Downtown stream is expected to flow again

Friday, June 4, 2004 | 11:28 a.m.

"Oscar's River," a block-long trickling stream downtown opened by Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman in 2002, was left high and dry last year like other water features in the region because of the drought.

The stream through the plaza at Lewis Avenue between Las Vegas Boulevard South and 4th Street, though, should have water in it again soon. City officials said Thursday that they plan to use "nuisance" water pumped from under city buildings to keep the river running.

At the underground parking garage at Neonopolis, the city collects water and sends it to a storm drain. Failure to pump out the water would damage the structure, city officials said, and could threaten other downtown buildings.

Instead of letting the water run down the storm drain, the city is considering filling trucks with the waste water to clean city streets and replenish the Lewis Avenue water feature.

"We are exploring new ways to conserve and to better use our precious water resources," City Manager Doug Selby said. "We believe we can accomplish this goal by making creative use of water that would otherwise by sent down the storm drain and lost."

"Nuisance" water drains into downtown, one of the lower parts of the valley, and collects about 10 feet under the surface. It typically comes from overwatering and is brackish and undrinkable.

The Las Vegas Valley Water District does not generally support the operation of any water fountains or other features because it lends support to the perception that the region isn't a smart user of the increasingly limited resource. But J.C. Davis, water district spokesman, said that if a water feature is going to operate, the best water to use is the "nuisance" water pumped from the shallow aquifer underneath the urban area.

"It's a rather unique situation," Davis said. "We're trying to discourage commercial fountains, but if you're going to have a commercial fountain, using shallow-system nuisance water would be the way to go, the most non-impactful way to go.

"It's a resource neutral thing, which is good."

Davis noted that another advantage is a reduction in low-quality water being pumped into the storm drains, which eventually feed into the Las Vegas Wash. That means the water quality in the wash, which feeds into Lake Mead, also improves by a tiny margin, he said.

One potential problem exists in the plan to use the water for the Lewis Avenue feature. Homeless people used water in the feature to bathe, clean clothes and for other purposes.

"That's something we'll definitely have to consider," said Heather Curry, a city spokeswoman. "Because this is not clean water, we'll have to consider what kind of human contact there will be with this water."

Other downtown features are taking different approaches. Fremont Street Experience President Joe Schillaci said the small water feature in his attraction would be going the route preferred by the water district.

Instead of a fountain, people will see planted flowers to spruce up Fremont Street, he said.