Developer, residents compromise on hillside

Jeffrey Libby

Wednesday, March 6, 2002 | 9:11 a.m.

Developer Rich MacDonald gave up 70 apartment units in about three hours Tuesday, but he won approval for a 632-acre hillside development that had waited for a go-ahead for more than a year.

Residents of nearby Sun City MacDonald Ranch -- described by one speaker as an "older, arthritic, back-aching population" of former dockworkers, firemen and stockbrokers -- appeared for the most part content with the compromises reached on issues of density and open space.

"There was a lot of compromise all the way around," said Maureen Progar, spokeswoman for a small group of Sun City residents calling itself the Hillside Preservation Committee. "We knew something was going to be built there, but the low density and deed-restricted open space are really important for the preservation of those hillsides, so that people can enjoy them aesthetically and physically."

The Henderson City Council members, consulting frequently with City Attorney Shauna Hughes, also appeared confident that they had reduced the density of the project as much as they could without having to fear a lawsuit.

MacDonald said he was "mostly happy" with the compromises.

The 920-unit project will be built on 209 acres in the picturesque hillsides south of Green Valley and Horizon Ridge parkways, leaving 423 acres of open space.

The City Council denied a requested waiver that would have allowed MacDonald to build 990 units, but approved a higher density than recommended by the Henderson Planning Commission.

The project includes 228 homes that will list at $400,000 and 692 apartments.