Editorial: Wide array of bids for land is hopeful

Friday, March 9, 2001 | 4:03 a.m.

Eclectic. Hodgepodge. Bizarre. All three words would be appropriate in describing the wide swath of proposals that the city of Las Vegas has received to develop a prime parcel of 61 acres in downtown. For instance, not only has the city received a bid to build a 2,200-foot-high building -- which would make it the tallest in the world -- but there also is a plan to develop an extreme-sports indoor ski park.

Sure, people will laugh at some of the pitches that -- let's be charitable -- are "inventive," but no one should be discouraged. What's important is for the city to go into this process with an open mind. The city also should ignore the temptation of selecting a proposal that could yield substantial property tax revenues, but does little to better the community. Indeed, one enticing proposal -- at least on paper -- is an academic medical campus, which would include a school of medicine, a cancer institute and other research facilities. In the end, the city should decide what is best for its residents -- whether it's today, 10 years from now or 50 years later. That is how great cities emerge, not by accident.

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