Henderson’s downtown plan soars; LV’s sags

Erin Neff and Valerie Miller

Friday, May 26, 2000 | 10:53 a.m.

Cities nationwide are recreating their downtowns with sports arenas, cultural centers and waterfront shopping arcades.

Redevelopment isn't just a buzz word in Cleveland where Jacobs Field has sparked creation of new restaurants, hotels and shops. And revitalization isn't just a wide-eyed vision in downtown Los Angeles where the popular Staples Center is already having an effect in a once blighted area.

Receptive public officials in Southern Nevada see the successes nationwide and want it to happen here. But the state's two largest cities -- Las Vegas and Henderson -- are reaching for that same goal from different heights.

In fact, you could say revitalization in the neighboring communities is something of a tale of two cities.

While Henderson has suddenly shifted into high gear with plans to redevelop its "Main Street," Las Vegas is still mired in a morass of conflicting visions and miscommunication.

"I'm still not entirely clear where we're going and what role each of our (redevelopment) entities plays," said Las Vegas City Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald during a recent budget hearing.

And while he publicly cheers a recent "milestone" in the stalled downtown Neonopolis entertainment center, Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman privately has very mixed feelings about the project.

"Let's just say that if I was the mayor back then, we might not be in this situation," Goodman said in a recent interview.

Just down the highway, Henderson's vision remains unified. The first step is the expansion of the planned redevelopment area from nearly 1,300 acres to more than 4,100.

That expansion is aimed at spreading revitalization efforts from downtown's Water Street projects to private developments, including the 300-acre site proposed for the Nevada State College.

While Henderson approaches projects like the 590-acre Palm City development and the 2,400-acre Provenance development with youthful energy, Las Vegas is lurching forward, with as many failures as successes.

"I see Las Vegas' redevelopment efforts as being more in midlife, while Henderson is more in its teenage years," said Brad Percell, Henderson's senior redevelopment officer.

Percell knows the different obstacles facing Henderson and Las Vegas because he has worked for both. He spent seven years as a senior redevelopment officer in Las Vegas from 1988 to 1995, before going to Henderson in 1995 with the birth of its Redevelopment Agency.

"The major difference is that Henderson never really has had a thriving downtown, where Las Vegas has," he said.

Outside of the casinos, downtown Las Vegas' businesses and homes have largely been ignored or paved over.

The city paid $32 million to buy businesses and tear them down to make way for Neonopolis. Two years later, the city is begging developers to build markets, shops and services that residents of a nearby new housing complex can use.

Former Las Vegas Mayor Jan Laverty Jones championed efforts to build the Fremont Street Experience pedestrian mall to save downtown's aging and increasingly noncompetitive casinos.

During a recent visit to Reno, Goodman marveled at that city's attempts to redevelop the area near the Truckee River.

"It's amazing what a river can do," Goodman said. "I'd trade the Fremont Street Experience for the Truckee in a heartbeat."

The biggest obstacle in both Las Vegas and Henderson is assembling small parcels of land for redevelopment as a larger scale project.

"If you want to buy an office-sized parcel for a major building in Henderson, you have to buy numerous parcels to put a project together," Percell said. "You would have to have three parcels for a 7-Eleven store, or 12 parcels for a motel."

The Henderson Redevelopment Agency purchased 17 parcels that may be used for future downtown redevelopment at the northeastern corner of Basic Road and Water Street.

The Fountain Plaza -- a $90 million to $100 million office, hotel, shopping and convention development -- is planned on the site.

While Henderson officials have spent $50 million constructing public buildings such as City Hall and the criminal justice center, creating a retail environment is viewed as the private sector's responsibility.

But the city's proposed expansion of the redevelopment zone will create a much larger chunk of the city from which tax revenue can be culled.

Expanding the size of Henderson's zone will increase the revenue stream available to the city, according to city finance director Steve Hanson. Currently only four gaming properties and a few shops contribute taxes to Henderson's overall redevelopment revenue.

"It's easier to attract businesses if you have gaming properties," Percell said.

But Las Vegas' downtown casino revenues have largely decreased over the past several years and plans for other revenue-generating projects keep hitting snags.

Neonopolis, the proposed $99 million entertainment retail center adjacent to the Fremont Street Experience, is two years behind schedule.

The project's original anchor tenant, Mann Theatres, pulled out when its parent company filed for bankruptcy protection last fall. Developers have yet to lease any space in the 3-story center.

Las Vegas recently cashed a $9.6 million letter of credit from Neonopolis financier Prudential Insurance Co. of America for the city's construction of an underground parking garage.

Mike Forche, president of the CCDC, said the new emphasis on city-built parking garages at private sector developments will help ensure against fewer failures.

Although plans for major office towers have fallen through, both Sun Plaza and Minami Tower failures left the city with usable and assembled land for other projects.

The land on which the new federal building downtown is being built was assembled for the Minami complex that failed in the early 1990s. Similarly, a proposed office tower by the Pauls Corp. is now possible due to the land prepared last year for the Sun Plaza.

But city officials can't stomach another major roadblock -- even if it creates room for future success.

Goodman has proposed creating a large fund for assisting developers in assembling parcels for downtown projects.

"I envision it as a land trust fund so that dollars will not be the problem for developers," Goodman said.

The problem now is finding the start-up money in tight city budget coffers or from private donations from the business community, which thus far has been unwilling to put its money behind the mayor.

Even as the city moves toward such a fund for assembling parcels, a 178-acre parcel of prepared land lies vacant adjacent to downtown and the Spaghetti Bowl.

The land owned by Union Pacific and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. has been the rumored site of everything from a domed stadium to Metro Police headquarters. Yet the high price the owners are seeking for the property has proven prohibitive.

Several developers familiar with both cities say Henderson seems to have a more cohesive vision that public officials keep in focus from administration to administration.

"A new mayor or council can come in and totally change direction on the plans," said a developer familiar with both cities who asked not to be named.

Judi Woodyard-Suntic, senior vice president of Lee & Associates commercial real estate services, said she thinks Henderson has an edge because of the players involved.

"One of the primary reasons Henderson is having success is that the developers are longtime residents and stakeholders," Woodyard-Suntic said.

Woodyard-Suntic was referring specifically to a proposal by the Phyllis E. Thompson limited liability company for the $100 million Fountain Plaza. Thompson is a lifelong Henderson resident.

The Fountain Plaza project, which is still in negotiation with the city, has already lined up its anchor tenant. The first pharmacy school in the state's history is hoping to move into Fountain Plaza when the downtown Henderson project is completed.

Percell suggests another successful approach Henderson has is modeling its efforts after redevelopment efforts in Tempe, Ariz., and Palm Springs, Calif.

Both were chosen, he said, in part because nongaming development drove their revitalization.

"Cities other than Las Vegas, like Palm Springs, have to look at attractions other than gaming to draw people to their downtowns," Percell said. "That's what we are trying to do with the Farmers Market and the ArtFest, to draw people to their downtown."

Las Vegas is modeling its efforts mostly on the successful redevelopment in San Diego. However, the city has deviated from San Diego's overall plan, and not just because Las Vegas has numerous downtown casinos.

In San Diego, there are several CCDC boards to handle different aspects of redevelopment. One focuses on the central business district, while another handles housing and another deals with outlying areas.

"I think we need more than one CCDC to focus on efforts outside of our downtown," said Las Vegas City Councilman Lawrence Weekly. "It's no fault of the CCDC because they are supposed to look after the downtown.

"But I think it's time for a new focus," Weekly said.

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