Editorial: Literally, it’s growth plan — or bust

Friday, Feb. 6, 2004 | 4:34 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION

Feb. 7 - 8, 2004

The County Commission called a special news conference Monday to talk about one issue -- growth. The next day, at the commission's regular meeting, growth again dominated the discussions as commissioners delivered their State of the County messages. Is growth finally about to get the attention it deserves? After watching our population nearly double during the 1990s, and after watching that same pace continue in this decade, we can only hope this newfound attention to the central issue of community life in the Las Vegas Valley sustains itself.

At Monday's news conference, Clark County Commissioners Mark James, Bruce Woodbury and Rory Reid talked about the need for seeing the big picture when it comes to the valley's growth. Currently, the Regional Planning Coalition discusses individual aspects of growth from time to time, and the cities and county all manage their own growth patterns heedless of the effects on their neighboring jurisdictions. No one is talking about how to collectively manage the valley's growth rate, which, at 6 percent or more a year, leads the nation. This might explain why there is no light rail system linking northwest Las Vegas to Henderson, and why housing prices are rising much faster than median incomes.

A big-picture analysis will require exactly what James, Woodbury and Reid pledged to form -- a citizens' task force whose members will bring ideas from all of their varied perspectives. Its mission will be to focus solely on the long-term vision for the Las Vegas Valley. It will need to consider the day-to-day problems that our urban planners and elected officials face, but it will not have to shoulder the burden of providing immediate solutions. Some city officials, reacting to news of the task force, worried about redundancy, saying they are engaged in growth planning every day. But that just further reveals the need for a task force. Fueling their everyday planning efforts are hundreds of applications from developers, most of which revolve around immediate needs in specific jurisdictions. Who is considering the entire valley in this frenzied, territoria l process?

The Jan. 25 Los Angeles Times magazine had this lead-in to its cover story on out-of-control growth: "A human wave is breaking over California. It's flooding the freeways and schools. It's bloating the cost of housing. It's disrupting power and water supplies. Ignoring reality hasn't worked. Maybe it's time for a plan?" We look ahead a few years and realize our future could be the same. The visions of local governments are constricted by their boundaries. Their elected officials are constantly changing, resulting in all-new agendas every few years for their own areas of responsibility. What's needed is consensus on a valley-wide plan.

All local governments and citizens should get behind this task force. It's our best chance yet to achieve the goals everyone agrees to be worthy: Affordable housing, efficient transportation, clean air, clean and available water and sufficient numbers of police, firefighters, schools and parks. Without a plan that can act like a thread linking all of us together, we can just go on with our hour-long commutes to work, overcrowded schools and huge deficits in nearly every aspect of public service.