Protesters don’t halt rezoning

A plan to use land in northwest Las Vegas for a municipal service yard and other public services moved ahead Thursday, despite strong opposition from residents concerned they don't know enough about what's going to be placed on the parcel.

"I would like to know, before a decision is made, what is going to go there," said Denise Arencibia, urging the Las Vegas Planning Commission not to support a zone change at the corner of Ann Road and the Las Vegas Beltway. "We're not in agreement with rezoning the property for the unknown."

The planning commission voted unanimously to rezone a 131-acre parcel on the southwest corner of the intersection for public use.

It was necessary to do so now, commissioners said, because the city is trying to secure a lease on the land from its current owner, the Bureau of Land Management.

BLM officials will only give the city control over the land if it's destined for a public purpose, such as a park or a service yard for city vehicles.

Proposals for the property have varied. Originally, city officials talked about housing a garbage transfer station, a prisoner booking center and service areas for city vehicles and Clark County School District buses there.

Residents pushed back, and now the transfer station and the booking center are off the table, said Thomas Perrigo, deputy director of the Las Vegas planning department. But the need to secure land for public uses in that sector of the city remains.

"Although the growth pressure has subsided, we think it's prudent to go forward," Perrigo said, noting population in the Centennial Hills area is expected to more than double in the next 20 years.

Still, people wanted more details about what would be on the site.

"Why not tell us what could or would go on that property before it's zoned?" asked area resident Don MacIntyre.

"Because they don't know," answered Byron Goynes, the planning commission's chairman. "But it will be a discussion."

The planning commission's vote is a recommendation. The Las Vegas City Council is scheduled to have the final word on Aug. 20.

Commissioner Sam Dunnam said it was imperative that the city secure land for some kind of public facilities campus in the northwest, just as it has locations in other parts of the city. He said rezoning to obtain a lease probably was the cheapest way to go about it.

"Everything that has to happen, you folks will have a chance to look at it," he said, noting that a site plan would have to be approved by the commission and the City Council.

"We have to get control of 131 acres. Now. If we don't, we lose it."

The crowd wasn't impressed with his imperative, with one man muttering, "So what?"

Commissioner Vicki Quinn said she originally planned to vote against the rezoning but changed her mind after listening to others on the panel.

She told the opponents that they already had forged working relationships with the city and are well positioned to influence what will be on the site. That influence might be lost if the city passes and allows other entities to seek to develop the site, Quinn said.

"The city is on your side. If you lose this to another entity, you're going backward, not forward."