Report addresses growth problems in Clark County

David Kihara

Thursday, Feb. 3, 2005 | 10:02 a.m.

Water conservation, maintaining affordable and attainable housing and finding cures for the county's growing traffic problems are a few of the many issues discussed in a report presented to the Clark County Growth Task Force on Wednesday.

The report, compiled by the Lied Institute for Real Estate Studies, also looked at proposed high rises and redevelopment of downtown Las Vegas, as well as young people's views on open space and the lack of good transportation in the county.

The report is the product of a series of focus groups hosted by the Lied staff and the county. It asked a variety of people on technical committees their opinions on growth issues facing the county, as well as members of the community of both urban and non-urban areas of Clark County.

One focus group, which included members of the Sierra Club, Southern Nevada Homebuilders Association and the Clark County Health District, found that many participants wanted the water restrictions in Clark County to remain in place, said Robert Schmidt of the Lied Institute for Real Estate Studies.

Schmidt presented portions of the report to the six task force members who attended Wednesday's meeting.

The participants also found that development of the Ivanpah Airport south of Las Vegas could lead to an increase in air-borne pollution, while the influx of people moving to Clark County will also affect environmental health if measures are not taken, according to the report.

The focus groups did not seek to find solutions. Rather, they discussed issues core issues of development facing the area.

Another focus group included the opinions of more than 70 high school seniors from several area high schools, including Community College High School West, said Akil Manely, management analyst at Clark County's administrative services, who presented a brief report to the task force members.

He said that transportation was the biggest issue facing the students, specifically traffic congestion and the need for a light rail transit system.

An inadequate number of bus stops and bus routes was also discussed, said Manley, who recounted the story of one student who had to walk five miles to a bus stop because the student lived in a newly built community outside the service of any buses.

"The student found it easier to drive," he said.

Finding affordable and attainable housing was also a major concern to the students, Manley said. Many students expressed fears that they wouldn't be able to afford a house in Clark County, or would be so deeply in debt that they will be "in a hole in trying to start out," according to the report.

Also, many of the seniors were choosing to attend college out of state or in Northern Nevada because they can't afford rents in Las Vegas, Manley said.

"Students said they are studying up North or out of state because the cost of living in Las Vegas is so expensive," Manley said. "They said there is no way they could work full time and go to school full time, there is no way they could live here."

The task force did not have a quorum since only six members of the task force attended the meeting. This was not a problem, as the task force was not slated to take action on any items, said Leonard "Pat" Goodall, chairman of the task force.