Project Neon leaves some in dark

Nick Christensen

Sunday, Oct. 23, 2005 | 10:02 a.m.

Project Neon may have the flashiest name of any highway project in Nevada history, but for area residents and business owners, it's shrouded in a cloud of mystery.

Neon, the catchphrase for a study of alternatives for widening Interstate 15 in the area from Sahara Avenue to the Spaghetti Bowl, would require massive amounts of right of way along the route, taking out some houses and businesses while adding parallel freeway to the existing interstate. The project will also connect Industrial Road to Martin Luther King Boulevard via a flyover and new alignment.

Construction, which could cost in the vicinity of $500 million, could begin as soon as 2008.

And that's exactly what's worrying area residents Rod and Virginia Garrison, who have lived a stone's throw from the freeway since 1994.

"We're not in the line of fire where they're going to take it, they'll just use the air above us and the ground right up to us," Rod Garrison said. "They're going to dump their exhaust and dust and all the rest of that stuff on us for the rest of our lives."

Virginia Garrison said she knows there's a need for the project, but feels as though she's been left in the dark by planners and state transportation officials.

"If they would get everything together and keep us informed instead of a year from now, they come and say, 'Well, we may have a plan,' " she said. "They still don't have any decisions. We're not against it."

She's also worried about how her house will be impacted by the construction of the new freeway. When that begins, their neighbor, Dolores Hogan, will likely be moving. Part of her property is in the path of the expansion.

"I'm one property away from the freeway now, which is bad enough," Hogan said. "It's bad enough living with the debris from the freeway now. To be in your back yard -- no."

The stretch just west of I-15 between Sahara and Oakey Boulevard is one of the few owner-occupied properties to be affected by the project. Most are rental commercial properties east of the freeway; a few are rental residential properties just north of Charleston Boulevard. Those would be taken out for the new Martin Luther King alignment.

Property owners on both sides of the freeway are having a hard time selling their properties with the prospect of a government takeover looming. Others are preparing as best they can.

Bob Forbuss founded Mercy Ambulance and oversaw its 1982 move to its present location on Martin Luther King just south of Charleston. He now serves as a consultant for AMR, the company that bought Mercy.

He said that AMR, which leases its office space, has been planning this project for awhile.

"It's inevitable that the property will be impacted by the flyover thing," Forbuss said. "We've had this on the agenda for a long time. We thought of how to do this, we have a lot of alternative plans for facilities and will move forward."

Others who rent, such as Marty Wolf, just want to get some warning before they're asked to leave. Wolf runs a business that sells casino games to individuals, and has a small shop directly behind I-15 on Highland Drive.

"I don't want to be rushed if I have to move," he said. "I'd like to get enough notice. I don't know what they're offering to renters."

James Pratt, who works on right-of-way issues for the Nevada Transportation Department, said that generally, tenants do receive relocation benefits. He said the department will assist in looking for comparable rental space and if none can be found, the department would reimburse the difference for 42 months.

Transportation officials emphasized that the project is still in a study phase, and several more steps must be completed before any right of way can be acquired.