Summerlin develops with environment in mind

While April is Earth Month, Summerlin is a place where the environment is celebrated year-round. The community, which spans 22,500 acres, has long recognized its obligation as a steward of the land and has incorporated many design innovations throughout its three decades of development to ensure Summerlin continues to take shape true to its original vision while respecting the environment and conserving precious resources.

Summerlin’s dedication to preserving the environment has been demonstrated in many ways over the years, most notably two land exchanges in which developer The Howard Hughes Corp. pulled Summerlin’s boundary eastward, adding 6,400 acres to the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and creating a permanent boundary that forever protects Red Rock and preserves its pristine character.

According to Tom Warden, senior vice president, community and government relations, Summerlin, the decision to pull the community’s border back was made because Hughes knew it would be inappropriate to develop within sight of the scenic loop road.

“From its inception, Summerlin was developed with the environment in mind,” Warden said. “Beyond our landmark exchanges that continue to protect Red Rock Canyon, today, Summerlin was one of the valley’s earliest adopters of desert landscaping, helping to improve the public image of low water-use landscapes in the 1990s and encouraging other developers and builders to do the same.

“In fact, Summerlin was the valley’s first community to implement strict Water Smart conservation guidelines, and we continue to use and promote desert-friendly plant materials whenever and wherever possible. Today, we are continuing to replace nonfunctional turf along the Summerlin Parkway. We are also replacing turf at select neighborhood entrances and installing smart watering technology in Summerlin South. All these efforts are saving millions of gallons of water each year.”

Summerlin is harvesting many of the native desert plants in areas under development and replanting them in new “blended” or “re-vegged” landscapes. Millions of dollars have been spent on these landscapes, saving significant amounts of irrigation water.

At Summerlin schools, The Howard Hughes Corp. has long underwritten the establishment of school gardens with the help of local nonprofit Green Our Planet. The gardens provide hands-on opportunities to teach students about nutrition, math and science.

Last year, pollinator gardens were introduced at select schools with a special pollinator garden being installed at Downtown Summerlin. Pollinator gardens are curated with plants that attract monarch butterflies, providing respite stops for this endangered species along its migration to and from Southern California each year.

Even before Summerlin began to take shape, The Howard Hughes Corp. was integral in establishing a development fee to fund desert tortoise habitat that helped protect this once-threatened species. Company leaders also served on a valleywide development coalition that drafted some of the nation’s toughest self-imposed rules on dust control to protect air quality.

Several design innovations — such as the preservation of natural drainage areas and arroyos that serve a dual use for parks and trails and the incorporation of the natural landscape and topography — are strong examples of environmentally oriented design principles that have made Summerlin the model community it is today, Warden said.

“Summerlin looks the way it does because of our commitment to preserve as much open space and natural vegetation as possible.”

According to Warden, Summerlin was the first community in Southern Nevada to incorporate roundabouts in select areas, not only to improve traffic flow and safety but also to be kinder and gentler to the environment by eliminating idling at lights and thereby reducing fuel consumption and vehicle emissions.

According to Warden, the community’s environmental stewardship is evolving to include a more intense focus on new urbanism and smart growth, evident in a growing number of higher-density neighborhoods, particularly in the newest area of the community — Summerlin West, where smaller homes offer less maintenance and encourage a more experiential lifestyle.

And in Downtown Summerlin, up to 4,000 additional residences are planned, including apartments, town homes, condominiums and lofts.

In 2016, Downtown Summerlin earned Silver certification status from the U.S. Green Building Council in its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

Now, entering its 31st year of development, Summerlin delivers more amenities than any other community in Southern Nevada. That includes more than 250 parks of all sizes; resident-exclusive community centers, pools and events; 150-plus miles of interconnected trails; 10 golf courses; 26 public, private and charter schools; public library and performing arts center; Summerlin Hospital Medical Center; houses of worship representing a dozen different faiths; office parks; and neighborhood shopping centers.

Downtown Summerlin offers fashion, dining, entertainment, Red Rock Resort and office towers. City National Arena is home to the Vegas Golden Knights’ practice facility, and Las Vegas Ballpark is a world-class Triple-A baseball stadium and home of the Las Vegas Aviators.

Summerlin offers more than 140 floor plans in nearly 30 neighborhoods throughout nine distinct villages and districts. Homes are available in a variety of styles, from single-family homes to town homes, priced from the low $300,000s to more than $1 million.

For information on all actively selling neighborhoods, visit Summerlin.com. Download the Summerlin app from the Apple and Google App stores to search selling neighborhoods and explore loyalty experiences from Downtown Summerlin retailers and restaurants. Or, before you visit, call the builders to check on hours of operation. Phone numbers for each neighborhood are on Summerlin.com. While appointments are not required, they are encouraged.