City hopes apartments help old neighborhood

Thursday, Nov. 21, 2002 | 9:22 a.m.

The Las Vegas City Council Wednesday had to choose between two goals it has long held for downtown: a project to breathe new life into a rundown area and the preservation of one of the city's oldest and most historic neighborhoods.

After a spirited debate over the proposed construction of a six-story senior housing complex at Bonanza Road and Main Street overlooking the 60-year-old Biltmore subdivision, the City Council voted 7-0 to approve the project.

They said in the long run the apartments will improve conditions for the neighborhood and wipe out one corner of highly visible urban blight.

"This is exactly what we were looking for," Mayor Oscar Goodman said of the mixed-use commercial and apartment project.

The building will be six stories on Main Street, but a step-back design for the upper tiers makes it just three stories along First Street across from the working class neighborhood of candy-colored, two-bedroom concrete-block houses.

Goodman said the 325-unit garden-style apartment project "is a lot better than looking across at that blighted vacant lot." He said he would welcome such a project across the street from his home.

"We were sensitive to the residents in the area and the project sold itself," Bill Curran, an attorney representing Bonanza Realty, said after the vote. He had told the council this project "will be the crown jewel in the effort to revitalize the area."

The council unanimously approved the site development plan review, a required zoning change and variance, and a special use permit to build the apartment complex on about 2.9 acres.

Neighbors did not oppose the need for senior housing. They questioned the need for such a tall building -- 68 feet, 2 inches -- in an area where few buildings are taller than three stories.

"We object to the height -- it's just too damn tall," said Ken Williams, a neighbor who collected 87 signatures against the project from the 115 homes in Biltmore.

"This project should be scaled to be sensitive to the neighborhood, not dominate it," Williams, a retired California attorney, said outside the meeting. He said it lacks "appropriate transition or buffering elements to mitigate adverse visual and aesthetic impacts."

Dennis Rusk, the Las Vegas architect for the project, disagreed, saying the setback on First Street is 15 feet longer than the normal setback for a 5-foot sidewalk. As the project tiers upward, residents on the upper floors get farther from Biltmore, ensuring more privacy for Biltmore residents.

"At the top floor, it is 120 feet away from the Biltmore homes," Rusk said.

Rusk said the developer plans to break ground in March and have the complex open for business at this time next year.

That makes some of the neighbors real happy.

"It seems like a terrific project -- I don't care if it is as tall as the Empire State building," said native Las Vegan Lillian Isquith, who lives across the street from the site.

Another nearby resident called the project "the Hanging Gardens of Babylon" compared with the dilapidated motel that used to stand on that corner.

But others agreed with Williams. One Biltmore resident called the proposed building "totally out of character with the neighborhood."

The neighborhood was built in the early 1940s and includes single-family homes on mostly 60-by-100-foot lots. It is a stop on the Pioneer Trail, which marks historic sites from Valley View Boulevard and U.S. 95 to the Old Mormon Fort.

The project was unanimously recommended for approval by the city Planning Commission on Oct. 24.

Some protesters wanted the project reduced to three stories -- no taller than 40 feet -- and limited to 100 units. They also questioned whether there will be enough parking. The developer is putting in about 500 spaces, 50 more than required by the city, Curran said.

Curran said the project will have no First Street entrance or exit to further lessen the effect on single-family homes in the area.