David Raanan remembers his first excursion into the iconic enclave of Naked City within Las Vegas’s Gateway District.
The real estate developer, who has since become a champion of the area north of the Strip and behind the Strat hotel-casino, had just moved in 2019 to Allure Condos, a 41-story luxury condo tower on West Sahara Avenue near Las Vegas Boulevard.
“One evening I was parking in the garage, my spot looks out over the neighborhood, when I saw a police helicopter sweeping the streets with its spotlight while patrol cars flooded the blocks below,” he said. “My first thought was, ‘What the hell is happening back here?’”
Intrigued instead of scared, Raanan jumped on his bike to see what all the fuss was about, when he was approached by a woman.
“I rode down Fairfield Avenue until a woman in a minivan pulled over beside me,” he continued. “She rolled down her window and said, “I don’t know if you’re from around here, but I wouldn’t be riding my bike in this neighborhood if I were you.’ Instead of scaring me away, it made me even more curious. How could one side of the street be luxury high-rise living while the other felt like a forgotten third-world country? In most cities, there’s a gradual transition. Here, it was like crossing an invisible line into a completely different world.”
First known as an area where showgirls lived and would lounge naked outside to work on their tans back in the 1950s and ’60s, Naked City became a haven for drug use and crime in the following decades. However, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Safe Village initiative — a community policing strategy designed to reduce violent crime by addressing the root causes — expanded in 2022 to encompass the Gateway District, which stretches all the way from West Sahara Avenue north to East Charleston Boulevard just east of Interstate 15.
Since then, the overall Gateway District — including Naked City — has been undergoing a remarkable transformation led by community members and police.
Metro statistics obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal show calls for service — one of the best ways to gauge crime in an area — have been steadily and consistently dropping every year in the district since 2022 when the initiative was launched by police. There were 6,352 calls for service in 2022, and this year there are projected to be 4,000.
The business community followed suit, partnering with the police on multiple initiatives to clean up the streets and revitalize the area.
Metro Sgt. Miles Peshlakai spoke in late August at a Safe Village meeting for Naked City at PT’s Wings & Sports at The Strat, stating crime was down month over month and they had not had a violent crime in the area in over a month. The monthly meeting, which brings together developers, business owners, community leaders and residents, has become a staple in remaking the area, said Peshlakai.
“I used to drive through this place a couple times a week a few years ago,” he said. “And it was not a safe place. Now, it’s a totally different story… and all of the credit has to go to this community and how they’ve worked so hard to build it up.”
Peshlakai said Metro now dedicates two police officers to the area full time with a patrol car coming through regularly, and businesses continue to come into the area, a testament to its growing safety.
Business community steps in
On top of monthly stakeholder meetings for Naked City, Raanan said business leaders and property owners have teamed up with The Strat and the Golden Steer restaurant to have regular discussions about safety and cleanliness in the area. A big part of this, he added, was the business community’s push for the area 7/11 convenience store — which had become a haven for criminal activity — to be closed permanently. Plus, the business community has installed more lighting to create more visibility throughout the area and host regular cleanups of vacant lots while fencing some in.
Raanan, along with his business partner, also received a $75,000 city of Las Vegas grant and invested additional private capital to completely renovate a 24-unit property at 1922 Fairfield Avenue, directly behind The Strat. He said this turned 1922 Fairfield into a proof of concept for what Naked City housing can become, upgrading the property with modern interiors, stainless-steel appliances, two-tone finishes, walk-in showers, quartz countertops and a new exterior art installation.
“We’ve also pushed for new development rather than simply renovating existing buildings. We secured entitlements for an 87-unit residential project at 215 Philadelphia Ave., which would represent one of the first significant new residential ground-up developments in Naked City in decades,” Raanan added. “We’re also actively worked to bring other developers and financing partners into the area, including discussions with experienced developers such as Sam Cherry and others about utilizing programs such as Low-Income Housing Tax Credits to make new construction financially feasible.”
According to data provided by the city of Las Vegas, approximately 37 new businesses opened in the Gateway District in 2025 and so far this year another 13 are slated to open. A number of apartment complexes and hotels, such as Star Motel and the Aztec Inn, have undergone significant renovations, along with the opening of Atomic Golf in the spring of 2024.
The area has also seen the opening of local restaurants such as Able Baker, Meraki Mediterranean Grill and Mae Daly’s Fine Steaks and Whiskeys. Multiple public art mural projects have been spearheaded by the city, including a large mural featuring local artists at the end of Philadelphia Avenue. There is also a slew of future projects, including 36 EV charging spaces off Las Vegas Boulevard that are in the works for the Gateway District.
‘Today it has completely changed’
Developer and business owner Nate K., who has been a part of the community since 2009 and owns a number of multifamily buildings in the area, said Naked City is basically night and day.
“Oh my god, what a change, absolutely, a big, big change since I got here and I’m just very happy to see the state that is it today,” he said. “And it was very rough in the beginning coming into the neighborhood… but today it has completely changed, to be honest with you I’m just very proud to be a small part of this change and we’ve been very strict about who we let in and who we decide to let in and live here now.”
Councilwoman Olivia Díaz, who represents Ward 3 which encompasses the entire Gateway District, said she’s incredibly proud of all the positive energy and public safety efforts that have gone into the area over the past while in conjunction with the police.
“I’ve noticed more neighborhood engagement over the last several years, especially with the Safe Village initiative in partnership with Downtown Area Command,” she said. “Increased public safety in the area cannot happen by law enforcement alone. Residents in the area, neighboring businesses, and community partners like Casa de Luz have contributed tremendously to the neighborhood. A number of projects have been developed in this area, and I remain committed to supporting continued growth and city investment in the Gateway District, including investments in public art.”
Raanan, who recently won a Compassionate City Award from the city of Las Vegas for his work in Naked City, said the results are dramatic when he thinks back to his first experience in the area some seven years ago.
“Crime and open drug activity have declined significantly, and for the first time in years, people genuinely feel safer walking through the neighborhood. I live at Allure, and now I can walk through Naked City to the Arts District at night without constantly looking over my shoulder. That’s a huge change from where things once were.”
Contact Patrick Blennerhassett at pblennerhassett@reviewjournal.com.
