Funding shortage may curtail growth in parks

Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2002 | 9:30 a.m.

Easing crowds at North Las Vegas parks and developing more open spaces ranked high among concerns Tuesday night at an annual joint meeting of the City Council and the city's Parks and Recreation Advisory Board.

While the past five years have marked a milestone in park progress for North Las Vegas, next year's parks budget is going to be lean, Mayor Michael Montandon and the city's recreation manager, Jim Stritchko, said.

The city is beginning to draw up a new budget, but Stritchko said he didn't expect much more than the $2.6 million spent this year on maintenance for 28 existing parks.

That money covers more than keeping grass green on baseball fields, he said. It includes maintaining and repairing recreation centers such as Silver Mesa.

Single mother Amh Gainey-Sanders asked for more baseball fields for Little League players, who are competing with soccer teams and other active adults and children at the parks.

For low-income children, whose only outlet is often the Marty Barrett Little League, the city should open more parks near their homes, Gainey-Sanders said.

"Where we live, the library is considered a center," she said of the building on Civic Center Drive, where the meeting was held.

For James Corey, the issue centered on offering activities that would keep neighborhood kids off the streets, not with an ordinance such as the city of Henderson is proposing, but with parks that include such features as skateboarding.

"I don't have a silver bullet or a magic bean to throw in the ground and grow parks," Corey said.

Montandon said that the city has put a low priority on developing skateboard parks because of liability issues.

But recreation department staff should look into a skateboard park, Councilman William Robinson said, as long as someone expresses an interest.

"I, personally, wouldn't get on a skateboard, but if residents are interested, then look into it," Robinson said.

Council members, many of whom started on the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, said North Las Vegas is poised for a future filled with more open spaces, such as converting Craig Ranch Golf Course into a park.

The question is where to find enough funds to buy land and develop it, Montandon said.

The mayor estimated it would cost $30 million to acquire Craig Ranch Golf Course.

"It's not something the city can afford," he said, adding it costs about $200,000 to $250,000 per acre to develop a city park.

This year the city is asking for $7 million worth of trails, part of a valleywide ring of hiking paths. The funds may be a blend of federal and local dollars, especially with federal land sales in Southern Nevada raising money for protecting sensitive areas such as the Las Vegas Wash, Montandon said.

Councilwoman Stephanie Smith said she thought it was "remarkable" what the city accomplished in the past five years, citing Seastrand Park and Silver Mesa Recreation Center.

"I don't think we should feel completely discouraged," Smith said. "We have a bright future."

Corey didn't think the meeting accomplished much.

"What did we accomplish, other than talk?" he asked. "It's the same ideas as we've heard in the past."

However, the council and the board agreed to meet again next year to measure progress in the city's parks.