Monorail to be built on LVCVA land

Wednesday, Oct. 13, 1999 | 11:17 a.m.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority board of directors on Tuesday gave permission for a private monorail company to build track and a station on convention center property.

The approval came despite concerns about what the track will look like, since it will pass 60 feet high over the top of a pedestrian bridge over Paradise Road at Convention Center Drive.

Board members approved an easement acquisition agreement with the MGM Grand-Bally's Monorail LLC, which is building a 4-mile extension of an existing monorail line that runs between Bally's hotel-casino and the MGM Grand.

The extension north would run to Sahara Avenue along Paradise Road and would include stops at the Convention Center and the Las Vegas Hilton.

Bob Broadbent, who heads the company planning the $350 million monorail project, told board members the elevated transportation system would be a traffic reliever and the system would be capable of moving up to 10 percent of the attendance of a big show like Comdex.

Board members approved the agreement despite some concerns about the height of the track over the pedestrian walkway, completed in 1997 when a trade show floor expansion was completed.

Broadbent said the track would climb to 60 feet above the street level at its apex to clear the top of the pedestrian corridor. On the existing monorail, the track is as low as 20 feet above street level. Broadbent said in areas where the track would cross streets, it would stand about 32 feet high.

The monorail company has agreements with properties to build stations where the train would stop. Depending on size, stations would cost $3 million to $6 million to build. Stops also are planned at the Imperial Palace and Harrah's and at the Sahara hotel-casino

Broadbent said his company is building a large station for the Convention Center stop on the southeast corner of the LVCVA property at Paradise Road, south of Desert Inn Road, in exchange for the right-of-way.

Broadbent, who said the monorail would climb a 3 1/2 percent grade to top the overpass, said his company also studied passing beneath the bridge, but there wasn't enough clearance.

Board members also noted the distance between the location of the proposed station and the convention facilities and whether that would be detrimental to generating conventioneer business.

LVCVA President Manny Cortez said authority staff members walk from near the station site, the employee parking lot, to administrative offices in the Convention Center every day.

Cortez said there are no plans to operate shuttles to move conventioneers from the monorail station to the Convention Center, a distance of about three city blocks.