Opponents of two proposed shopping malls on South Oakridge Avenue and Thousandaire Boulevard enjoyed a victory last Wednesday, when the Nye County Commission voted 4-0 to deny applications for a master plan amendment and zone change.

The Pahrump Regional Planning Commission June 14 voted 6-1 to recommend denial of the applications. The plan was to rezone 27.8 acres from low-density residential to general commercial. Another 12.13 acres would be rezoned to multi-family residential.

Dave Richards, representing CivilWise Engineering, whose clients want to rezone the property, asked for a continuance to Sept. 20 so the owners could attend the public hearing. But Commissioner Joni Eastley said she didn't want developers to continue items to future agendas in the hope that members of the public opposed to the project will lose interest.

Dan Schinhofen, a candidate for Nye County Commissioner District IV, said the number of residents showing up in opposition has diminished by attrition since the RPC meeting. Residents of the nearby Jocelyn Estates subdivision, many of them senior citizens, said the project would rob them of the rural quality of life for which they moved to Pahrump.

"The character of our area, I think, is a very important factor when you are considering all these new changes," said George Gravenites. He said the development could completely obscure their view of the mountains.

Commissioner Patricia Cox said she understood Pahrump needs more commercial areas. But she said there wasn't a site plan stating specifically what would be built in the shopping center.

"This is just preliminary; pull in all the properties together and hope someone will join in," Cox said. "Why is it an advantage to rezone one area and tell everyone to wait until the study is done?"

Gravenites was concerned the developers could build another "skin show" like the Kingdom gentlemen's club at Highway 160 and Homestead Road, where the property owner was supposed to build a restaurant and ended up building a strip club. Commission Chairman Gary Hollis said new strip joints could be built only in light industrial or industrial areas.

Erik Nielsen said, "if something is planned across the street, I should at least know what's across the street rather than just open it. I don't know if it's going to be a PTs bar, a gas station or whatever. This is a real quiet residential area, and we would like to keep it that way."

Norma Morrison said Oakridge Avenue isn't a section line road meant for commercial development. "It's not a through street, it's a quiet, residential area."

Morrison read off a list of about 50 businesses within a mile-and-a-half radius of the proposed development. "It's our opinion that's enough commercial in our area," she said.

The Nye County Planning Department is planning a more thorough study of land uses in the rapidly developing southern part of the Pahrump Valley to see if the entire master plan, adopted in 2004, needs revisions. Cheryl Beeman, interim planning director, said the study will examine the appropriate amount of commercial development in relation to the population.

Ron Tewell said 30 signatories of a petition in support of the rezoning don't live in the immediate area. He said the project would generate more traffic and more crime for an already overburdened Nye County Sheriff's Office.

Linda Mickelson, who wanted to convert her pistachio orchard into the shopping center, said the mall could have housed upscale tenants like Burlington Coat Factory, a bank and a much-needed child care facility. The storage units were no longer included in the plans.

"We have worked diligently on this project. We're not just picking up and leaving," Mickelson said. "I don't like going 16 miles to go to a grocery store, and what's going to happen when all these homes are coming in?"

Beazer Homes has a project called Tesora at Pahrump planned for the area around Thousandaire and Homestead roads with 586 residential lots, while Concordia Homes has plans to subdivide 833 residential lots in the same area.

Commissioner Candice Trummell said it wasn't the responsibility of residents to meet with developers.

"If the issue isn't resolved before you come here," Trummell said, "then you pay the consequences of not having paid the full due diligence."

Trummell referred to a townhouse project planned around the Willow Creek golf course, in which developers spoke to local residents for months to get their approval before submitting the plans to the county. She noted, however, if developers resubmit plans, two new county commissioners will be sitting on the board come January.

"What you're trying to do is beneficial with the amount of homes, but I'm opposed with what you're trying to do without site plans, without getting neighbors involved," Cox said. "There's a lot of places undeveloped, still. It's zoning property just so you can make more profit off it."