Deal likely for Fiesta worker housing

By Mike Trask (contact)

Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2008 | 2 a.m.

The Henderson City Council will review plans today for what a developer is calling a workforce housing project near Fiesta Henderson.

However, the developer and the city are still working out an agreement that would allow higher-density apartments.

The council will likely approve a zoning change allowing plans for what could be a 380-unit apartment complex to proceed. The Planning Commission has approved the project at a density of 24 units per acre. However, the developer is pushing for 38 units per acre.

City officials say a deal could be worked out for a special permit for the high density. But the city wants proof nearby casino workers will get first dibs on leasing the apartments.

The arrangement would qualify the project — to be known as the Alexan Fiesta — as “workforce housing” and allow for increased density, according to the city.

Station Casinos, which owns Fiesta Henderson, is selling the 10.5-acre property down the street from the casino to developer Trammell Crow.

Trammell Crow representatives say having high-density apartments near workplaces would ease some traffic in the city and be a boon to employees. They say the plan could be a model for development in the Las Vegas Valley.

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A public hearing for a proposed casino near Interstate 15 and the Las Vegas Beltway is scheduled for the North Las Vegas City Council meeting Wednesday.

The casino at Centennial Parkway and Linn Lane is being proposed by Laser Development.

Last month the city Planning Commission approved the project with the condition that buildings along Centennial not exceed three stories. The developer also signed a waiver acknowledging activities at the nearby National Guard training grounds can be loud, bright or odorous.

The unnamed hotel would include 544 rooms in 10 detached structures on about 12 acres.

The Guard has been concerned about security with several hotels planned for sites adjacent to its longtime training grounds, where practice runs with tanks and other heavy machinery are common.

City staff has recommended approving the project and there has been little public comment.

The conditions are similar to those met by the recently approved Miller casino, a 73-acre project planned for Sloan Lane at I-15. The projects are in an area dubbed “Casino Alley,” with at least five casinos planned near the Las Vegas Beltway and I-15.

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The Henderson City Council will post taped broadcasts of City Council meetings online starting in January after agreeing to install three cameras in council chambers.

The meetings will not be broadcast live. Instead, they will be linked to agenda items on the city Web site. Viewers will be able to click on specific items that were discussed and watch video of that part of the meeting.

Users will not be able to watch an entire meeting.

“It’s an upgrade to our current system that will allow us to have an official video record of meetings,” said Kathy Blaha, a city spokeswoman.

Unlike with Las Vegas, Clark County and Boulder City, the meetings will not be on TV.

The lack of televised meetings in the suburban communities of Henderson and North Las Vegas has often been criticized by residents and the media. Elected officials have suggested the lack of televised meetings leaves people disconnected from city government.

North Las Vegas has no plans to begin broadcasting council meetings.

Officials in North Las Vegas and Henderson have repeatedly said broadcasting meetings on TV is cost prohibitive. Small-town Boulder City owns its own TV station, allowing it to air the meetings.