Neighbors aren’t sharing alarm over casino project

By Mike Trask

Monday, April 28, 2008 | 2 a.m.

The fliers sounded alarming: “Urgent Neighborhood Action Alert!”

They were sent to residents in North Las Vegas, urging them to attend a meeting last Thursday night to review plans by Boyd Gaming to move a proposed casino project from Lamb Boulevard and Centennial Parkway to north of the Las Vegas Beltway, just west of Losee Road.

“Join your neighbors at a community meeting to say no,” the mailings said.

But few, if any, people did.

Instead, they showed up at an elementary school in the north section of the city to ask a few questions. They were told the casino project would be on 56 acres and would eventually have 1,200 hotel rooms and a bunch of nice restaurants, like The District at Green Valley Ranch.

Residents liked that idea.

Nobody was too distressed, and the conversation turned toward who sent the anti-casino fliers, which had no return address or mention of a group in charge. Each flier was individually stamped.

Attorneys representing Boyd Gaming at the meeting refused to speculate. But there were whispers that a Las Vegas community activist could be behind the mailings.

The Boyd casino would be the second along the Beltway and part of the master-planned Park Highlands development. Station Casinos is expected to open a casino at Aliante Parkway this year.

There are five casinos planned for within two miles of the Las Vegas Beltway and Interstate 15 interchange. That area has been dubbed “Casino Alley,” a mini-Strip 10 miles north of the Strip.

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Jennifer Lazovich, the attorney on the Boyd project, is accustomed to being on the receiving end of neighborhood opposition.

Lazovich took the brunt of residents’ criticisms of an apartment project at Centennial and Revere Street this month.

Residents lost round one in that ongoing battle when the City Council allowed plans for 320-unit apartment complex to proceed, saying a 1988 development agreement prevented them from opposing the project. The second round — which likely will end in the same result — will come next month as the council reviews plans for 660 apartments just north of the first site.

The residents’ most recent response has been to plan an ice cream social. It’s not exactly storming city hall with pitchforks, but they’re trying to organize.

The highlight of the May 3 gathering will not be the rocky road or chocolate addiction. Instead it will be the presence of David Salmon, a lawyer who lives in the area.

He will be giving advice and listening to neighbors’ thoughts in preparation for a possible suit against Pardee Homes, the company that built the surrounding neighborhood and now is selling the land to be developed as apartments.

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The bicycling community in Henderson wants 20 acres of land for a park aimed at making riding bikes a major attraction.

The effort is being spearheaded by a group of local hobbyists, including physician Reid Litchfield.

“Our goal is to create a place where cyclists can ride in a safe way, in a way that’s not going to disrupt traffic,” he said.

They are proposing that the city build a bicycle park that includes BMX and mountain biking areas, along with a road-bike track and a velodrome.

The proposal comes as Henderson is developing a 15-year master plan for expanding its parks and recreational offerings. The city has been named one of the nation’s best places to take a walk and been called Sportstown in Nevada by Sports Illustrated.

A parks department spokeswoman made no promises but said the city will consider the proposal.

“Since the city is looking for people to come forward with ideas, we stepped up and said this is something that can take it to the next level,” Litchfield said.

“Las Vegas has a reputation for being on the fat map nationwide,” said Litchfield, who rides about 50 miles weekly. “There’s people sedentary and overweight. But there’s a second group that’s very interested in being fit.”

Locals would not be the only ones who could use the park.

Bill Woolf, who owns the local bike magazine LUV2bike, said with the right facilities, the area could attract major competitions for amateur and professional riders from across the country.