Summerlin family's yard gets make-over

The Howard Hughes Corp., developer of Summerlin, teamed with the Southern Nevada Water Authority to demonstrate the ease of converting a traditional turf landscape to an attractive, water-saving desert design. It was done via a front-yard make-over for a family in the master-planned community.

The conversion was taped for broadcast on the water authority's "Water Ways" cable television program this month. The format is similar to that of the television show "While You Were Out," in which a homeowner redecorates a room or redesigns a yard while other family members are away.

Doug Bennett, conservation manager for the water authority, said, "`While You Were Out in Summerlin' will show how easy it is to retrofit an existing yard with low water-use landscaping. Many homeowners have a desire to do the right thing, to change their traditional water-guzzling lawns into more conservation-oriented landscapes. But they often don't know how to go about it, or just how simply it can be done. This program will showcase a real family, a real yard and a real conversion."

Summerlin residents Chris and Bobbie Unick's residence was selected for the conversion. The family's front yard was re-landscaped using a design created by the water authority. "Color Explosion" is one of two new designs available to the public at no cost. Like its name suggests, "Color Explosion' features a variety of desert plants that provide year-round color.

The Unicks' home is the first to feature the design.

"The front yard is a demonstration garden of sorts," Bennett said. "It will be a living example of just how attractive and colorful water-smart landscaping can be, not to mention how much it will save."

It is estimated the new landscape will save the family, which includes four sons age 11 months to 13 years, about 54,450 gallons of water per year.

Evan Unick, the couple's 13-year-old son, said, "If desert landscaping means no mowing, I'm all for it."

Lewis Landscape provided the labor for the conversion, while plant and yard materials were provided by Hughes Corp., which conceived the make-over as a way to encourage Las Vegas Valley residents to minimize turf landscapes.

"Considering our valley's current drought and the increasing need to conserve Southern Nevada's most precious resource, we are very aware of the need to educate homeowners on the importance and ease of installing desert landscape," Hughes executive Tom Warden said.

"From Summerlin's inception in the early 1990s, (Hughes) took a leadership role in embracing low water-use plants throughout the community. Today, we are more committed than ever to taking desert landscape in Summerlin to an even higher level, and this program is one element of a broad family of conservation programs we are currently developing."

Hughes recently implemented a Water Smart Summerlin program that outlines specific water use criteria for the community's future development, according to Warden.

The Southern Nevada Water Authority is a regional entity that manages water conservation, water quality and water resource issues. Its members include the Las Vegas Valley Water District; the cities of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson and Boulder City; the Big Bend Water District (Laughlin); and the Clark County Water Reclamation District.

Summerlin aligns the western edge of the valley. It is home to eight golf courses, more than 100 parks, more than 100 miles of trails, as well as 16 schools. It also offers houses of worship, shopping centers, medical facilities, cultural facilities and business parks. More than 120 model homes are open.

Single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums are priced from the low $200,000s to more than $700,000. Custom lots in The Ridges are priced from the high $500,000s to more than $1 million, and predesigned custom homes are priced from $2.1 million. Apartments offer monthly rents starting from the $800s.

For more information, visit www.reviewjournal.com/real estate and click on the Summerlin link.

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