Zoning briefs

Thursday, Feb. 3, 2000 | 10:56 a.m.

Two towers receive approval

Cellular-phone users in the Las Vegas Valley can rest easy: the beeping of their electronic communicators will continue, despite the best efforts of some valley residents who wanted two 100-foot-tall relay towers out of their neighborhoods.

The County Commission approved separate use-permit requests from two cell phone providers, Pacific Bell and Alltel, for the towers.

In the Pacific Bell case, the company wanted to put a new tower about 400 feet south of Blue Diamond Road and 320 feet east of Inspiration Road. Alltel asked for an eight-year use permit to keep an existing tower on the southeast corner of Katie Avenue and Jensen Street.

Nearby residents objected to both proposals, citing health and aesthetic issues.

The companies said the sites are important to maintain service in the target areas.

Commissioners voted to approve the requests without dissent. For Alltel, the commissioners granted a bonus: rather than grant another eight-year use permit, the commissioners took away the time limit, effectively granting the company the indefinite right to keep its tower.

Commissioners deny use permit

A proposed mortuary reached a likely dead end on Wednesday.

County commissioners voted against a use permit that would have allowed the Garden Memorial Funeral Home to operate the mortuary near Jones Boulevard and Palmyra Avenue. The mortuary would have operated out of a converted home.

Several residents, including former District Court Judge John Mendoza, spoke against the proposal. Mendoza said nearly every neighbor was opposed to the project.

Christopher McCullough, an attorney and neighborhood resident, said people in the area are concerned about possible health issues from the mortuary. He also charged that the mortuary did not comply with parking and waste-disposal requirements.

Richard Campbell, an attorney representing the funeral home, said the 6-0 vote denying the permit was especially frustrating because the company had already received Clark County Health District, Spring Valley Town Board and Clark County Planning Commission approvals -- everything short of the county commissioners' OK.

He said the company is discussing possible further actions to get the mortuary established.