In 2009, WalletPop.com analyzed data from NeighborhoodScout.com and FBI statistics from all 17,000 local law-enforcement agencies in the U.S. to determine the 25 U.S. neighborhoods with the highest predicted violent crime rates. In last year’s survey, Las Vegas didn’t show up at all.
However, in this year’s survey, Las Vegas does, unfortunately, appear three times, in the numbers three, four, and eight spots out of 25.
It seems a little, shall we say, curious to us that three zip codes in Las Vegas appear in the top ten most dangerous in the country in 2010, when they didn’t make the list at all in 2009. But our purpose here is just to answer your question as to how close they are to the Strip.
The nation's third most dangerous area, according to WalletPop, falls within zip code 89106. It's on either side of Martin Luther King Blvd., north of W. Lake Mead Blvd. and south of W. Carey Avenue, a little bit east of the North Las Vegas Airport. Here, you have a one-in-seven chance of being victimized by a violent crime in the next year. This neighborhood is roughly four to five miles from the intersection of Sahara Avenue and the Strip.
The number-four most dangerous area, where you have the same one-in-seven chance, is northeast of the intersection of E. Charleston Blvd. and N. Eastern Ave., bordered on the north by E. Bonanza and on the east by N. Mojave Drive. This is approximately three to four miles from the corner of Sahara Avenue and the Strip.
The number-eight most dangerous neighborhood, within both the above zip codes and with a one-in-nine chance, occupies a sort of no-man’s land surrounding the Spaghetti Bowl downtown and extends north along Revere Street up to W. Lake Mead Boulevard. This area is also three to four miles to the corner of Sahara and the Strip.
Most people familiar with Las Vegas recommend that you be very careful when walking on the outskirts, especially north, of downtown, and the "number-eight worst neighborhood" is proof of that.
But even this neighborhood is far enough outside the tourist corridor that 99.99% of visitors have no business being anywhere near it, especially on foot. And the other two neighborhoods are even more distant from where you will be walking in Las Vegas.
The truth is that security along Fremont Street downtown and the Las Vegas Strip is excellent and it’s the rare visitor, remaining within the usual boundaries on foot, that falls victim to any kind of crime.
For the 2009 listings, go to:
http://www.walletpop.com/insurance/most-dangerous-neighborhoods/
For the 2010 listings, go to: http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/10/04/25-most-dangerous-neighborhoods-2010/
