County reviews Apex residential development plan

Friday, July 19, 2002 | 9:32 a.m.

A proposed 3,000-acre development 13 miles north of downtown Las Vegas moved a step closer to reality Thursday.

Developers of the proposed North Hills master-planned community on a portion of the Apex Industrial Park met with Clark County agencies to review a concept plan for the project.

The project would be built on the south edge of the 21,000-acre industrial park, immediately west of Interstate 15. It would be near Nellis Air Force Base and the Las Vegas Speedway.

Before the project can go forward, it must be reviewed by the Clark County Planning Commission, an advisory board, and approved by the Clark County Commissioners.

Marta Brown, assistant planning manager, said representatives from agencies and departments throughout county government met with Industrial Properties Development to discuss potential concerns on the project.

She declined to discuss details of the conversation, saying any issues are still under negotiation.

Adam Titus, Industrial Properties Development, said the concerns were not big enough to stop the project.

"A lot of their concerns would have been satisfied by a site visit out there," he said. "We did not attempt to satisfy all of their concerns today. We anticipate trying to resolve all of their concerns before going before the Board of County Commissioners."

The concept plan for the project is to go to the planning commission Aug. 22 and the county commission Sept. 4, Brown said.

The reception for the project has been mixed. Commissioner Mary Kincaid-Chauncey, who represents the area, has said she is likely to favor residential development in the area.

Commissioner Bruce Woodbury, who played a role in the development of the industrial park, has said he made a commitment to keep residential development out of the area.

"The land we are proposing for residential was never going to be used for industrial because of the mountainous terrain in that portion of the property," Titus said.

The craggy hillsides of the area are more suitable for residential development and provide a natural buffer from industrial uses in the north part of the park, he said.