Columnist Jeff German: You just can’t fight City Hall

Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2004 | 10:44 a.m.

The neighbors in the residential community just south of the Santa Fe Station thought they made it clear that they were opposed to a luxury apartment complex in the area.

They spoke out against it at the Las Vegas Planning Commission last month, gathered petitions signed by 356 residents, registered their concerns directly with their city councilman and sent a small group of homeowners to last Thursday's council meeting in protest.

They thought they did their homework, pointing out that, with an 8.9 percent apartment vacancy rate within a two-mile radius of their homes, there isn't even a need for a 426-unit complex. They argued there would be more traffic congestion, a rise in crime and overcrowding at the nearby elementary school.

They thought they did the things they needed to do to convince the City Council that the project was a bad fit.

They thought wrong.

In a 5-1 vote orchestrated by their own councilman, Michael Mack, the council rezoned the property, which sits on 17.8 acres of land across the street from the Santa Fe, from single family residences to the higher apartment density.

The property, which is bordered by Rainbow Boulevard, Lone Mountain Road and Rancho Drive, is owned by former Santa Fe operator Paul Lowden and his family and is being developed by Alan Molasky, the son of influential businessman Irwin Molasky.

Aside from the Santa Fe, the Draught House down the street and a few other small businesses, the area is all homes. There are no apartment complexes in the immediate vicinity, and there likely won't be many more businesses popping up because the commercial district has been moved to the thriving Town Center area about a mile away.

So the residents were hoping their generally quiet lifestyle would remain that way for years.

They learned otherwise at Thursday's meeting, when things didn't go their way right off the bat. As the rezoning item came up, one councilman asked for a brief recess, but Councilman Gary Reese, who was chairing the meeting at the time, denied the request, saying: "This will only take a few minutes, won't it?"

The low point came after a handful of residents was given a token three minutes each to address the council. Mack threw it in their faces when he made the specious argument that the apartment complex was needed because interest rates likely will go up and homeowners will be looking for more affordable housing.

This week he said he was referring to homeowners throughout the valley, not just those in the Santa Fe area. People who can afford to buy a home with the low adjustable rates today may not be able to continue making their payments when the rates increase, which will create a new demand for apartments, he said.

When the hearing ended, it was obvious the neighbors never had a chance.

"I don't understand," said Todd Donnelly, who will have a view of the apartment complex from his back yard on Painted Desert Drive. "We thought we had the numbers."

But numbers don't count when elected officials favor haphazard growth and the interests of influential developers and landlords over the quality of life of their constituents.

Mack insisted the vote was a tough call for him.

"I believe I'm doing what's best for the community as a whole, and I think (the neighbors) will thank me down the road," he said.

Robert Eagle, another angry neighbor, said he knows when Mack will be thanked.

"We'll thank him when he comes up for re-election," Eagle said.