City molds framework for redevelopment plan

Greg Harman

Monday, July 17, 2000 | 10:39 a.m.

The already slow process of expanding Henderson's redevelopment zone to include rundown, undeveloped and polluted properties between Water Street and the elegant Lake Las Vegas was delayed further last week.

Principal planner Bob Wilson pulled the item from the agenda at the start of a Planning Commission meeting Thursday, allowing commissioners to approve minor points in the amended redevelopment zone but leaving the meat of the matter for later.

Henderson officials hope to more than double the size of the city's redevelopment zone to include former industrial land owned by Basic Management Inc. and the proposed project of Palm City.

"In preparing this, we were working on the basis that LandWell would be annexing in one piece," Wilson said.

But now LandWell, the development company for Basic Management, is negotiating with the city for two parcels to be annexed, he noted -- 92 acres near the city's water reclamation facility as part of a land swap with the city, and about 300 acres for the site of the Nevada State College at Henderson.

Wilson said it would help the process if the proposed redevelopment expansion, which would incorporate 4,100 acres north of the intersection of Lake Mead Drive and Boulder Highway, occurred "immediately on annexation" of lands owned by BMI.

Although the major expansion of the redevelopment zone was delayed, smaller changes were made to the plan.

Several areas were rezoned to better reflect the existing business activity already in place.

Also, language in the plan concerning public notices was changed so that only owners of property within 500 feet of parcels set to be rezoned must be notified prior to rezoning action.

The new redevelopment plan does not change the city's use of eminent domain, but it adds language that appears to limit owners' rights to challenge the seizure of their property.

"Owners do not, however, have an absolute right to retain ownership of their property in the Redevelopment Area," the new language in the plan states.

Eminent domain is a legal process by which a governmental body may acquire private property for a public purpose. The city is able to use eminent domain in the redevelopment zone on property not zoned residential. That includes homes on property zoned commercial.

The specter of eminent domain was raised recently by officials from Phyllis Thompson Cos., who asked the city to consider using its municipal authority on three commercially zoned residences whose owners, they complained, were being unreasonable in negotiating the price for the properties.

The city sent the developer back to negotiations after several area residents objected to the discussion of eminent domain, saying the developer had failed to negotiate.

There was no public comment on any of the changes.

Commissioners also took steps to use a state law passed last year that allows areas threatened by encroaching development to be protected through rural neighborhood zoning status.

The members approved the creation of a Rural Neighborhood Overlay, provided for by Senate Bill 391, to designate still undetermined areas of Henderson as rural. A Rural Neighborhood Transition Overlay also was approved to create a 660-foot buffer around all such areas.

Assistant City Attorney Liza Conroy said the change will not affect areas in the city already zoned for specific uses.