City, county move to close zoning loophole

Adrienne Packer

Wednesday, June 21, 2000 | 11:26 a.m.

An agreement struck between Clark County and Las Vegas on Tuesday is expected to put a stop to "back-door" negotiations that repeatedly push through zone changes that do not conform with master plans.

Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone embarked on the deal a year ago after his colleagues went against his recommendation and approved a commercial project on 30 acres that had been zoned for a rural neighborhood.

Developers used flashy sketches to pitch a shopping center to the board. But once commissioners approved the zone change, developers sold the land to a car dealership.

Malone said the interlocal agreement allows the county and city to amend their master guides to make one "seamless" plan. The seamless philosophy prevents the city from allowing businesses on its boundary where, for example, the county has ranch homes.

"What this ordinance provides is neighborhood protection," Malone said. "It maintains the rural lifestyle with managed growth."

Not only will the plan be seamless, but developers will have a more difficult time changing zoning that does not match land use maps, Malone said.

In order to change the land use guide, three-fourths of the commission must approve the request. No action can be taken if more than one of the seven board members is absent.

Once the land use map is changed, the developer must receive approval for the proposed project from the Las Vegas City Council. The city, which includes 92 percent of Malone's district, is the only entity that provides sewer service.

"Land use decisions in the city belong to the city, and land use decisions in the county belong to the county," said Las Vegas city planner Chris Knight. "But we are intertwined because of the service issues."

While city and county officials spent several minutes congratulating themselves for working together, one skeptical resident raised serious doubts about the effort and the plan.

"I don't need all these warm and fuzzies," said Louise Ruskamp, a resident of the Tule Springs development in the northwest. "I know that the city and county should work together, and I know they don't work together."

She questioned how difficult it will be for a developer to change the land use guide. After all, the Clark County Commission is so well known for granting nonconforming zone changes developers often head to the county rather than the city.

According to planning records, the board has considered 44 nonconforming zone change requests in the last six months, and it approved 43 of them.

"With this agreement, it's business as usual," she said. "This amendment doesn't do anything to protect residents."

City officials were disappointed the county amended wording in the interlocal agreement recently approved by Las Vegas. The ordinance approved by the commission now must return to the City Council.

In the Las Vegas agreement, developers must seek annexation by the city before final decisions are made on zone changes. Malone said annexation didn't guarantee the zoning request would be granted and county attorneys believed it forced landowners into annexing.

Malone said the ordinance isn't as stringent as he had hoped, but the two entities would continue to work on it.