Council set for attempt to stabilize general plan

Even the most observant followers of growth in Las Vegas can't keep track of all the amendments to the city's general plan each year.

Every time developers need a variance to an already-approved project, they seek amendments to the general plan -- leaving many residents who followed an issue in their neighborhood during the planning process in the dark as to the project's final appearance.

The 500-page general plan, which was designed to serve as the blueprint and vision for city planning, is now tinkered with an average of 60 times a year.

On Monday, the City Council will attempt to change that when it considers a bill to limit general-plan amendments to twice a year.

Not only would that save residents the trek to council meetings practically each month, it would spare the city's planning and development department the hassle of preparing an amendment request for each meeting of the council and planning commission, according to the bill's sponsor, Mayor Jan Laverty Jones.

"The constant amendments take a lot of the power away from the general plan," Sonya Douglass, spokeswoman for the planning department, said. "It is a very important document and, when it is changed, so much it loses some of its influence."

If passed, the ordinance could prove a loss for developers and home builders, especially those who don't like the designated uses of land and take great efforts to convince city lawmakers to change it -- often against the wishes of homeowners in the area.

It also is believed that by limiting general-plan changes to semiannual hearings, developers will be motivated to come up with proposals that meet the land uses set by city planners in the first place.

City Ward 4 -- encompassing the northwest region where plans are under way to develop a Town Center -- had the most growth and, thus, general-plan amendments in each of the last four years.

Carroll Varner, president of the Northwest Citizens Association, said he felt the bill would help homeowners keep track of changes in their neighborhoods.

"It's hard enough to follow the process without them changing things on us left and right," Varner said.

Also Monday, the City Council will consider a bill that would impose a $25-a-year permit fee on news racks in an effort to cut down on the amount of adult material visible to pedestrians and passing motorists.

An estimated 450 illegal news racks line Las Vegas Boulevard between City Hall and Sahara Avenue. A number of them offer adult sex services, which city officials and area businesses would like to see eliminated.

Charging all news agencies $25 per rack per year, however, may be too great a financial burden to some companies that publish materials informing the public about events of community interest.

Currently, Clark County has a $25 fee in effect along the Strip and other resort-zoned areas. News racks on downtown arteries, including parts of Fremont Street, Las Vegas Boulevard, Charleston Boulevard, Sahara Avenue and some residential roads, would be affected by the measure.

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