Work on CityMark Development's mixed-use project at Third Street and Bonneville Avenue in downtown Las Vegas is seen Thursday. Photo by Craig L. Moran.

Russ Haley likes what he sees in the transformation of downtown Las Vegas, where he's developing the $167 million Juhl mixed-use condominium and retail project.

"When we first looked at Las Vegas, we saw a lot of similarities to what happened in San Diego," said Haley, vice president and chief financial officer of San Diego-based CityMark Development. "We see a progressive City Council and a mayor in Vegas pushing to make the town live-work-play. That's where we gravitate our business toward."

CityMark has started $600,000 of underground work and relocation of utilities at the 2.5-acre site at Bonneville Avenue and Third Street. Turner Construction is general contractor for the project.

Haley said overhead utilities such as power, cable and telephone services are being converted to underground lines. Hubs are connected to the site with 14,000 feet of new four- and six-inch conduit.

Along with underground utility work, the construction process involved the demolition of four homes on the property, which is nearly a square city block.

Juhl's plans call for six towers from six to 15 stories with 341 residential units and 24,000 square feet of retail space. Studio, walkup, loft and penthouse units range from 600 square feet to 2,500 square feet and start from the $400,000s.

Parking will be on the first five levels, Haley said.

Homes can be customized, allowing residents to personalize their living space. They feature 10-foot ceilings with exposed mechanical pipes and ducts, floor-to-ceiling dual-glazed windows, granite countertops, European maple cabinetry, stainless steel appliances and Grohe plumbing fixtures.

The biggest selling point for Juhl is basically the lifestyle for the buyer, Haley said.

"We found that in downtown San Diego. Six years ago, very few residents were living here. People are looking for that lifestyle. It seems every time I'm down there (in downtown Las Vegas), it's a different feel and a different vibe to it," he said.

More high-density residential is deing developed downtown, doubling and tripling land prices in the last two to three years.

Las Vegas-based research firm Applied Analysis reported that 18 of the 103 high-rise luxury condo projects planned for Las Vegas are downtown, accounting for 8,600 of 62,600 units. SoHo Lofts is nearly complete and Newport Lofts, by the same developer, Sam Cherry, is on the rise. Utility work has begun at Streamline Tower. Other projects such as Sandhurst and Cielo Vista have been announced but have yet to break ground.

Jeremy Aguero, principal of Applied Analysis, said there's insufficient demand to absorb all of the units in the pipeline and that only 35 percent to 40 percent of the projects will move forward by 2010.

"Experience, location and branding will be keys to success for specific projects," he said.

Haley said more than half of the buyers at Juhl are local residents.

"That's really telling," he said. "There's a big population here looking for the new urban lifestyle."

CityMark has a development and disposition agreement, a form of escrow, with the Las Vegas Redevelopment Agency for the land, Haley said. The city solicited proposals from firms across the nation to develop the site and chose CityMark from about a dozen proposals.

CityMark is redefining the concept of "innovative urban living" in San Diego with mixed-use residential projects that enhance the value of established and historic neighborhoods, Haley said.