A male U-N-L-V employee kneeling on the ground inspecting the rocks

Landscape, Grounds, and Arboretum

We create safe and aesthetically pleasing outdoor environments where the UNLV community can learn and congregate. Our campus is recognized by the Arbor Day Foundation as a Tree Campus USA.

4,000
individual trees on campus
8,000
square feet of concrete replaced in 2022
10
Champion Trees (the largest tree of its species in the state) on campus

Help Desk

For life-threatening emergencies, call 911. For a maintenance emergency, call the help desk at ext. 54357.

Visit the iServiceDesk website to submit a work request or notify us of any of the following:

  • Report a hazard
  • Unsafe conditions (icy sidewalks, oil spills, broken glass, etc.)
  • Trash removal
  • Service calls (broken sprinklers, leaks, broken branches)

Water Conservation

Since September 2003, UNLV has reduced landscape water use by 25% by converting turf areas into xeriscape that uses native desert and other drought tolerant vegetation and rocks. To learn more, visit the water conservation webpage.

Our Services

Two men with a machinery putting down a potted plant

Flora and Infrastructure Installation

  • Rock, concrete, and paver
  • Plants, trees, and flowers
  • Handrails, bike racks, benches, memorials, trash cans, posts, signage, bollards, fences, windscreens, thermo-striping, and parking blocks
A woman attending to floral bushes

Plant Health Care and Maintenance

  • Fertilization, root injections, wetting agents, and soil drenches
  • Tree care, pruning, floral care, mulch
  • Disease and insect diagnosis
  • Staff includes Certified Arborists
  • Nevada Department of Agriculture licensed personnel
  • International Society of Arboriculture certified personnel
  • Members of the Professional Grounds Management Society
U-N-L-V employees with children showing them irrigation installations

Irrigation Services

Installation

Our highly qualified technicians make all necessary irrigation installations on new projects throughout campus.

Maintenance

We perform monthly inspections of irrigation equipment and routinely adjust water usage to coincide with Southern Nevada Water Authority restrictions.

first week semester

ADA Compliance and Maintenance

  • Our construction crew works to repair or replace concrete areas on campus that have become a hazard and present an accessibility issue under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
  • To keep campus walking surfaces ADA-compliant, the crew grinds the concrete to create a level surface or removes and replaces sections beyond saving. We replace between 16,000 and 20,000 square feet of concrete yearly.

Arboretum

The UNLV Arboretum was established in May 1985. An arboretum is defined as a place that is set aside for the display and study of primarily woody plant material. The primary mission of the UNLV Arboretum is to display mature plant materials considered appropriate for high desert conditions. The UNLV Arboretum includes the entire 335-acre campus. Of this acreage, 80 acres are landscaped with trees, shrubs, and turf, including a two-acre Xeric Garden.

The Xeric Garden is located at the entrance to the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art. Created in 1988, this garden contains plants from arid regions around the world. Numerous informative signs are located throughout the garden. Many plants are in bloom, regardless of the season, but spring is the best time to visit as virtually every plant has some color.

Tour the Arboretum

You may tour the campus landscape at a leisurely pace at any time or day of the week. Guided tours of the campus grounds are also available upon request. Contact the Grounds department at fmgrounds@unlv.edu or 702-895-3392 to request a guided tour.

Landscape area in front of the Barrick Museum

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Questions and Concerns

The personnel within the Landscape, Grounds, and Arboretum Department take great pride in the appearance of the UNLV campus. If you have any questions or concerns you may contact us by phone at 702-895-3392 or you may email us.

Departmental Personnel

James Kearney

Grounds Superintendent
Headshot of James Kearney
James moved from Hawaii to Las Vegas in 1999 to attend UNLV. After graduating with his bachelor's degree in business management from UNLV, he worked in the construction industry for a few years. The economic downturn in 2008 led him to seek out a more stable career. Since then, James has held several positions within the department including, tree worker, equipment operator, irrigation, and…
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Eddie Dechirico

Facilities Supervisor II
Headshot of Eddie Dechirico
Eddie moved to Las Vegas in 2001 from New York where he worked in construction. After arriving, he worked in the food and beverage industry as a bartender and club manager. His passion was always in construction, so after starting a family, Eddie made the decision to get back in the industry and came to UNLV in 2017. Eddie was promoted within his department from maintenance repair worker to…
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Jose “Rich” Jimenez

Facilities Supervisor II
A man with sunglasses.
Rich started in the landscape industry at UNLV in 1996. He departed from UNLV in 1998 to work for the Davey Tree Expert Company, where he served as a foreman, supervisor, salesman, and plant health care technician. He returned to UNLV in 2014 and has done many tasks around the university, including tree, irrigation, chemical, and supervisory work. Rich has been a certified arborist since…
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