Monday, Feb. 19, 2007 | 7:27 a.m.
Downtown Las Vegas residents who opposed a six-story apartment complex in their neighborhood won a battle this month when the City Council withdrew needed variance requests, but worry that their victory could be short-lived.
Ward 1 Councilman Lawrence Weekly, whose opposition derailed the project, will leave the council next month for a seat on the Clark County Commission.
And that has some residents concerned that the developer, SDA Inc., will resubmit the requests with a different outcome once Weekly is gone from City Hall.
"I certainly hope that doesn't happen," Weekly said. If the proposal is resubmitted, he added, "I hope my colleagues on council will respect my position."
The proposed 300-unit building at Ninth Street and Bridger Avenue would have required several variances, including exceptions to height and parking requirements.
It appeared the complex was on its way to being greenlighted when the City Planning Commission, despite staff opposition and complaints from neighborhood residents, recommended that the council approve the variance requests.
The project hit a roadblock last month, however, when Weekly, whose ward the property is in, persuaded the council to delay a vote so he could address residents' concerns.
Representatives from Weekly's office and Stephen Biagiotti of SDA Inc. met with residents, who said in addition to not having enough parking, the large structure would tower over surrounding homes. They also fear that cramming hundreds of people into a half-block area would decrease their property values and open the door for similar projects.
Biagiotti countered by noting that City Center Apartments, a 300-unit SDA Inc. project at 811 Bridger Ave., has filled quickly and is providing much-needed affordable housing downtown.
The approximately 325-square-foot units in that project rent for $500 to $600, roughly the same price and size as units in the proposed development.
In advising Biagiotti to withdraw the variance requests, however, Weekly cited two major differences between the two projects.
City Center Apartments sits on about twice as much land , Weekly said, and residents did not oppose that project.
"How the people in the neighborhood feel about a project matters a great deal," he said.
Weekly told Biagiotti that he would recommend denial if the variances came up for a vote and encouraged the developer to consider a smaller project.
Biagiotti, though, said a smaller development on the site "would not work for him."
Recognizing that without Weekly's support it was unlikely a vote would go his way, Biagiotti asked that the variance requests be withdrawn.
Residents cheered the Feb. 7 decision but would have preferred to see the variances voted down by council.
"I think it's great," neighborhood resident Joe Woods said. "What gets me is that we heard they are just going to bring it back later."
Because the variances were simply withdrawn, not rejected, Biagiotti could bring them back before the council simply by requesting they be put back on the agenda. If the council had rejected the variances, the developer would have had to alter his plans or wait one year to resubmit them intact and go through the approval process again.
Woods has called Ward 3 Councilman Gary Reese to express concerns that the decision was just a stall tactic.
Reese bristled at the suggestion that Weekly was stalling or that once Weekly moved on to the county the variances would sail through the council.
"That's not going to happen," he said. "Somebody called and said Councilman Weekly didn't want to deal with this, but believe me he doesn't avoid anything. He was ready to vote this down."
Reese said he, too, has concerns about the project's size, adding that if the variances come before the council again, he would look to residents for input.
The folks around Ninth and Bridger say they will be glad to give it.
archive
