Horizon Center plan approved

An idea that once was on the horizon is now reality.

The Henderson City Council Tuesday unanimously approved a change to the city's land-use plan that would create a gateway of tourist-oriented businesses, light industry and housing on the approach to Henderson from Hoover Dam or Laughlin.

The Horizon Center Plan involves 306 acres bounded by Horizon Drive to the north, Boulder Highway to the east, the Union Pacific Railroad to the west and Interstate 515 to the south.

As part of the city's 1996 comprehensive plan, 13 "employment centers" were approved to offer growth potential and provide jobs for up to 25 percent of Henderson's residents.

The Planning Commission approved the plan, prepared by the city's long-range planning division, in October.

City principal planner Bob Wilson told the council the plan mirrored the one the Planning Commission had approved with two exceptions: A business park was added as an optional land use in addition to tourist-commercial on one 85-acre parcel, and any planned-unit development must be approved separately before any building begins in the center.

Property owners who provided input on the project said they saw the site as ideal for land uses that cater to tourists. Therefore, a quarter of the area in the southeast corner is zoned tourist-commercial, while the remainder of the center is zoned for a mixture of commercial, business park and multi-family residential.

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