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2025 ULI Fall Meeting 2025 ULI Fall Meeting
, November 04 – 06, 2025
Panelist

Olivia Diaz

Ward 3 Councilwoman City of Las Vegas

Councilwoman Olivia Díaz was born and raised in the east side of Las Vegas. She became the first Latina elected to the Las Vegas City Council in June 2019. She represents Ward 3, a dynamic district with over 109,000 residents that includes downtown Las Vegas and the neighborhoods where she grew up. She serves a diverse constituency that is over 65% Hispanic and where over 37% of residents work in the service industry. She loves Las Vegas because she loves the community she proudly serves. Currently, Councilwoman Díaz is championing diverse projects, including the site redevelopment of the former Desert Pines Golf Course, which will include housing offerings for first-time homebuyers and seniors, workforce training spaces, opportunities for small businesses, and recreational and green spaces for residents. She is also engaging with the community and stakeholders to create a shared vision for the future of the city's East Las Vegas Plan. Other Ward 3 priorities include increasing public art, and supporting education and workforce development projects. Aside from serving on the Las Vegas City Council, Councilwoman Díaz serves as Chairwoman of the Chief Local Elected Official Consortium for the Workforce Connections board, and on the following boards: Southern Nevada Water Authority, the Commission for the Las Vegas Centennial, Nevada Legal of Cities, the Oversight Panel for School Facilities, and the Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition. Councilwoman Olivia Díaz is a proud Las Vegas native and daughter of two hardworking, immigrant parents. As one of six siblings, she quickly learned the value of hard work, taking risks, and standing up for what is right. She has overcome obstacles and embraced the challenges that she has faced. She was the first in her family to graduate from college. She taught at the elementary level for nearly 18 years and helped raise literacy levels in under-served communities with the Clark County School District. From 2010 to 2018, she served in the Nevada State Assembly as the Assemblywoman for District 11. In the 2013 session, Diaz served as Majority Assistant Deputy Whip. During legislative sessions in Carson City, she championed bills to support working families and students, including much-needed resources and programs for elementary and higher education students. Councilwoman Díaz earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and a Master of Sciences in Bilingual Education from NOVA Southeastern University.

Speaking at

Tue Oct 29 4:00 PM — 5:00 PM (GMT-05:00) Eastern Time Resorts World Las Vegas - Level 2, Lotus C

From Public Golf Course to Mixed-Income Community: Innovative Infill Development in East Las Vegas

This session will include a robust discussion between city staff, elected officials, developers, and local and national consultants working to deliver new and innovative infill development solutions essential to the long-term success of Las Vegas. The session will include brief presentations by each of our panelists, offering a diverse perspective of the history, context, current conditions, ambitions of the project, and work across public and private sectors to make this project successful. This project is the result of intentional and extensive bilingual community engagement, creative partnerships, and a commitment to resilient development that helps some of the city's most vulnerable populations. The city of Las Vegas is leveraging its control of the 100-acre Desert Pines Golf Course in East Las Vegas to drive several community-driven goals, providing opportunities to incentivize affordable infill housing, embracing Latino culture through placemaking and design, partnering with education, and focusing on workforce training, increasing accessible park space, and developing a transit-oriented and walkable project.