Gaming

Law does little to slow neighborhood casinos

By Liz Benston / Staff Writer

It's been more than eight years since the passage of SB 208 -- the 1997 law that put up roadblocks for neighborhood casino projects in the Las Vegas Valley that didn't have land zoned for casinos.

Some recent tweaking of related ordinances in Clark County and Henderson will do little to change the momentum with which suburban casinos will spread across the valley, much less the casinos' size and scope.

That's because a few tuned-in developers -- primarily Station Casinos -- owned their undeveloped casino land well before the adoption of SB 208, now NRS 463, and made darn sure that their land was grandfathered into the bill.

Station intends to develop two pieces of vacant land along Interstate 215 in the coming years and will also be building a casino on vacant land in North Las Vegas with the Greenspun family's real estate company. The Greenspuns own this publication and its sister newspaper, the Las Vegas Sun.

Henderson's proposed casino ordinance -- now under review by the city attorney -- would be more strict than SB 208 in that it also would prevent casinos from being built within five miles of one another, unless the site is within a master-planned development of 1,000 acres or more. Redevelopment areas also would be exempted from the distance rule. These rules would make it virtually impossible to develop casinos in Henderson proper that haven't already obtained zoning.

As expected, Station and other casino developers had a hand in protecting their investments. While Station benefits from limiting competition for its existing casinos, including Green Valley Ranch and Sunset Station, three newcomers to the casino market will also be able to build properties that will be helped by limited competition.

There's only one site approved for a future casino in Henderson proper: Anthony Marnell III's proposed M resort at the southeast corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and St. Rose Parkway. There are two undeveloped sites planned for casinos that don't yet have land use approval and would have to follow the rules under SB 208 and potentially jump through more hoops if Henderson adopts the stricter casino ordinance.

Those include Focus Property Group's proposed Inspirada and residential master plan at the southern edge of Henderson and LandWell Co.'s plans for a casino at its future residential community to the east.

Another exemption is Las Vegas Boulevard South, a casino district where large properties will not only be allowed but encouraged. Across the boulevard on county land, Garry Goett's Olympia Gaming will be building the proposed Southern Highlands Casino Resort. Station also owns land not far away on the boulevard, which developers have already dubbed the South Strip.

Henderson also has two existing gaming districts in and around Lake Las Vegas to the far northwest and another on land approaching Boulder City to the far southeast.

In Clark County, developers trying to build casinos outside of the Strip, lower Boulder Highway and metro Las Vegas area must have sites that are at least 5,000 feet from residential areas, churches and schools. That's according to a June 2000 update to NRS 463. It has made it very difficult for newcomers to develop casinos. Henderson's proposed ordinance also includes the 5,000-foot distance requirement.

"The bottom line is that if you're not part of a planned resort hotel, it's not going to happen," Clark County Planning Manager Chuck Pulsipher said. The county specifically chose the 5,000-foot distance requirement to systematically eliminate any potential site not planned for a resort hotel.

North Las Vegas is following the original language of SB 208, which requires that off-Strip casinos be built at least 500 feet from homes and 1,500 feet from churches and schools.

There are four undeveloped casino sites in North Las Vegas that can be developed under SB 208. Besides Station's previously-mentioned Aliante hotel at the Las Vegas Beltway and Aliante Parkway, the other sites include the southwest corner of Centennial Parkway and Lamb Boulevard, the southwest corner of Ann Road and Lamb and the northwest corner of the beltway and Interstate 15.

Any newcomer looking at building in North Las Vegas proper will also be disappointed. The rapid spread of homes means it would be difficult for future casino sites to spring up nearby.

As in fast-growing Henderson, developers in North Las Vegas will be eyeing land auctions by the Bureau of Land Management for the possibility of getting in on the ground floor with a casino. That would involve creating a master planned community that includes a casino, a process that requires residents to be notified in advance about the projects.

The list of upcoming casinos -- three in Henderson and four in North Las Vegas -- has critics believing that SB 208 has failed to stop the spread of neighborhood casinos.

And indeed it has -- for previously-zoned projects. Developers who bought up land early enough or had the foresight to include them in master plans approved before the casino ordinances were scheduled to take effect have ultimately won. But newcomers -- unless they are able to build at the fringes of town -- could be out of luck.

There are many residents who still don't understand the consequences of this and somehow believe they can undo the past. Some critics aiming to scale back previously-zoned projects in Clark County raised false hopes last year during meetings of a neighborhood casino committee.

Neighbor opposition to two Station projects spawned the committee, a group of casino owners, residents and community leaders that aimed to review how casinos are approved and built.

Last week the Clark County Commission adopted a neighborhood casino ordinance based on recommendations from the committee that will do little to change the momentum with which suburban casinos will spread across the Las Vegas Valley, much less the casinos' size and scope.

The ordinance aims to ensure residents are notified in advance of proposed casinos in their neighborhoods, allowing them to give input throughout the process. That includes mandatory neighborhood meetings prior to developers submitting land use applications and temporary signs that are a certain size and feature a description of the future casino.

These are procedures developers like Station say they already follow during the planning process. And because the company owned much of its casino land well before the adoption of SB 208, the ordinance will have little, if any, effect on Station's aggressive expansion plans.

The ordinance also stops short of restricting the size of off-Strip hotel-casinos and signage -- the primary bone of contention for residents who are alarmed at the scope of these properties. That was to be expected -- the county can't legally scale back or prevent previously-approved projects. As for future projects, readers should refer back to Pulsipher's statement.

Chalk up another point for planned casinos and a zero for their opponents. Some residents say big casinos aren't what they signed up for when they moved into their neighborhoods. Hopefully they read the fine print before they bought their homes and understand that the neighborhood casino business shows no sign of slowing down.

Liz Benston covers gaming for In Business Las Vegas and its sister publication, the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at (702) 259-4077 or by e-mail at benston@lasvegassun.com.

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