Sunday, May 04, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

LETTER: Eyeing green at Red Rock

To the editor:

Jim Rhodes is not stupid. He knew full well what the reaction would be to his proposed development near Red Rock Canyon.

So why would he do it? Money.

What if your real plan is to have the county buy the land from you or arrange a land swap? First, you buy it for an inflated $53.8 million, but this price sets a baseline value. You also know the zoning is about to be locked in, so you quickly file a land-use application for the development of your 2,400 acres. Just for fun, you claim that it is actually several smaller developments under 700 acres, so the county's year-long process for large-scale housing projects doesn't apply. You draw up a nice pretty site map of the proposed development, with lots of bright colors showing the home sites and amenities.

Next comes the hearing to determine how much money to give you for the land. You stand up in front of the commission and say that your intent all along was to develop this land. You show them your pretty site map and tell them how the mean people wouldn't consider a zoning change to allow you to build under your preferred plans after you made a substantial monetary investment.

You say that because of this the market value has dropped from $200 million. But as a responsible citizen you'll accept $100 million -- otherwise you will have to sue and that would be a waste of taxpayer money. You leave with nearly $50 million in profits in your wallet.

When I visit Red Rock, I am fascinated by the multiple colors in the cliffs and the sheer beauty of the area. But poor Jim Rhodes can only see one color. The color of money.

GREG WOOD

NORTH LAS VEGAS