Developers propose four more casinos

John Wilen

Thursday, Nov. 19, 1998 | 10:46 a.m.

Planning commissioners in Henderson and Clark County are to consider proposals for at least four new casino resorts tonight, and must decide whether to extend time limits for two previously approved projects.

In addition, the North Las Vegas Planning Commission recently approved proposals for three new casino resorts.

All of the new projects have been offered just in time to get regulatory approval before a Dec. 31 deadline set by a new state law designed to limit the spread of casinos beyond established resort corridors.

The Henderson Planning Commission is scheduled to consider proposals for three hotel-casino resorts at its meeting tonight.

One of the proposals, Grand Bay Resort at Lake Las Vegas, was first announced in 1996, but is seeking its approvals now. The resort, on 47 acres wrapped around the south end of Lake Las Vegas, will include a 30,000-square-foot casino, a 240-room hotel, and 240 condominium units that can be converted into 460 hotel rooms with little notice.

The north and south shore portions of the resort will be connected by a bridge over Lake Las Vegas. Other amenities will include a spa, tennis center, meeting rooms and ballrooms.

"The design concept for the project is that of a small village," says a planning staff report.

Also on the Henderson agenda are proposals for two new resorts, a sports-themed hotel-casino to be called the Olympiad and a mountain-themed hotel-casino to be called the Bighorn.

The Olympiad, to be located at the southwest corner of Boulder Highway and Gibson Road, will include 330 hotel rooms, a 116,000-square-foot casino, a 7,000-seat indoor events center and a 6,000-seat outdoor amphitheater.

The $70 million project will include sports-themed restaurants, and its events center is being designed to handle pro tennis matches, wrestling competitions, hockey games and BMX dirt bike races, said Randy Aleman, managing partner of project owner Boulder Highway Holding Co.

"I don't think there's any facility in town that can accommodate that," said Aleman.

The Olympiad might be capped by a lighted Olympic-style torch that would be visible to airliners flying into Las Vegas, said Aleman. If approved, the project will break ground in about a year and be completed a year later, said Aleman.

The Bighorn hotel-casino, to be located on 40 acres southwest of the intersection of I-95 and Foothills Drive, would include 200 hotel rooms, an 80,000-square-foot casino, and will feature a bighorn mountain sheep as a logo and theme. Plans also show a "Bighorn Activity Park" south of the casino property, but offer no details as to what will be located there.

Henderson planning officials said both the Bighorn and Olympiad are likely to face opposition from nearby residents at tonight's meeting. Aleman said he is willing to work with area residents to alleviate their concerns.

The Clark County Planning Commission is to consider a new plan for a 408-room hotel and 40,600-square-foot casino submitted by Theodore and Doris Lee at its meeting Thursday night. The project, to be located at the southwest corner of Flamingo Road and Koval Lane, would include restaurants, shops, a nightclub, a showroom and office space.

Approved by planners earlier this week were time extensions for two projects at the corner of the Strip and Dewey Drive. One, submitted by Cheong Swee Kheng, would be a 187,400-square-foot casino building with a 207-foot high hotel structure, restaurants and retail at the northeast corner. The other, on the southeast corner, was submitted by Glass Pool Inn owner Allen Rosoff for a 300-room hotel-casino.

The Rosoff proposal was first submitted in 1989. Kheng's plan was first filed in 1995.

In addition to the plans being considered in Clark County and Henderson this week, the North Las Vegas Planning Commission recently approved three new projects. The most significant of these appears to be the Paradise hotel-casino, submitted by Robert Mendenhall for the southwest corner of Craig and Losee.

Mendenhall wants to build 2,000 rooms and 100,000 square feet of casino space in three phases. The first phase would also include movie theatres and bowling lanes. The Paradise would eventually include 6 acres of outdoor recreation facilities.

Another large recently approved North Las Vegas project is the Lake Mead Casino, planned by Howard Hughes Properties Inc. for the southwest corner of Allen Lane and Carey Ave.

Lake Mead will include 600 hotel rooms and a 240,000-square-foot casino complex. Amenities will include bowling, movies, an outdoor special events center and a wedding chapel.

Finally, North Las Vegas planners approved a plan submitted by the Operating Engineers Funds Inc. for a 202-room hotel and 25,500-square-foot casino at the southwest corner of Craig and Pecos. That project will include restaurants, a gym and a recreation center.

A state law passed in 1997 will make it much more difficult for developers to get approval for projects submitted after Dec. 31. No projects will be allowed within 500 feet feet of residential areas or within 1,500 feet of schools or churches. Developers of other projects will be required to prove their proposals are compatible with the surrounding area, and will not harm neighborhood "health, safety or general welfare."

Projects within resort corridors like the Las Vegas and Boulder Strips will not be affected, nor will project expansions or casinos located outside of the Las Vegas metro area.