Saturday, December 06, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Foes of casino plan savor decision

Score one for residents against developers, Red Rock Station opponents say

Lisa Mayo-DeRiso, left, and Carolyn Edwards stand at the Summerlin site of the planned Red Rock Station casino on Friday. The two are among hundreds of homeowners who opposed Station's plans for the resort. Photo by John Locher.

Lisa Mayo-DeRiso and Carolyn Edwards, who for years lost battles with their own Clark County commissioner, are stunned to find themselves on the verge of victory in a struggle over the development of their neighborhood.

The two are part of a contingent of Summerlin-area residents who appeared before Clark County commissioners Wednesday to protest Station Casinos' plans for its Red Rock Station casino. The casino company wanted a 1,500-room resort with a 300-foot guest tower and two 200-foot towers where zoning allowed only 1,000 rooms and a maximum height of 100 feet.

Commissioners punted. They directed developers and residents to hammer out a compromise and bring it back to the board in January.

The commission's decision stunned both sides.

Dark-suited executives, used to getting their way, were left without a stamp of approval. And homeowners, who said their concerns were largely ignored during former Commissioner Erin Kenny's tenure, felt victorious.

"It's few and far between when you leave (the commission chambers) and say, `Whew, we did it,' " said Mayo-DeRiso, battle-worn from unsuccessful feuds with Kenny.

After Wednesday's three-hour debate, Mayo-DeRiso said residents less familiar with the commission were unsure whether the homeowners had reason to be pleased. The board did not order Station Casinos to keep the height of its tower at 100 feet, as residents requested.

"They asked, `Did we win?' " Mayo-DeRiso said. "I said, `You have no idea.' "

"I think there is an overall sense that this was a victory," Edwards said. "Developers were told they have to do something different."

Station Casinos and The Howard Hughes Corp. executives teamed up to argue that the 67-acre casino site at Charleston Boulevard and the Las Vegas Beltway is ideal for the upscale Red Rock Station resort. The land is in the center of a future downtown, Summerlin Centre, planned by Howard Hughes, the developer of Summerlin.

Station's land is near a parcel where four 250-foot office buildings were approved by commissioners in 1999. Station officials said they need the 300-foot hotel tower to preserve a view of the Strip for their guests, should the office towers ever be built.

Homeowners said Station's request is proof that the commission's approval of the tall office buildings nearly five years ago set a dangerous precedent. They fear the next developer will want a more towering building, and views of the Spring Mountains eventually will vanish.

Residents' arguments were backed by Commissioner Mark James, who took over Kenny's seat in January.

"As their representative, I have to stand up for their expectations," James said after Wednesday's vote to delay a decision on the zoning variances requested by Station.

Not coincidentally, it was Kenny who in 1999 made the motion to approve four 18-story buildings on the land adjacent to the Station site.

"Essentially the fact that you're not going to see the buildings unless you're standing very, very close to them really puts a lot of ease in my mind," Kenny said during the meeting.

After vacating office to run for lieutenant governor in 2002, Kenny pleaded guilty to federal corruption charges and is cooperating with prosecutors in their investigation of other current and former commissioners.

In 1999, Howard Hughes soared through its presentation on Summerlin Centre. Only three Summerlin homeowners showed up at the commission meeting to protest the height of the office buildings.

On Wednesday, homeowners opposed to Red Rock Station said executives with Station and Howard Hughes, two political heavyweights, sorely miscalculated their opposition.

Residents said that unlike past protests organized by special interest groups such as unions, homeowners started a grass-roots campaign and inundated the county with petitions and phone calls. For the meeting, they filled the chambers, wearing homemade stickers that read, "Don't Bring the Strip to Red Rock."

"I think they thought if they came with two of the biggest 500-pound gorillas, those guys (residents) are toast, they don't have a chance," Mayo-DeRiso said. "Never underestimate the power of a passionate community."

Lesley Pittman, spokeswoman for Station Casinos, said the company met with several groups of residents about its project, and the response was split. She said the Culinary union, a longtime Station foe, has stirred up more boisterous protests.

"I think there is a lot to be said for the Culinary's role in this," Pittman said. "They are sophisticated at organizing people. This is about the people who live there and have legitimate concerns."

Station Casinos is a nonunion company. Union officials attended Tuesday's meeting, but none of their representatives addressed the board.

Glen Arnodo, the Culinary union's political director, agreed that the corporate executives misjudged their opposition. He said residents valleywide are concerned about the effects the planned resort will have on neighborhoods and Red Rock Canyon, which is about five miles away.

"It's much easier to have that be the issue on their part than debate the real issue: Should a project of this scale be at the gateway to Red Rock Canyon and should it be in a neighborhood?" Arnodo said.

When homeowners who spearheaded the Red Rock Station protest stood in front of grocery stores with petitions, they said residents flocked to them wanting to sign or looking for information about the County Commission meeting.

"I think the general public is more educated about the process and more willing to fight for their hard-earned investments," Edwards said.

More than 3,000 Summerlin-area residents sent e-mails to the county protesting Red Rock Station.

The same homeowners who cherish Summerlin's parks, trails and views revolted against Howard Hughes, the development firm that provided them Summerlin.

They argued that the Howard Hughes-authored disclosure statements they signed when they purchased their houses stated that the casino site allows a hotel no higher than 100 feet and with no more than 1,000 rooms.

Tom Warden, vice president of government relations at Howard Hughes, said the disclosure statements refer to the property's entitlements and do not prohibit a developer from buying the land and requesting variances.

Warden said the idea that the corporation is battling against its own residents is disconcerting and untrue.

"We were (at the commission meeting) because we truly believe that the plan Station put forth would be appropriate," Warden said.