City presses its case on leased building

The city of Las Vegas has decided to play hardball with the potential future owner of the building that houses the city's planning and developmental-services offices.

When lease negotiations stalled and the possibility of eviction loomed, the city filed a lawsuit to block the purchase of the building at 731 S. Fourth St. by United Municipal Leasing Corp.

On Monday, the city's newly hired private attorney Todd Bice told District Judge Mark Gibbons that the city didn't believe United Municipal has the money to close the sale.

"We're calling their bluff," Bice said.

The case will return to Gibbons' courtroom July 20 to resume the legal wrangling, and it should be clear by then whether Bice was right.

If United buys the property, it believes a new lease must be negotiated or the city can be told to leave. The city has been leasing the building for 2 1/2 years and spent $1.5 million to renovate it -- money that can't be recovered if the city is kicked out.

United Municipal attorney Matt Callister said the ultimate issue for Gibbons will be whether the existing lease -- which has eight years to run -- is binding.

Arnold Kramer, United Municipal senior vice president, has maintained that the lease the city currently has with the owner, Dave Mason, is one that doesn't allow for the lease to continue if the building is sold.

Kramer has offered the city a 20-year lease that would have allowed the city to buy the building for $1 after the term was up. The city attorney's office declined the offer, saying that the lease was too long and that the city's bond rating would go down if it entered the agreement.

Deputy City Attorney Bill Henry said Bice, who specializes in cases involving contract interference, was hired because Kramer had threatened legal action against the city.

Henry said if such action occurs, he and other city staffers would become witnesses, and it is unlawful for a person to be both a witness and an attorney in a case.

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