make it easier for people on foot to get from the Medical District to the Arts District, and to the Regional Transportation Commission's Maryland Parkway bus rapid transit project. "The medical district is very much part of the Downtown area, we just don't know it yet," he said back then.

Aerial view of the downtown Las Vegas skyline, with the Medical District area stretching west of downtown toward the mountains

Knudsen, who represents Ward 1, has made the district a personal mission. He told Las Vegas Weekly in 2022 that his family once struggled to coordinate care from several specialists for his son, and ended up going to an out-of-state hospital. He said many local families do not have the resources to do that. His goal, in his words, was to shift thinking toward an "academic medical district," a place of learning and teaching.

The doctor shortage behind all of this is long-running. Las Vegas Weekly cited 2020 data from the Association of American Medical Colleges that ranked Nevada 45th among U.S. states in number of doctors, with 219 active physicians for every 100,000 residents. That is the hole the new labs, training centers and residency programs are trying to fill. Today, Netski said, UNLV has 11 residency programs and 13 fellowships, with more planned. But in her words, "it's going to take much more than what we have" to keep more graduates in Nevada.

What Happens Next

Several dates are worth putting on your radar. The academic lab next to UNLV's medical school is expected to wrap up by the end of 2026 and officially open in early 2027. Construction on the Home2 Suites hotel is set to start soon. The Symphony Park medical office building is expected to break ground late this year or early next year. The City Council's vote on the UNLV Health pediatric clinic lease is also coming up, and council agendas are posted online before each meeting.

The CSN Medical Education and Training Center near Wellness Way and Shadow Lane is the project to watch for job training. The $17 million city pledge is set, but an opening date was not given at the panel. The Touro and Southern Nevada Health District research lab is also still ahead, with no public opening date shared yet.

The bigger question is residency programs, and that one runs through Carson City. Mayor Berkley urged people to call their state legislators. "I think it's always very important (to) talk to your legislators about increasing the number of residency programs in the state of Nevada to ensure that all of our medical school graduates, if they wish to stay in Nevada, will have an opportunity to do so," she said. She called it "a good start," and one of many steps needed to have enough physicians for the population. Netski also said more UNLV programs are planned. Watch for news on new residencies and fellowships over the next year, because that is what will actually move the 40% number.

Ryan's Take

When families move here from other states, one of the first things they ask me about is doctors. Where is the nearest hospital? Can I find a pediatrician? How long is the wait for a specialist? This story goes right at that worry. When I see the city put real money into the Medical District and private investors follow, I read it as a long-term bet on Las Vegas becoming a place where you can get great care close to home, not just a place you fly out of to get it.

For neighborhoods, I watch these projects closely. Big job centers tend to pull new apartments, offices and services around them over time, and Babsky already said more medical offices and apartment complexes are in the works. Areas near the district, like the older neighborhoods off Charleston Boulevard and Rancho Drive, sit close to a growing employment hub. I will not guess at what that does to prices on any one street. But I will say this: a stronger medical system helps every part of the valley, from Summerlin to the southwest, because it is one more reason people choose to stay here. Keeping our own doctors in Nevada might be the most important part of the whole plan.

What You Can Do

First, speak up if this matters to you. Residency funding is decided at the state level, so the mayor's advice applies to everyone. Look up your state senator and assembly member on the Nevada Legislature's website and let them know you want more residency programs in Southern Nevada. A short email or phone call is enough. You can also follow Las Vegas City Council agendas to see when the UNLV Health pediatric clinic lease and other Medical District items come up for a vote.

Second, if you or someone in your house is thinking about a healthcare career, keep an eye on the College of Southern Nevada. Its new Medical Education and Training Center is built for exactly that, and the on-site childcare could make it a real option for working parents. Students already in medical school can ask their programs about Nevada residency and fellowship options, since training here is the best predictor of practicing here.

Third, if you are shopping for a home and being close to care is high on your list, factor the Medical District into your search. Map your drive to UMC, Valley Hospital or your own doctor's office before you fall in love with a house. A few minutes on a map now can save a lot of stress later.

Symphony Park in downtown Las Vegas at night, near the site of a planned medical office building expected to house a UNLV Health pediatric clinic

Have questions about how this affects your home or neighborhood? Reach out to Ryan Rose or text/call 702-747-5921 anytime. You can also email ryan@rosehomeslv.com or visit rosehomeslv.com. Ryan Rose | Real Broker, LLC