Planning and development firm G.C. Garcia helps clients with every aspect of redeveloping, acquiring or building a new location. That could mean evaluating a site, coordinating with government agencies or just about anything else.
“We assist developers, business owners and residents with due diligence, zoning entitlements, building permit processing/expediting, regulated business licenses and expert witness testimony,” said Melissa Eure, president and director of planning for the agency, who has been part of the company almost since its inception.
She answered questions from Vegas Inc about the future of urban planning in Southern Nevada, the difference between the real estate market here and other major cities, and the importance of so-called equity planning.
With the growth of the valley, what stands out to you the most?
The Las Vegas Valley was never contemplated to be what it is today. What stands out to me is that we have, rather successfully, constantly grown with each change and reinvention of what the Las Vegas Valley is.
It seems like almost every decade there’s something new either reinventing the Strip, Fremont Street, Water Street, the Arts District, the Medical District, Apex and now West Henderson, the Stadium District, and the Eldorado Valley. And while it may not happen immediately, we are always successful to varying degrees in achieving that change and seeing growth with it. I don’t know how many other communities can truly claim the same thing.
What do you see for the future in urban planning and development in Southern Nevada?
As a newer city, and a city that is constantly reinventing itself, I think there is plenty on the horizon, but the constants are planning around land availability, water usage and heat island effect. But regardless of those factors, we will continue to see growth, and if we can’t grow horizontally, we will see more buildings start to grow higher vertically, as that will be the only direction to go.
Also, there has been revitalization and redevelopment particularly on the Strip and the Downtown areas for all the major cities. I think we will start to see more redevelopment of other areas of town that are older as the cities look for ways to revitalize those areas and better utilize the land.
Finally, we will continue to see the impact of sports entertainment and how it changes the development pattern around those arenas and facilities.
How does this market differ from other major cities?
No. 1 is that this is a city that no one ever dreamed 50 years ago would still be here, let alone be this big. Our market is different in the fact that a large percentage of our land is owned by the Bureau of Land Management, and isn’t available for development. [The Bureau of Land Management] owns more land in Nevada than any other state in the country. Then add that some of the land that is available can’t be developed due to constraints from the ground. We have a number of areas where there are fissures, or you are on the hillside, making development costly. There’s also the caliche that our ground is well known for, which isn’t unusual in Arizona, but isn’t as common in many other states.
I think the other is that while we are working hard to diversify our economy and have been very successful in the past few years, it has brought other issues to light. We have brought in new companies and industries, but providing them with a stable workforce, and a place to house that workforce, has been a major issue.
Can you explain equity planning for equality?
When urban planning was a young field, think 1950s and 1960s, zoning regulations were often a tool used for segregation. It also pooled resources in certain areas while leaving other areas devoid of the same resources, or with limited access to them—think public transportation, parks, schools and employment centers.
The idea behind equitable planning for equality is that you are giving equal access to amenities and services regardless of the neighborhood to promote better quality of life for all residents. An example is the need for affordable housing. If you put affordable housing on the outskirts of the city, then they won’t have as much access to things like public transportation, grocery stores and other services and amenities. You have given them a place to live but may have made it difficult or impossible for them to get to work or have access to parks for children or other services. It’s less likely people will stay there because of those issues.
The ability to have not just equal housing but equity of resources is what will allow those living there, and the community as a whole to be lifted.
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