Gorman moving to southwest

Tuesday, April 29, 2003 | 11:14 a.m.

The Catholic Diocese of Las Vegas plans to raise $25 million to help pay for a new Bishop Gorman High School in Summerlin.

The high school's development corporation has signed an agreement with the Howard Hughes Corp. to purchase 35 acres off Hualapai near Russell Road, said Rachel Wilkie, spokeswoman for Bishop Gorman. The purchase price was not disclosed.

The new school, expected to cost between $35 million and $40 million, will open in the fall of 2007, Wilkie said.

"We are extremely excited about the opportunities our new campus will allow for our students and our community," said Bishop Joseph Pepe, head of the Diocese of Las Vegas, in a written statement. "We wanted to create an environment that would provide our students with the best possible spiritual, educational, arts and sports facilities and this new campus will let us achieve all of that and more."

The school's fund-raising drive's $25 million goal is $1 million more than what the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' foundation netted last year in its fund-raising campaign.

No decision has been made as to what will be done with the campus that has housed the school for 50 years, located in the 1800 block of Maryland Parkway, Wilkie said. Any plans -- including selling the property or continuing to use it as a school -- would have to be approved by the Vatican, Wilkie said.

"The one thing that we wish to stress to our alumni, the community and the neighbors of Bishop Gorman is that we are not abandoning the current high school and are presently in the process of reviewing a variety of educational alternatives for the property," Pepe said.

Bishop Gorman will be the third private high school in Summerlin, joining the Meadows School and Faith Lutheran High School. The master-planned community also includes Palo Verde, a public high school. Some Summerlin residences are zoned for two other public high schools -- Cimarron-Memorial and Sierra Vista.

"Bishop Gorman High School has played a significant role in the education of our valley's youth," said Larry Brocato, executive vice president of the Howard Hughes Corp. "We have worked closely with the Diocese of Las Vegas to ensure Bishop Gorman High School will continue this legacy in its new location."

Plans for the new Bishop Gorman campus include a 200-seat chapel, a technology center, a performing arts theater and athletic facilities that could be used to host competitions for the school and surrounding community, officials said.

Currently Bishop Gorman has about 850 students, paying yearly tuition of $5,600 for Catholics and $6,550 for non-Catholics. Graduates include former Gov. Bob Miller and current Clark County Sheriff Bill Young.

Clark County School Board trustee Denise Brodsky, whose district includes Summerlin, said Monday while she hoped the opening of Bishop Gorman would alleviate some overcrowding at public high schools she didn't expect an exodus of students.

"We have such high-achieving schools in that area, I would be surprised if a large number of students chose to leave," Brodsky said.

Brodsky said her only concern was that Bishop Gorman's ambitious capital campaign could draw away funds that might otherwise go to the area's public schools.

"I'd hate to see us lose a single dollar, given these tough economic times," Brodsky said.

The Clark County School Board meets May 7 to hammer out its $1.3 billion budget for the 2003-04 fiscal year, which could include the $110 million in cuts Gov. Kenny Guinn has said will be necessary if his tax plan is not approved by the Legislature.