Basin and Range a landmark success

By Elaine Wynn

Wednesday, July 13, 2016 | 2 a.m.

A year ago Sunday, I proudly stood in the Oval Office witnessing President Barack Obama sign the designation of Basin and Range as a national monument. I was lucky enough to be joined at that signing by many other great Nevadans, including a rancher from the area near the new monument; our congressional leaders; and Michael Heizer, the genius behind “City,” a world-class landscape-scale art project now surrounded by what’s now the Basin and Range National Monument. Most important, Obama made sure to include an invitation to a representative of the next generation of those who would benefit from this area being protected. Bianca Donis-Urbina, a student from After-School All-Stars of Greater Las Vegas, an organization near and dear to my heart, was at the signing.

Basin and Range National Monument is in the remote and pristine Garden and Coal valleys, only a few hours from the sparkle and shine of the Las Vegas Strip. It’s home to amazing views, archaeological wonders and many species including the pronghorn, a mammal unique to the American West.

It is a place where the imprint of the past meets up with a tribute to the future by housing a permanent view for Heizer’s “City.” The first time I visited “City,” I knew the landscape it was married to was as important as the art and vice versa. The flat valleys surrounded by majestic mountains such as Mount Irish and the Worthingtons add to the greatness of Heizer’s work. It was impossible not to be fascinated by such visionary work in such a uniquely Nevadan landscape.

I’ve been privileged in the more than 50 years I’ve been in Las Vegas to be part of its transformation into a home for world-class entertainment and now — with the designations of Red Rock National Conservation Area, Tule Springs National Monument and the Basin and Range National Monument — outstanding protected public lands. Many of us have worked hard to bring people from all over the world to Las Vegas, and protecting our public lands continues to allow us to showcase the natural beauty of Southern Nevada.

I am proud of our newest national monument on its one-year anniversary, our efforts to permanently protect landscapes that make our nation great, and the work we all continue to do to ensure Basin and Range remains a timeless wonder for students such as Bianca and the next generation.

Elaine Wynn is a businesswoman and philanthropist.