Revitalized West Las Vegas seeks direction

Erin Neff

Friday, April 21, 2000 | 11:09 a.m.

Seven years ago West Las Vegas was largely an area that evoked little interest from either developers or homeowners.

But steady revitalization efforts over the years have created signs of life again with both new homes and shops sprouting up from vacant lots.

"At one time you couldn't even get development there," said former City Councilman Frank Hawkins, who is now a residential developer.

Now that the historic area, home to one of the highest concentrations of black residents in Las Vegas, has started to redevelop, the question of its future is shifting.

The question isn't will it develop. It's what kind of development does the community want.

That issue will come to a head Monday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. during a neighborhood meeting at the West Las Vegas Library Theater, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

"For years people who live in this area felt they never had any say-so," said City Councilman Lawrence Weekly, in whose ward West Las Vegas lies.

"They're sick and tired of having things shoved down their throats," he added. "This meeting will give them an opportunity to have a say-so."

Although the larger question of future development applies to Weekly's entire ward, many residents who will attend Monday's meeting are fixated on one 11-acre parcel of city land.

The Vons grocery store anchoring Magic's Westland Plaza on Owens Avenue near H Street was the first parcel of a planned two-pronged development by former basketball star Magic Johnson's company.

Johnson held the rights to develop the parcel east of the Vons shopping center until the end of February when the company decided not to develop the secondary parcel.

Now the vacant land is under consideration for both additional retail shops and a controversial charter school planned by Andre Agassi.

"The charter school is not a bad idea, it's OK," Weekly said. "But the economic development is more important for the community."

Weekly said many residents in zip code 89106 have to drive far from their neighborhoods for something as simple as a household tool or a T-shirt. And for those without vehicles, obtaining everyday items is problematic.

Marilyn Smith agrees.

Smith checked out the vacant lot Thursday on her way into Vons with two friends.

"They need to extend this shopping plaza," Smith said. "We don't need another school here. We have a school down the street."

Hawkins said one of the main problems with the proposed charter school is that many of the residents won't be sending their children there. The same issue arose, he said, when residents fought for a child care and early education center on Owens only to find they couldn't afford it when it opened.

"The school sounds good because my kids are in overcrowded schools," said Jannette Lee, a native Las Vegan who was shopping at the Vons on Thursday. "But the shopping center would bring in a lot of revenue."

Lee's main concern, however, remained part of the area's longstanding problem -- vacant lots.

"This whole area hasn't grown nearly enough," Lee said. "More development will mean more security."

Hawkins said he thinks the city should purchase the adjacent Madison Terrace public housing, tear it down, and build new townhomes and office buildings and a small strip center on the combined site.

He said adding homes will increase the customer base for existing commercial businesses and spark development of others.

"We need a combination of everything," Weekly said. "For years we've dealt with it undeveloped. Now that we have the opportunity, I want what's best for the community."

Erin Neff covers Las Vegas government for the Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-4062 or 229-6436, or by e-mail at erin@lasvegassun.com