Project: Nevada Northwest Master Planned Community
Client: Nevada Northwest, LLC
Location: Minden, Nevada
Description:
R.O. Anderson was engaged by a private development company to entitle a 116-acre site located at a key focal point to the community of Minden, Nevada. After several meetings to program the client’s development interests for this property, members of our firm met with local officials to discuss the project and its overall importance to the community. We then prepared a Specific Plan and Master Plan Amendment, which created the vision and implementation measures for an integrated mixed-use commercial and residential community using New Urbanism principles. The plan includes 800,000 square feet of commercial floor area, including a casino and hotel, a specialty shopping mall, vertically- and horizontally-oriented mixed-use, in addition to affordable and market rate housing opportunities. A central feature of the planned community included the Martin Slough, a “Water of the U.S.”. Implementation of the plan required obtaining U.S. Army Corp of Engineers permits to create a functional wetland and joint-use facilities for walking trails, open space, and regional stormwater facilities that rely on biological treatment along Martin Slough.
The mixed-use project, designed to present new development in a traditional neighborhood setting, was complicated by a politically-charged anti-growth and anti-casino movement spearheaded by adjacent property owners. Further, the Town of Minden was simultaneously engaged in preparing a revision to its master plan when this project was submitted for review. The owner hoped to maximize density while remaining sensitive to legitimate issues raised by project opponents.
Working closely with the owner and local officials, our firm conducted community workshops to obtain community feedback, revised plans to reflect legitimate concerns, and presented the plans for public review a second time prior to submitting them for official review. Because this exhaustive public review process was used, the project was ultimately approved and adopted by Douglas County.