Neighbors seek standing in Stratosphere suit

Diana Sahagun

Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2002 | 9 a.m.

Neighborhood activists who helped torpedo plans for another thrill ride at the Stratosphere hope to stay just as involved in the hotel's legal battle with the city of Las Vegas.

The Stratosphere in June sued the City Council after it denied its plans for a 510-foot thrill ride that would race across Las Vegas Boulevard. Neighbors living in the area east of the Stratosphere inundated the council with claims that the ride would hurt their quality of life.

Those same residents -- representing more than 2,500 people in three neighborhood associations -- were expected to file a motion today to intervene in the court case to ensure their interests are protected.

While the city attorney's office will be defending the council's decision to deny the project, Attorney JoNell Thomas -- a resident who is representing the associations -- said the residents want to have a presence in the case to make sure their concerns are heard.

"The city attorney's office has lots of cases and different issues," Thomas said. "While we think they'll do a competent job, we don't think they have the same drive and motivation we have in our hearts, because it's not their homes."

While filing to intervene in a case may be common, Thomas said she has found few examples of a neighborhood association intervening in a lawsuit. But she said because the neighbors have been so active in the case since the ride was first proposed last year, they wanted to stay just as involved in the legal fight.

"We were there at the beginning, and we want to be there at the end," she said.

According to the motion to intervene, the residents have a "significant interest" in the case because of their proximity to the proposed ride. The motion also states that the residents' "personal interest in this matter differs significantly from the institutional interest of the city government."

Stratosphere officials had no comment on the residents' plan to intervene in the lawsuit. Attorneys with the city attorney's office could not be reached for comment.

Part of the association's arguments will be the same as those of the city, Thomas said, including that the council acted within its discretion in denying the Stratosphere's application.

If the residents are not allowed to intervene, Thomas will ask a judge to allow them to participate as "friends of the court." They would not be a party in the lawsuit, but their comments would become part of the record.

When asked about the expected filing last month, Mayor Oscar Goodman, a former criminal defense attorney, said he wasn't against the idea. But he questioned whether the residents would have standing in the lawsuit.

Goodman said he believes that the city has a strong case, adding that the council's statements when voting against the project are strong.

Ben Contine, a resident in the Beverly Green association, said the motion to intervene is a continuation of the neighborhood's grass-roots efforts over the last year.

"I think we've -- for the past few years -- fought very hard to protect the integrity of this neighborhood, and this is just another step that we've taken upon ourselves to defend ourselves at the City Council level and in a court of law to make sure what we've built up in this neighborhood is protected," Contine said.