Council votes down project, but doesn’t close the door

Jeffrey Libby

Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2002 | 9:20 a.m.

The Henderson City Council agreed with neighbors who thought 319 condominiums and homes were too many for the proposed 34-acre Fiesta Ranch development and voted down the project Tuesday night.

But the council gave Texas-based home builder D.R. Horton a raincheck, denying the plan without prejudice, which allows the developer to come back with changes in less than a year.

The council said that homes, not a light industrial complex, would be built on the parcel, which is zoned for light industry. It is tucked between a casino, an industrial park and two residential neighborhoods.

Homes will add residents to a downtown redevelopment area that needs a larger customer base, council members said, and homes will create less traffic than a commercial project.

Some residents argued for industry, saying the city ought to try to bring more businesses with jobs closer to home, but that debate was left mostly untouched.

There were no cheers in the packed City Council chambers after the council vote, but with five months of discussion behind them, homeowners gathered to talk outside in the parking lot, one group under an illuminated American flag.

"We would have accepted something single-story and less dense. That's what we fought for from the beginning," said Jerry Nimark, one of six homeowner representatives. "We're looking for something in the same density we're in."

Homeowner Brent Blanchard spoke as one of 69 residents who want the zoning kept light industrial, even if that means living with 40-foot buildings operating 24 hours a day.

"Is City Council the candyman that gives developers money to save them from their own bad investments?" Blanchard asked the council. He then answered his own question. "You're under no obligation to hand them their profits on a silver platter."

After discussions with residents, D.R. Horton cut 11 homes from plans and increased buffers, but said fewer homes would make profits difficult, given the price of the land. Landowners said the undisclosed price of the land was driven by costs of cleaning up contaminated soil.

Two residents spoke in favor of the project. Several more raised their hands when asked for a show of project supporters.

"I have a lot of young friends who would be grateful to have affordable homes where they can establish themselves," Amy Gallagher said.

Council members, while agreeing affordable housing was needed, said the project would have to be scaled back.

"In some of these triplex condos, you go out the front door and you're in the street before you can see what's coming down the road," Councilman Steve Kirk said. "It just feels like it's too dense." But Kirk and Councilmen Jack Clark and Andy Hafen said they liked the idea of homes being built there.

"That land has sat empty for 40 years," Clark said. "And there's not that many people in line waiting to build an industrial park."