‘A win for all landowners’: Judge rules Las Vegas took 35 acres on Badlands

A Clark County District Court justice has agreed with the developer down stalled lodging plans connected the defunct Badlands play people adjacent Summerlin who claimed that interference by Las Vegas officials made onshore intolerable to develop.

Judge Timothy Williams ruled connected Tuesday successful favour of developer EHB Cos., which alleged that metropolis actions, successful this peculiar case, were tantamount to the metropolis taking its 35-acre parcel adjacent the intersection of Hualapai Way and Alta Drive, tribunal records show.

In caller years, the Las Vegas City Council has held oregon rejected plans to physique homes connected the closed play people except for a 435-condominium task connected 17 acres that has not moved forward. EHB has contended that lengthy delays and denials were unnecessary and aimed astatine preserving the backstage land’s usage for the surrounding public.

Efforts to make the play people began after EHB purchased the onshore successful 2015. During marathon hearings that followed, lawmakers expressed distaste for piecemeal development. Plans were besides opposed by a conjugation of residents successful the upscale Queensridge neighborhood, which the people weaves through, citing fears of precocious density and diminishing spot values.

“This has been a four-year conflict that has taken each of our resources,” Vickie DeHart, a main with EHB, said successful a statement. “Fighting the authorities and politically connected radical who threatened to instrumentality our onshore aboriginal connected is nary casual feat. It is fantastic to spot justness prevail, and the courts uphold our law rights. A triumph for america is simply a triumph for each landowners.”

Three different cases pending

The determination Tuesday from the lawsuit brought distant successful 2017 marks the 2nd liability ruling successful 4 alleged inverse condemnation cases filed by EHB. It is the archetypal to spell its way, though a ruling favorable to the metropolis successful December regarding a 65-acre parcel was aboriginal reopened and is nether review, tribunal records show.

Each lawsuit represents a antithetic parcel of the erstwhile play course. But combined the lawsuits relationship for the full 250-acre crippled and marque the aforesaid cardinal allegation: a “categorical taking.”

In essence, the developer is arguing that they merit to beryllium compensated due to the fact that they assertion the city’s purported volition to sphere backstage spot for nationalist usage has wiped retired the economical worth of the land.

Attorney Kermitt Waters, 1 of the lawyers representing EHB successful litigation, said Wednesday helium believed it was lone “a substance of time” earlier the metropolis would beryllium recovered liable successful the remaining cases pursuing Tuesday’s ruling.

Allegations of extortion

The stakes could beryllium precocious depending connected the result of the cases. EHB CEO Yohan Lowie antecedently estimated that the metropolis would beryllium liable for implicit $1 cardinal successful damages. In an August rebuttal to the suit successful question, metropolis attorneys wrote that a uncovering against the metropolis “would bring down the full strategy of onshore usage regularisation successful the State of Nevada.”

In tribunal filings, metropolis attorneys accidental the developer knew the onshore was designated for unfastened space, recreation and parks erstwhile it purchased it six years ago, though EHB insists that residential operation is permitted. City attorneys besides noted that lawmakers whitethorn workout discretion connected land-use matters, specified arsenic erstwhile they allowed the scaled-back condominium project.

“If the Developer admits that it has the close to proceed with operation of its 435-unit luxury lodging project, its communicative of victimization successful this and the different 3 lawsuits is exposed arsenic a fraud and a cynical entreaty to the courts to assistance it extort hundreds of millions of dollars from the taxpayers,” metropolis attorneys wrote successful a tribunal filing.

Lowie, himself, has accused Queensridge residents of trying to extort him.

Damages to beryllium determined

The metropolis declined to remark Wednesday connected the ruling successful the case, citing its signifier of not publically addressing ongoing oregon pending litigation. A proceeding connected readiness for proceedings to found damages is scheduled Thursday, according to Waters and tribunal records.

It is 1 of astatine slightest a twelve lawsuits brought guardant by EHB successful caller years successful the protracted and costly ineligible conflict it has waged against the city. The tribunal combat had outgo Las Vegas taxpayers much than $3.2 cardinal successful ineligible fees and unit costs arsenic of 2020, not including wealth spent this year.

“When I ran for office, I ran with a extremity of bringing the City of Las Vegas and the developer unneurotic to debar this eventual time successful court,” Las Vegas Councilwoman Victoria Seaman, whose territory covers the play course, said successful a statement.

Seaman had criticized her predecessor, ex-Councilman Steve Seroka, for representing a “few radical successful Queensridge” and not taxpayers oregon the metropolis passim the dispute. Seaman’s candidacy successful 2019 was supported by a national and developer-linked company that contributed to Seaman-backed efforts to callback Seroka, who yet stepped down amid allegations of intersexual harassment.

“While the ineligible process volition linger on, and costs to the taxpayers volition proceed to mount, my nonsubjective has ever been to debar this litigation and enactment for an amicable resolution,” Seaman said. “My presumption remains the same.”

Contact Shea Johnson astatine sjohnson@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0272. Follow @Shea_LVRJ connected Twitter.