The vision for downtown Las Vegas is one step closer to becoming a reality with the unveiling of the initial business and development plan for the downtown 61-acre parcel known as Union Park. The plan will be presented to the City Council at its meeting on Wednesday, May 17.

Representatives from the Newland Communities, which was hired in December 2005 to act as development manager for the parcel, will present the plan, which identifies the various proposed land uses as well as a four-phase approach to the development.

Union Park is the last completely unencumbered acreage in downtown, making it an ideal place to create a true urban center. The site is surrounded by major development such as the Clark County Government Center, the World Market Center and the Las Vegas Premium Outlet shopping center, making it a prime location for future development. Once complete, Union Park will include four distinct districts including a civic district for cultural uses, a residential district, a medical / office district and a specialty district, which will include hospitality, specialty retail, hotel and entertainment uses.

The proposed land uses will include 420,000 square feet of retail space, 2.3 million square feet of office space, 4.9 million square feet of residential elements and 1.5 million square feet of hotel accommodations. These areas will coincide with two public facilities that have already signed agreements to be located in Union Park - the Lou Ruvo Alzheimer’s Institute  and the Smith Center for the Performing Arts .

The plan also details a timeline for development. Phase one includes securing commitments from private developers, phase two will focus on the building of the residential and retail portions of the project and phase three will focus on land disposition activity relating to residential, hotel, medical office and general office development. The final phase will be dictated by current market conditions.