Downtown streets go green

Steve Sebelius

Monday, July 8, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

"Plant a tree" isn't just a slogan for Arbor Day. It's one of the keys to revitalizing downtown Las Vegas.

Trees, plants and shrubs are planned for several areas downtown as part of the city's ongoing effort to revitalize its urban center.

First, City Hall is getting spruced up, courtesy of the parks department, which will install water-efficient landscaping during the next four months.

The Las Vegas Valley Water District designed the desert landscaping, which will be outfitted with a drip irrigation system to save water, but city officials made it slightly more lush, according to Dave Kuiper, director of the Parks and Leisure Activities Department.

The cost for the first phase of the upgrade will be $33,000. The work will be done by city crews.

But the flora doesn't stop there. City officials are planning to use transportation money to add medians studded with palm trees on Las Vegas Boulevard, starting at Sahara Avenue and working north.

The median improvements are meant to continue Clark County's Strip beautification project into Las Vegas, to keep the "feel" of the famous gaming corridor and lure more tourists up the street into downtown.

The state is planning to spend about $1.7 million for the portion of the boulevard between Sahara and Oakey Boulevard, and the city will spend an estimated $1 million to $1.5 million in federal transportation funds for the portion between Oakey and Charleston Boulevard.

Eventually, the medians and trees will stretch down Las Vegas Boulevard to the U.S. 95 Expressway next to City Hall.

The city is also planning a park between Las Vegas Boulevard and Fourth Street, where officials have purchased 13 parcels for $4.7 million. This park also will feature palm trees, said Donna Kristaponis, the city's planning director.

"We need civic spaces," Kristaponis said.

The greenery plans don't stop there: EDAW, a city consultant, has recommended a civic park be created downtown, "providing much-needed open space for office workers and downtown visitors, and a symbolic center for civic events, image and character."

Other planned attractions include an outdoor neon sign museum next to the Fremont Street Experience parking garage, complete with plaques detailing the history of the original neon signs that shaped the city's image.