Commission makes second pass at mass transit center

Wednesday, April 12, 2006 | 7:36 a.m.

A year after homeowner opposition scuttled plans for a mass transit center in Henderson, the Regional Transportation Commission wants to pay the city $4.4 million for an 18-acre site officials hope escapes public criticism this time.

In February 2005, the RTC announced it would no longer pursue a transit center in Henderson and that the community would lose a $2 million federal grant for the facility.

That was the agency's position after the Henderson City Council sided with residents of Black Mountain Condominiums, who maintained that a bus and rail terminal would generate noise, pollution and additional crime in their neighborhood .

Since then, Henderson worked with the RTC to find a suitable location for an expanded bus transfer center with 125 park-and-ride stalls and a 5,000-square-foot waiting station between Boulder Highway and U.S. 95 near Wagonwheel Drive, RTC spokeswoman Sue Christiansen said.

Not only will the city receive $4.4 million - the property's appraised value - but the $2 million grant will be spent in Henderson as well, she said.

Unlike the rejected 4.2-acre, city-owned College Drive location, the new site, situated between two major roadways, is buffered from homes, Christiansen said.

In a meeting with residents living within 1,500 feet of the planned transit center, the RTC encountered no opposition, Christiansen said. The City Council will consider the plan in May.

In addition to a transfer center for buses, the site also will be used for bus maintenance and storing up to 143 buses.

Henderson Councilwoman Amanda Cyphers said she believes the location between the two highways is well-suited to such heavy use, but she stressed that the prospect of the $4.4 million land payment will not influence the city's decision.

"We are going to look at what is the appropriate use and the public benefit," Cyphers said. "We never look at this from a decision of the city having a windfall of extra cash."

Larry Jepson, president of the Black Mountain Homeowners Association, said he does not expect any opposition to the Boulder Highway site because of the property's commercial zoning.

The Henderson transit center would be the final stop in the RTC's proposed Boulder Highway Max bus line expected to be running by early 2009.