Vote on ‘Midtown’ project postponed

Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2007 | 7:21 a.m.

Clark County commissioners postponed a vote Tuesday on the "Midtown" project adjacent to UNLV so they can consider even more improvements in the area.

Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, whose district includes the campus-side of Maryland Parkway, asked for the delay so that she can meet with the project's mastermind, developer Michael Saltman, and county and university administrators and others to ensure that Midtown takes into account surrounding roads and neighborhoods already heavy with traffic. Giunchigliani is a freshman who took office just last month.

"I don't believe we need a study to look at traffic problems that might come up," she said. "We need a study to solve the problems now, so the project can be put into play."

Possible remedies she mentioned were pedestrian walkways over or under Maryland Parkway, light rail for students to ease the demand for parking in the area, roundabouts and other road-design measures.

"We also want to be sure we're not doing this in a vacuum," she said. "We have to look north of Tropicana all the way to Sahara, so that whatever we do in one spot isn't a major problem every place else."

Saltman's proposal is to change the Maryland Parkway area roughly between Flamingo Road and Tropicana Avenue. The goal is to convert the area, over decades, from its rather austere lineup of fast-food restaurants and strip malls to a leafy neighborhood of restaurants and shops that pedestrians would find inviting.

As part of that effort, traffic would be slowed and Maryland Parkway narrowed from its current six lanes.

The vote postponed Tuesday would have reduced Maryland Parkway, at least temporarily, from six lanes to four through the Midtown zone. The purpose would be to assess the effect on traffic.

Saltman, who owns an old three-story mall in the Midtown area, has spent three years promoting the idea, working with UNLV administrators and hiring a consultant involved in remaking a similar street near Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz.

After Tuesday's meeting, Saltman said Giunchigliani's involvement will only help propel his dream forward.

"She's going to work with us to help create an almost regional view of the implications of a university district," he said. "She sees the efficacy of redevelopment It's viable. It can happen."

UNLV President David Ashley said he sees the future of UNLV in one of two ways. Some urban universities isolate and barricade themselves, others reach out to the community. This is a chance for UNLV to reach out, he said.

"It's really the creation of a university district where there is much more of a connection that exists between the community and adjacent homeowners and retail businesses," he said of the concept. The commission will reconsider the project Feb. 20.