Hassles develop over bill to bar casinos from neighborhoods

Friday, June 6, 1997 | 5:47 a.m.

Representatives from Summerlin, Lake Las Vegas, taverns and the casino industry all showed up Thursday at a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on SB208 to request changes so their gambling operations can expand.

Under the bill, residents within 2,500 feet of a proposed casino project would vote on whether the project should go forward.

But Nevada Resort Association attorney Bob Faiss said the Bellagio project rests within 2,500 feet of apartments located near the megaresort, scheduled to open in September 1998. Other potential Strip projects also fall within that footage, Faiss said.

"I never had any intention of doing that," Senate Judiciary Chairman Mark James, R-Las Vegas, replied, adding that the Strip should be exempt from the measure.

Mark Brown of Howard Hughes Corp. and Bob Campbell of Lake Las Vegas asked that the bill exempt their planned developments, in part because people purchasing properties in Summerlin and other areas are told that casinos will be built.

"We have received letters from people upset because there is not keno or bingo," Brown said. "They view a resort as an amenity."

Campbell said the hotel planned for Lake Las Vegas will offer gourmet restaurants and other features that people living in nearby million-dollar homes will want.

After a four-hour hearing, James said he will not give up his drive to keep new casinos from neighborhoods. He will hold another meeting within a week, although witnesses Thursday requested nine amendments.

James said local residents don't see neighborhood casinos as an amenity, but as an intrusion on their family life.

But Sen. Jon Porter, R-Henderson, usually one of James' allies. said he was concerned about the small, rural Clark County communities he represents.

"The gaming establishment is the hub of the community," he said. "These communities are looking for commercial development and we have to protect them."

Porter said companies that have purchased properties in existing casino zones in Las Vegas for future development ought to have their investments protected.

"You need to look at each case individually," he said. "I'm not sure a blanket policy will work."

Ron Coury, a tavern owner in Las Vegas and Henderson, challenged outgoing Las Vegas City Councilman Matthew Callister, who has said that 30 taverns in the area eventually will become full-fledged neighborhood casinos if the bill isn't passed.

Coury said tavern owners don't want table games or hotels, only the ability to have up to 199 slot machines. Now taverns are limited to 35 machines.