Desert project foes say water is problem

Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2001 | 10:50 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Lobbyist-businessman Harvey Whittemore wants to start construction on his desert community 50 miles north of Las Vegas, but opponents say the project should be delayed until there is firm evidence of an underground water supply.

Whittemore told state Engineer Hugh Ricci there is a market demand for projects that allow people to escape the urban environment but still be close to it.

But lawyers for the U.S. Interior Department, Nevada Power Co., and the Moapa Valley Water District urged Ricci to postpone Whittemore's application until more studies determine the quantity of underground water in the area, known as Coyote Springs Valley.

Ricci and hearing officer Susan Joseph-Taylor started taking testimony Monday and have set aside two weeks for the case.

Whittemore and his partner, David Loeb, spent $25 million buying 42,000 acres of desert land straddling Clark and Lincoln counties and want to develop a community of more than 50,000 people dotted with at least four golf courses. The two have also spent an additional $8 million for consulting and other fees.

Whittemore said the first phase of his development calls for a golf course plus 250 to 500 homes.

The Whittemore-Loeb partnership filed 15 applications to draw 108,585 acre feet from a deep aquifer. Whittemore is asking Ricci for permission to initially pump only 15,000 acre feet in Clark County and 15,000 acre feet in Lincoln County.

Whittemore said half of the 30,000 acre feet would be set aside for such uses as an ice-making plant or bottling facility. The other water would be used for the homes and the golf courses, he said.

But Steve Palmer, attorney for the Interior Department, said the evidence is that the ground water in the Coyote Springs Valley is fully appropriated. And even now it is affecting the springs that feed the Muddy River.

More pumping, Palmer said, would cause an "additional significant impact." He said there is concern that it would harm the endangered Moapa dace fish, the Moapa National Wildlife Refuge, the Lake Mead Recreation Area and the Moapa Indian Reservation.

Frank Flaherty, representing Nevada Power Co., said the utility relies on water in this area to cool the Reid-Gardner plant and also the Harry Allen generating facility.

Nobody knows, Flaherty said, how much water is available. The applications by Whittemore's Coyote Springs Investment LLC is "far too much and far too soon," Flaherty said. He urged Ricci to take a "go slow" approach to granting any water permits in this area.

Bob Marshall, attorney for the Moapa Valley Water District, said nobody knows what effect more pumping would have on downstream users. He urged that Whittemore's applications be held in abeyance until there is solid evidence of how much water is available.

The Las Vegas Valley Water District is also asking to pump 27,512 acre feet of water from this valley. And the Moapa Valley Water District is a partner in that application.

An acre foot is enough to support a family of five for a year.

Whittemore said development would come first on the 13,100 acres in Clark County. He said conservation plans still have to be developed for Lincoln County, including some plan to preserve the desert tortoise.

Whittemore said he believes there is enough underground water to serve both his project and to allow the Las Vegas Valley Water District to pump its supply.

Whittemore said two of the proposed golf courses would be designed by Jack Nicklaus, a third by Hale Erwin and the other by Robert Trent Jones Jr.

He stressed the need for golf courses, saying Las Vegas has fewer golf courses per capita than any other major resort. Golfers drive to Pahrump, Mesquite or Dixie to play.

Whittemore said he and Loeb have the financial resources to make this project a success, one of the requirements for getting the water permits.

Whittemore, who is managing partner in the Reno office of the Lionel, Sawyer, Collins law firm, detailed some of his holdings, including:

* Co-partner in Wingfield Nevada Co., a development near Sparks.

* Managing member of a number of development companies called Eagle Wing Development,Tahoe Development.

* Chico Development in California, which is a warehouse and distribution facility.

* Shareholder and officer in 7-UP bottling company of Reno, 7-Up RC of Chico, and Treasure Valley Beverages in Idaho and Wyoming.

* Chairman of Wild West Electronics in Reno.

* Managing member of four oil and gas companies in West Virginia and owner of the American Gaming Summit, which holds conferences in Las Vegas.