COLUMN: A beautiful day in North Las Vegas

About 50 people attended the recent grand opening ceremony for the city of North Las Vegas Beautification Project. The festivities included the dedication of the first home completed in the project's inaugural development, which calls for the construction of 11 homes on infill sites.

The home, located on East Carey Avenue, delighted its new owner Linda Hill, who glowed as she thanked everyone for their work on her behalf. Although nervous about speaking to the assembly, her pride of homeownership was evident.

"I'm very happy and honored to be here," she said. "Thank you North Las Vegas, EOB and Wells Fargo. Thank you guys very much."

It took a lot of planning and hard work to pull the project together, and the bulk of that burden was shouldered by members of the Housing Division of the Economic Opportunity Board of Clark County. Executive director Marcia Rose Walker thanked the division's staffers for their dedication to the project.

Reed Radosevich, vice president of commercial banking for Bank of America, said it was a privilege to provide the construction financing for the project. He also said BofA would donate $20,000 to the EOB's Home Center Program. Through the program, prospective homeowners are selected for low-income housing and educated about the responsibilities of homeownership.

Jay Fields, manager of Wells Fargo Mortgage, said he hadn't written a loan since going into management, and was happy to have been involved in the writing of Hill's loan.

"I'm proud of our relationship with EOB and the city of North Las Vegas," he said. "To all involved, congratulations."

Elected officials were also on hand to congratulate Hill and to bask in the glow of good fellowship.

Mayor Mike Montandon thanked the federal government for allowing cities to use funds for infill projects, making it a win-win situation for everyone involved.

State Sen. Joe Neal, chairman of the EOB, said he hoped everyone would spread the word about the good things the EOB and city of North Las Vegas were doing for low-income residents.

"This low-income housing is a lot less expensive to build on infill, where the infrastructure is already in place," Neal said. "Miss Hill, we hope you find this home comfortable and that we've done a good job building a house you can cherish."

Councilman William Robinson, who also serves on the EOB panel, said he was delighted that the city was involved in the project.

"I'm just as elated as Linda is. This is her first house, and I remember how I felt when I bought my first home," Robinson said.

North Las Vegas Councilwoman Stephanie Smith was there, as were representatives of U.S. Sen. John Ensign and Congresswoman Shelley Berkley.

Hill said one of the many reasons why she is so happy with her new home is that it is located only eight blocks from where she most recently has been living, and that she knows the area well.

"My son (and nephew) can go to the same school," she said.

The 1,500-square-foot home has four bedrooms, two baths, a kitchen, living room and two-car garage.

The Hill family planned to move in during the Easter weekend.

Carmel Hopkins, real estate product manager for the Las Vegas Review-Journal and Las Vegas Sun, can be reached at 380-4574. Her e-mail address is Carmel_Hopkins@ reviewjournal.com. Snail mail is P.O. Box 70, Las Vegas, NV 89125.

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