Red Rock threatened by development

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From what I understand of the settlement agreement: it gives Rhodes the right to apply for a zone change, but it also allows the commission to deny the application and takes away Rhodes right to any legal recourse against the decision. So it's key to keep pressure on the County Commision to deny any application for developemnt. Last time they voted, they claimed it was because they were afraid they would lose in court, there is no justification this time.

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Thanks Doug. Very useful insight.

I am growing increasingly concerned about the way the opposition to the plan is being presented in the media as coming from Blue Diamond residents. The saveredrock.com website also reinforces this perception.

Blue Diamond only has a few hundred residents; not enough to mount a viable opposition to such large financial interests. It also makes the opposition sound like it is limited to preserving the view for a small minority of well-to-do individuals. Not very strong arguments in my view.

What I am hoping we can do is to get the climbing community involved and make the county commissioners understand that Red Rocks matters to a whole lot more people than just Blue Diamond residents. This won't happen without a flood of e-mails. Start typing and tell your friends!

If anyone is interested, here is the link to the April 21, 2010 meeting where the commission voted to enter into the settlement agreement: April 21, 2010 Meeting

The issue starts 1:40 in with the County's lawyer reviewing the issue.

Can someone please explain what the impact is to RR? Is it that once we are on a route (off the ground) that we'll see people's housing?

Thanks

Roots wrote:Can someone please explain what the impact is to RR? Is it that once we are on a route (off the ground) that we'll see people's housing? Thanks

That's the gist of it - based on what I've read. And more traffic. It won't be the demise of Red Rock, but it will be more unsightly.

Just submitted letters to everyone.

Jason

Roots wrote:Can someone please explain what the impact is to RR? Is it that once we are on a route (off the ground) that we'll see people's housing? Thanks

It brings urban sprawl right across the street to Red Rock. Although the loop is only a 5 minute drive from retail centers, a casino and housing tracts....there is still some feeling of remoteness-at least a small buffer zone between 159 and urban sprawl.

John Wilder wrote: finally- there are literally THOUSANDS of unoccupied BRAND NEW homes in Las Vegas. The city/county itself is seeing its population shrink. There are three master-planned communities in the valley that failed due to the recession (Inspirada, Providence, and Mountain's Edge). There's also the new city-project Coyote Springs thats cut and waiting. There are several hundred graded flats in McDonald Highlands that a developer destroyed a mountain to build and no one bought any- leaving a large scar on the flanks of Black Mountain. The county can literally not handle another master-planned community- I cant even fathom what Rhodes is thinking with this- its not even in the realm of financially viable.

I suggest we stay away from that argument. Although it is currently a valid point and the Vegas economy is not going change in the near future, it is still a temporary arguement and could give the developer a stronger position down the road.

Doug Foust wrote: I suggest we stay away from that argument. Although it is currently a valid point and the Vegas economy is not going change in the near future, it is still a temporary argument and could give the developer a stronger position down the road.

Absolutely!!! Many will use this as an excuse to see the threat as not real and to not get involved. Whether this plan makes financial sense or not, on August 17, the county could give Rhodes the green light to do this whenever it does make sense.

OK. I've been working with Heater who's coordinating the saveredrock.com website, and she's revived the broken petition.
Find it here: ipetitions.com/petition/sav…

But please, signing a petition is nowhere near as effective as contacting officials directly, so please do that as well (or first)!

The impact to the Red Rock area by this proposed development will be huge. The plan calls for 7000 plus homes and business/commercial zoning. The result will be 125,000 plus people in cars up and down that mountain 24/7. Five years ago the Rhodes spin machine was assuring everyone that the "primary" access road would be from the east. Then at the county commission chambers the attorneys threw a topo map on the overhead and stated to the commissioners that the countour lines on the east side of the property represented a cliff...Duh!..and that they could not build a road up that and now needed access from the west.

The access roads from the west are across from Blue Diamond village and across from the Red Rock overlook in between the entrance and exit of the Scenic loop. Don't think for a second that they plan on access from the east up a 900' limestone cliff.

The apathetic nature in general of most Las Vegas residents regarding this issue necessitates that this be taken to a national level by user groups that love Red Rock and realize what is at stake here.
keep those phone calls and emails coming and spread the word.

If the commission denies his application for a zoning change/development permit, it is no way final. I only pointed out that in the settlement agreement, he waived his right to sue the county. He will always be able to re-apply, this will be an ongoing battle.

If we give credence to the argument that a development is not viable at this time, we are handing him an issue that he will win at some point.

The petition at saveredrock.com is up:

ipetitions.com/petition/sav…

I've sent the following letter to all the commissioners:

Steve Sisolak, District A, ccdista@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Tom Collins, District B, ccdistb@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Larry Brown, District C, ccdistc@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Lawrence Weekly, District D, ccdistd@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Chris Giunchigliani, District E, ccdiste@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Susan Brager, District F, ccdistf@ClarkCountyNV.gov
Mary Beth Scow, District G, ccdistg@ClarkCountyNV.gov

Dear Commissioner __________,

There is a substantial array of problems associated with the Gypsum Reclamation Concept Plan submitted by Gypsum Resources LLC. Surely the failure of the Inspirada, Mountain Edge, Providence, and McDonald Highlands communities as well as the suspension of the Coyote Springs development ought to give pause for a lot of thought, and I imagine the Commission will be getting an earful from local citizens about the deleterious effects of trying to graft a small city onto a rural mountain top.

But I am writing as a tourist from the other end of the country whose interest is in hiking and climbing, a group with thousands of members. From the perspective hikers and climbers, the Red Rock viewshed will be irrevocably scarred by the presence of a small city on top of Blue Diamond Hill. This should not be taken lightly. I and thousands of other climbers make annual trips to Las Vegas specifically to hike and/or climb. We stay in hotels, patronize restaurants, and do some shopping. But the reason we come is that Red Rock offers a climbing experience that is unique in the U.S., and part of this experience is the back-country feel of the long routes combined with the nearby comforts of an urban center. This works because the "urban center," although creeping closer to the park boundaries year by year, is still suitably distant, something that would completely change with the proposed Gypsum Resources development.

Once you urbanize Red Rock, I and countless other climbers and hikers will start looking further afield for our climbing vacations---our tourism dollars will be going elsewhere.

I am hoping that the commissioner's perspective on the viewshed issue is not as myopic as the self-serving analysis in the Gypsum Reclamation Concept Plan, which states (Section 3.11),

In an effort to protect the scenic resources of the area and to minimize any impacts to the surrounding viewshed by proposed development, Gypsum Resources undertook a comprehensive analysis of the Study Area’s geologic and topographic features. Specific attention was directed to potential viewshed impacts associated with the reclamation plan – development that could be visible to motorists along SR 159 and the Red Rock Scenic Loop, bicyclists, pedestrians, hikers, and visitors to the RRCNCA…In summary, the analysis clearly shows that the majority of areas within the project can be developed without compromising the viewshed along SR 159, the Town of Blue Diamond, and the Red Rock Loop.

This analysis embraces the value of protecting "the scenic resources of the area," but then restricts the viewing "corridors" to a few locations below the development, whereas almost everyone who hikes or climbs in Red Rock will be above the development, which will, consequently, be in plain and unobstructed sight.

I might add that the willingness of Gypsum Resources to supply a viewshed analysis that is this faulty cannot help but raise serious questions about the reliability of other analyses in that document. All the fancy maps and pretty colors mean nothing when the evidence has been produced under assumptions that predetermine a favorable outcome.

In Section 1.2 of the Concept Plan, Gypsum Resources says,

The site’s proximity to one of the nations most beautiful and treasured environments provides unique opportunities, challenges, and inherent responsibilities – celebrate the unique qualities of this place.

I don't think all the maps and pretty colors, however diverting, can hide the fact that Gypsum Resources has little interest in the mission it proclaims. It is now up to the Commission to implement the stirring but empty words of this concept plan gone awry. I hope you can find the courage and vision to prevent the increased density proposed in this plan by affirming the existing land use plan and zoning.

RG

Very nice letter, rjgold! I like how you stressed the economic impact of the potential loss of tourism to the area. Goes right along with what John Wilder was telling us about the commissioner's motivations.

Well good luck with the fight but we all know that someday urban sprawl will take it over regardless. I agree that visually it's unappealing when you're up on a route and of course along with those houses comes all the traffic, but more so all those people that buy a house there will flood RR because they want to enjoy it too.

I've seen this happen over the years at a few places I used to enjoy. It's sad but it's life. Again good luck with your fight but at best you'll only temporarily stop this.

And yes I've climbed at RR..but during the past 10 years the place has become a mecca and is so zooed out with climbers that I just drive right on by to Utah, which is crowded too but not as much YET.

Roots:
what a disgusting defeatist attitude to have. If people had had the same attitude the last couple of centuries, Yosemite and all other great parks and preserved areas in this country would be paved over.
You've seen it happen elsewhere and probably never got off your butt to stop it.
Shame on you.

People can make a difference if they act. The RRNCA could and should be expanded to include the Blue Diamond hill. In the long term, that is my goal.

I traced the boundaries to the proposed development into a google map so people can get a good idea of where this project is and how big it could potentially be.

Project boundaries map

The best way to view the map is in google earth because you can change the viewing angle and get a good look at what will be visible from different parts of Red Rock.

Download this file and open it with google earth.