City’s first historic district designated

Judy Odierna

Thursday, March 20, 2003 | 8:41 a.m.

The Las Vegas City Council designated the John S. Park neighborhood the city's first historic district Wednesday.

The council voted 6-0 to establish the historic district. Councilman Lawrence Weekly was absent.

The historic district will be in a residential area southeast of Charleston and Las Vegas boulevards. The boundaries are Park Paseo and Franklin avenues, and Ninth Street and Fifth Place.

The area is also being submitted to the National Register of Historic Places for possible designation.

Before the vote, proponents and opponents of the designation spoke out. People opposed to the designation said they wanted to retain the right to make changes to their homes.

Mayor Oscar Goodman tried to dispel what he called misconceptions that had been circulating about what it means to have a home within a historic district.

"Nobody's rights are being abused or violated," Goodman said.

He asked if there would be a homeowners association, if there was a fee and if someone would be restricted from painting their home pink if they wanted to. The answer from Planning Director Margo Wheeler was no.

"So what's the big deal?" Goodman asked.

For Park Paseo resident Michael Ganson, and many other residents, it was a big deal.

"It's my freedom of choice," Ganson said. "I don't like the idea of people who don't live in my area coming in and telling me what to do with my property."

However, according to Wheeler, the only effect the district will have on residents is if they want to make substantial modifications to the home, such as demolition or zoning changes, then they would have to go before the Historic Preservation Commission in addition to the Planning Commission and City Council.

The John S. Park Neighborhood Association has been seeking the designation since August 2000, when it wrote a letter to the city requesting a neighborhood plan be developed.

"We're not any different than any other neighborhood except this gives ourselves a certain amount of pride," said resident Glen Meek. "This is a real neighborhood and we'd like to keep it that way."