Redevelopment plan for site near I-15 is detailed

Mathis Winkler

Friday, Nov. 9, 2001 | 9:19 a.m.

The land would have to be cheap, if not free, and city officials would have to clean up surrounding areas.

That's what a developer told City Council members Wednesday while discussing a potential project for Lake Mead "island," a dilapidated, 6.7-acre parcel on Lake Mead Boulevard near Interstate 15.

City officials had asked Michael Carroll, a vice president for Jackson Shaw Co., to give council members an idea of problems related to developing the site.

Carroll obliged, and told city leaders that a developer would face serious challenges in regard to developing the land.

But, "We believe in the project," said Carroll, who made the presentation during the city's monthly redevelopment agency meeting. "We believe there will be a demand for this project."

For years, city officials have been trying to come up with a redevelopment plan for the site, which they see as a primary gateway to North Las Vegas. However, cheap apartment buildings, a run-down strip mall and boarded-up buildings still clutter the land.

Council members were happy with Carroll's suggestions to locate office buildings on the site.

"I sit here more excited than I can stand," Mayor Michael Montandon said. "That's the kind of lifeblood I'd like to have seen in a project in a long time."

He said the city should quickly move ahead with a project, as time to issue bonds and buy the property is running out. The "island" is in one of the city's redevelopment areas, which was created in 1990 and will lose this special status in 2020.

City officials estimate that it would cost between $4.1 million and $5.5 million to buy the land. Relocation costs for residents and businesses would add another $500,000. Several property owners have said they are unwilling to sell the land if the city plans to use it for private development rather than a public building or park.

Jacque Risner, the city's community development director, also cautioned council members about getting too excited.

"We're not looking at a specific project," she said. "I don't want the council to jump too far ahead."

She said it's still not clear whether the state Department of Transportation plans to widen the nearby freeway. Such a project may use up land and make redevelopment impossible.

Department officials said Thursday that it could be years before a decision is made on whether to widen the freeway.