Las Vegas Awarded Smart City Grant

LAS VEGAS, NV - Las Vegas is one of five cities to receive the 2018 Readiness Challenge Grant from the Smart Cities Council - a group whose goal is to help cities achieve sustainability, livability, and workability. The grant awards coaching, workshops, products, and services to cities "to accelerate their smart city initiatives."

Along with Las Vegas, four other communities received the grant. They are Birmingham, AL, Cary, NC, Louisville/Jefferson County. KY, and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

“The five winners had three important things in common,” said Jesse Berst, Smart Cities Council Chairman. “Including a focus on uncovering synergies and cost-efficiencies between departments. They also fostered coordinated collaboration between internal departments, external stakeholders and nearby regions. Finally, they exhibited a determination to include underserved and vulnerable populations.”

The Smart Cities Council had this to say about Las Vegas:

Las Vegas is hard at work on an open and adaptable public safety platform to pull in data from many sources for "collective analysis.” The city’s dedication to public safety also extends to traffic and pedestrian safety. They have three pilot projects underway using video analytics to identify potential problems. Las Vegas will leverage the Council's coaching and assistance to make its infrastructure smarter, towards its goal of becoming a fully connected smart city by 2025. “Las Vegas is a leader when it comes to innovation and we thank the Smart City Council for this honor,” Mayor Carolyn G. Goodman said. “The city will utilize the mentoring, workshops, products and services provided in this grant to continue to be a testing ground for new technologies that improve safety and livability for our residents and visitors.

Las Vegas, and the other winners, will receive expert mentoring and an on-site readiness workshop and will be advised by experts from "private, philanthropic, academic and research sectors," for one year.

Main image via Lucas Thomas/Las Vegas Patch