LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Up to $86 million dollars. That is how much it could cost Clark County to settle a lawsuit brought against them.
A developer is suing for billions, claiming Clark County Commissioners approved building more than 5,000 homes near Red Rock Canyon, then illegally stopped the project, sending his business into bankruptcy.
Clark County says if that developer were to get the $2 billion they’re seeking, more than the entire annual county budget, it could have an “adverse impact on the county” so they are now looking to settle.
Developer Jim Rhodes, with successful developments like Rhodes Ranch, has been trying to build homes on Blue Diamond Hill next to Red Rock Canyon for two decades. Rhodes’ company, Gypsum Resources sued Clark County arguing they have “purposefully and illegally” delayed plans.
A magistrate judge agreed finding the county, specifically Commissioner Justin Jones, even covered up their efforts to stop the build. Both a federal court and district court judge found Jones purposefully deleted all text messages on his phone just hours after voting against the housing development. The federal judge’s finding read:
“The totality of the evidence presented leaves little doubt that the disappearance of all texts from Mr. Jones’ phone was not an unidentifiable aberration of electronics or some other unidentified accident, but the result of a purposeful act that, as Clark County says, was ‘knowingly done against county policy.”
Before he was a Clark County Commissioner, Jones was an attorney for a conservation group fighting to preserve the land around Red Rock, even posting a picture on social media around Halloween in a superhero costume calling himself the “Red Rock guy” naming Rhodes, the developer, as his arch-nemesis.
Due to Gypsum’s lawsuit alleging misconduct by Jones, the Nevada Bar has opened an investigation into the county commissioner and he gave up his leadership role on the commission.
In a special report, Battle to Build (https://www.fox5vegas.com/2024/06/11/clark-county-present-settlement-agreement-over-planned-housing-development-near-red-rock/), the FOX5 team reviewed thousands of pages, years of court filings by Gypsum and Clark County. The case is set for trial in August if a settlement cannot be reached.
On Tuesday, the $86 million settlement offer will go before Clark County Commissioners for approval during a zoning hearing at 1 p.m.
So how will Clark County come up with the money? They claim while the massive payout to the developer is “significant,” they say:
“By reprioritizing and reallocating funds for planned capital projects and other economic development projects not yet underway… the settlement will not have a detrimental impact on services nor will it require a reduction in staff. The County will continue to identify sources of funding that will not impact the important services the County provides to the community.”
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