Del Webb residents protest change in plan

Jennifer Robison

Thursday, Jan. 10, 2002 | 10:59 a.m.

A Del Webb Corp. plan to replace part of Sun City Anthem with a multi-generational component is raising the ire of some residents of the Henderson community.

Hundreds of Sun City Anthem residents attended meetings Wednesday during which Del Webb announced it is reducing the active adult community from 3,300 acres to 2,500 acres. Del Webb said it would use the acreage to build two new communities, including Anthem Highlands, a 580-acre, non-age restricted neighborhood.

The proposal, which would also eliminate one of the three golf courses planned at Sun City Anthem and downsize the community's second recreation center, isn't sitting well with some Sun City Anthem homeowners.

"Sun City Anthem was presented as a retirement community," said one homeowner who attended the developer's meeting but declined to identify himself. "We knew Coventry and the country club weren't age-restricted, but the master plan showed Sun City Anthem with three golf courses and two recreation centers. Now they're taking one golf course away and reducing the recreation center."

"The bottom line is, we all moved here under the auspices that it would be a senior community, and it would stay a senior community," said Bonnie Diamond, who broke ground on a home in Sun City Anthem Wednesday. "We moved here for a reason, and now all that is changing."

Other homeowners expressed concerns about safety and property values.

"We think it will bring crime to the community," said another homeowner who asked not to be identified. "It will bring teenage children into an adult community. The way we see it is, people who buy up here buy for an age-restricted community. If you had to go through a bad part of Las Vegas to get across the street, you'd avoid it like the plague."

Sean Patrick, director of public affairs for Del Webb, said the home prices at Anthem Highlands -- from $160,000 to $450,000 -- would protect property values at Sun City Anthem.

"It's not a trailer park," Patrick said. "If you look at Sun City MacDonald Ranch, you'll see an example of what we're doing. Sun City MacDonald Ranch is surrounded by family neighborhoods, and the community doesn't have increased crime or teenagers in the recreation center.

"From day one, Anthem has been billed as a multigenerational community."

Patrick said residents at Anthem Highlands would not have access to the recreational facilities at Sun City Anthem, and the smaller number of households within Sun City Anthem would improve residents' access to the recreation centers.

"Change is difficult for everybody," Patrick said. "It's a matter of education and experience. There are some benefits in this, but residents will have to experience those benefits to appreciate them."

Del Webb also seeks to use acreage once planned for Sun City Anthem to build Solera, a new age-restricted brand the company is unveiling in Phoenix this spring and in Las Vegas next spring. Homes at Solera will be smaller and less expensive than those at Sun City Anthem, with prices ranging from $130,000 to $220,000.

Patrick said the master-plan alterations were designed to help Del Webb "position itself to take advantage of the changing market," which he said includes a demand for smaller homes and fewer upgrades in the age-restricted market, as well as demand for more alternatives in the "family niche."

Del Webb also plans to sell 30 acres of land adjacent to Sun City Anthem for the development of an assisted-living center or other senior housing such as condominiums or townhomes.

Chris Haines, vice president and general manager of Del Webb Nevada, said Del Webb had been discussing modifications in its Anthem master-plan for about a year -- prior to the developer's summer merger with Pulte Home Corp.

"This is a Del Webb plan, not a Pulte decision," Haines said in his presentation to the homeowners.

Though Pulte may not have been involved in revamping Anthem's master-plan, Patrick said the builder "has spoken for half" the Anthem Highlands community.

He said Del Webb hasn't yet chosen homebuilders for the remaining portion of Anthem Highlands.

Not all Sun City Anthem residents are up in arms over Del Webb's proposal.

"What we heard in the developer's meeting we consider a natural progression of a developing community," said Roy Paterson, who has lived in Sun City Anthem since June. "It's a matter of development. It's progress."

Del Webb's master-plan modifications are slated to go before the city of Henderson next month for approval.