North Las Vegas seeks wash land

Dan Kulin

Tuesday, April 15, 2003 | 10:08 a.m.

Eight property owners with a combined 20.6 acres along Upper Las Vegas Wash could end up in court over North Las Vegas' efforts to acquire land for a planned $37 million concrete flood control channel.

The North Las Vegas City Council is scheduled to vote Wednesday to authorize city staff to go to court to force the sale of the properties through condemnation.

The planned 3.8-mile channel would connect the North Las Vegas Detention Basin to the flood control channel near the intersection of Losee and Lone Mountain roads, Randal Cagle, city real property services manager, said.

The channel would replace a natural wash that cuts through those properties, and turn property that is now in a federally designated flood zone into developable land, Cagle said.

The affected property owners are not really against the city's plans, but "there are some who don't agree with the city's offers," Cagle said.

The city would continue to negotiate for the land sales even if the condemnation proceedings were approved. The forced sales might be a necessity because the city needs the rights to the properties in order to apply for funding from the Clark County Regional Flood Control District in May, Cagle said. The district would be asked to pay for the whole project, he said.

Frances Combs Utt owns about 26 acres near Dorrell Lane and North Fifth Street. The city is trying to buy two of those acres for the channel project.

Utt said she agrees with the plans for the channel, but was not happy with the city's $43,000 offer for her land.