Thursday, April 2, 1998 | 9:57 a.m.
For more than two decades, the Silk Purse Ranch northwest of Las Vegas has run an equestrian facility, eventually expanding over the past few years to include a restaurant and banquet facility.
But the once rural facility is feeling the pains of urban sprawl and with it, the long arms of Clark County's Public Response Office.
The issue, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday by attorney John Netzorg, involves the signs directing customers to the ranch near Floyd Lamb State Park.
The county has demanded the removal of the signs guiding customers through a maze of back streets that have been in place for years.
Netzorg alleged that the Silk Purse was misled into believing the signs could be brought up to code when the county is actually demanding that a zoning variance be obtained.
"If the ranch is forced to remove its signs, the economic impact will be devastating," the lawsuit stated, noting that with residential areas springing up nearby, there are "hundreds" of similar signs advertising the sale of homes.
The lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order prohibiting the county from ordering the removal of the signs.
In addition to the ranch and the Inn Restaurant, Netzorg said the county's actions will affect the nearby Gilcrease Bird Reserve, which also would lose its signs. The reserve is a non-profit organization that hosts hundreds of students and other visitors annually.
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