Planning panel to take up Town Center controversy

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 1998 | 11:03 a.m.

The proposed zoning plan for Town Center will come before the Las Vegas Planning Commission Thursday night -- a key step in the process to create long-term standards for the burgeoning Northwest community.

In brief comments to the Las Vegas City Council Monday, Chris Knight, supervisor for the city's Comprehensive Planning Division, summarized the results of previous town hall meetings on the project, which has drawn much interest from the community.

The public was not permitted to comment following Monday's presentation which also required no vote from the council. Public comment will be taken during the Planning Commission meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at City Hall.

Knight said the city has been working with Clark County and Nevada Power Co. to mold Town Center into a central commercial and retail development.

By creating a consolidated business district for what has become the fastest growing part of the Las Vegas Valley, the city hopes to discourage strip malls and other commercial ventures close to residential areas.

Still, at previous town hall meetings, hosted by Ward 4 City Councilman Larry Brown, frustrated residents have expressed concerns over the project to be built near U.S. Highway 95 and the future Las Vegas Beltway.

Some of that opposition has come from residents of Timber Lake, a family housing development on Deer Springs Way and Durango Drive. Some residents have said that when they bought their homes they were not informed of the Town Center project concept.

They fear their quiet neighborhood, which includes many homes with horse ranches, will be sitting in the middle of Town Center, surrounded by businesses and shopping districts.

Brown has said, however, that the goal of the Town Center project is to preserve the residential lifestyle in the northwest.

Officials have projected that Town Center will generate 100,000 jobs, with 25 to 30 percent of them filled by Northwest Las Vegas residents.

The full build-out could take 15 to 20 years to complete, but construction will begin this year, officials predict.

The Town Center plan, conceived in 1996 for about 2,600 acres, was introduced following a moratorium enacted in February on new development in that area.