Summerlin area experiences year of economic revival

This past year is almost a memory, so it's time to recall the events of 2011 before it all slips away.

Top national headlines included remembering 9/11 at its 10-year mark, the death of terrorist Osama bin Laden and the trial of Casey Anthony, who was accused of killing her young daughter. Perhaps most notable, the Iraq War ended, and many troops were home by Christmas.

In Las Vegas, among the year's the top news stories: Stanley and Colleen Rimer were sentenced for leaving their 4-year-old disabled son in an SUV for at least 17 hours; Monsignor Kevin McAuliffe of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Roman Catholic Church admitted to stealing $650,000 from the Summerlin parish; lovebirds flocked to Las Vegas to say their wedding vows on 11-11-11; singer Celine Dion returned to the Strip after a three-year absence; scandal-plagued U.S. Sen. John Ensign abruptly announced that he would not seek re-election in 2012; Occupy Wall Street and the voices of the "99 percent" got its own local version, Occupy Las Vegas; Indianapolis 500 champion Dan Wheldon, 33, died in a fiery crash at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway; unemployment figures were slow to get off life support; the aging Sahara closed its doors; and Carolyn Goodman took office as Las Vegas mayor.

The Summerlin area had its own moments. Fossilized dinosaur footprints from the Grallator and the Octopodichnus were found in Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area; Station Casinos added an amphitheater to Red Rock Resort; and the Nevada Cancer Institute was sold to the University of California, San Diego, which operates the Moores Cancer Center in La Jolla, Calif.

There also was death. In July, Ralfy Olivas was fatally shot by police officers who were responding to calls of a knife-wielding man in the street near Westcliff and Buffalo drives. In September, less than six months after her brother Michael was gunned down outside the Tenaya Creek Brewery, 16-year-old Christina Portaro died in an ATV accident in Brian Head, Utah.

Headlines from the Summerlin/Summerlin South View included the following stories:

n In March, the LINQ360 Innovation Center opened at 9555 Hillwood Drive, just off Summerlin Parkway at Town Center Drive. In a team approach, more than a dozen high-tech companies are headquartered under its roof. Most of them specifically address the needs of the hotel industry.

n Summerlin got its first half marathon, which was held April 9. The course took full advantage of Summerlin's extensive trail system, the pride of The Howard Hughes Corp., the developer of Summerlin. There is no word on when a full marathon might come to the area.

n Also in April, the three-story, 140,000-square-foot Life Time Athletic building opened at 10721 W. Charleston Blvd. despite a work stoppage that had previously delayed it.

The all-in-one facility includes a day spa; a hair, nail and skin care salon; indoor and outdoor pools; a bistro; a climbing wall; a workout area; a computer center; a junior gymnasium and a child care center.

n In late April, Tivoli Village at Queensridge opened at Alta Drive and Rampart Boulevard with a plethora of retail shops and dining options. The shopping destination also began hosting special events and includes a weekend farmers market.

n In May there was more good news for shopaholics as EHB Companies, a development partner of Tivoli Village, announced plans for an indoor mall called Las Vegas Renaissance, to be built directly across the street and link up with Tivoli via a pedestrian bridge that will span Alta Drive. The mall promises high-end fashion stores amid Renaissance-themed architecture.

Ward 4 Las Vegas City Councilman Stavros Anthony saw it as an economic plus, saying, "Las Vegas Renaissance is going to be great, it'll bring a lot of construction jobs and, after that, retail jobs ... it'll be a boost to the area ... I see it as one of the premier shopping centers in the country."

About the same time, Fry's Electronics announced it would open in Boca Park at Charleston and Rampart boulevards.

n In May, the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District raised its rental rates for specialized spaces -- meeting rooms, auditoriums, lecture halls and theaters -- which had groups and show producers crying foul. Cost recovery under the former policy, set in 1994, was 19 percent. It's now 100 percent. The result: the 284-seat Summerlin Library Performing Arts Center, 1771 Inner Circle Drive, is likely to host fewer events in 2012.

Carole Sampson, owner/operator of International Dance Education Academy, 6700 W. Charleston Blvd., said the fee increase forced her to look elsewhere to put on next year's shows.

"I can't afford it," she said. "I was barely cutting even before they raised their rates."

If small companies can no longer afford to perform, what will happen to the arts in Las Vegas?

"It's going to die," Sampson said.

n Robbie McAboy took over as manager for Red Rock and Sloan canyon national conservation areas. The Alabama native graduated cum laude in 1996 from Alabama A&M University and spends her free time trekking into the wilderness.

One of the issues McAboy had on her plate was grafitti that was spray-painted over Native American petroglyph panels in late 2010. Experts and volunteers from Friends of Red Rock Canyon descended on Red Rock, removed the damage carefully and restored the panels.

"It's a very spiritual thing for the tribes ... way more important than spray paint on a bridge," said Tim Wakefield, manager for the Bureau of Land Management's Red Rock/Sloan canyons field office.

n This past summer, walkers laced up their shoes to try out the two pedestrian bridges that opened. The bridges span Cheyenne Avenue and Lake Mead Boulevard and were part of a $4.7 million trail improvement project.

n In July, the city of Las Vegas broke ground on the new Las Vegas Fire & Rescue Station No. 107. The 7,800-square-foot facility occupies the northeast corner of Del Webb Boulevard and Sundial Drive in Sun City Summerlin. It will serve all city residents.

n In August, MountainView Hospital, 3100 N. Tenaya Way, began a $34 million project to expand its emergency room, add a 12-bed intensive care unit on the first floor, renovate all 72 medical surgical beds on the fourth floor and redesign its outpatient registration and pre-op testing and admitting areas. This is in addition to the construction of an 18-bed inpatient rehabilitation unit, a Walgreens and a new gift shop.

n In October, Summerlin Hospital Medical Center, 657 N. Town Center Drive, opened The Breast Care Center. The hospital invested $750,000 in the 1,800-square-foot facility, including machines and build-out. It features the latest diagnostic imaging machines, including digital mammography and stereotactic biopsy capability.

Contact Summerlin/Summerlin South View reporter Jan Hogan at jhogan@viewnews.com or 387-2949.