Gibson has big plans to keep Henderson’s small-town appeal

Lisa Snedeker

Tuesday, Jan. 12, 1999 | 11:24 a.m.

Maintaining his city's small-town values while continuing to attract quality residential developments are just a few of Henderson Mayor Jim Gibson's goals for the upcoming year.

That's what he plans on telling business owners and residents at the noon Jan. 21 "State of the City" address in the Convention Center, 200 S. Water St.

As Gibson looked back over the past year from the helm of the nation's fastest-growing city Monday, he said he wants to see the city continue its "premier" residential development.

That means acquiring more land from the county through annexation as well as building more schools and parks.

"That in turn will allow the community to grow and increase its tax revenue," Gibson said.

The city is negotiating with Clark County to acquire property to the southwest of Del Webb's Anthem on Eastern Avenue near Lake Mead Drive.

"We're very concerned about the city's capacity to expand," Gibson said. "We are confident (that in any deal with the county) that the interests of the city will be protected."

State Demographer Dean Judson in November released preliminary estimates that within the next year or two, Henderson may surpass Reno as Nevada's second largest city.

And while it continues to expand, one of the city's highest priorities is the redevelopment of its heart -- the downtown area.

"We spent a lot of the last year organizing the future (of downtown) and working on expanding our strategic plan," he said.

But downtown redevelopment doesn't come cheap, according to the mayor.

"We've spent quite a bit acquiring property in the city's redevelopment area," he said. "It's expensive."

Through June 30, the city's land acquisitions, most of which have been focused downtown, totaled $4.4 million, according to city staff.

Gibson said the city also plans to continue its efforts to broaden its economic base.

"As a player in the regional efforts to diversify the economy, we are working to attract different types of businesses," he said, adding the city is working with several contacts that he could not disclose at this time.

The city also is continuing its efforts to work with residents. For example, Gibson said he would like to see the city form partnerships with more homeowners associations.

"I think we got a good start last year," he said.

Another accomplishment he cited was the expansion of parks and recreation in the older, established neighborhoods such as the improved recreation facility at Brown Junior High School and River Mountain Park.

"They are both examples of retrofitting the older parts of the city," he said.

Despite its phenomenal growth -- Henderson grew an estimated 7.8 percent as of July 1, with a population of 159,380 compared to Reno's growth rate of 0.8 percent and 165,940 residents -- it remains a bedroom community: 90 percent of Henderson's residents work outside the city limits.

Gibson among others wants to see that number change, adding he would like to get the figure to 25 percent.

One of the ways the city is attempting to accomplish that is through the creation of 13 "employment centers." The fourth center, which consisted of changing the city's land-use plan to create a gateway of tourist-oriented businesses, light industry and homes on the approach to Henderson from Hoover Dam or Laughlin, was approved last week.

City Manager Phil Speight, the other featured speaker on Jan. 21, said he will focus on the city's statistics such as population growth and the number of building permits the city issued last year, in addition to its fiscal future.

"Financially the city is in good health and we'll be discussing some new programs we anticipate coming on in July," he said.