New hotel and casino planned for Pahrump

A mixed-use commercial project that includes plans for a major brand hotel and casino, as part of Spring Mountain Motor Resort and Country Club’s overall development, made its way through the Nye County Commission in the early part of 2018.

Las Vegas-based Silverton Casino was reportedly in the process of raising a major commercial project on seven acres near the front gates of Spring Mountain on Highway 160 in 2018.

At an event by British supercar maker McLaren at Spring Mountain’s facility in January 2018, John Morris, owner of the race facility, announced the hotel was planned for a March 2019 completion date.

The race facility received approval on a final commercial subdivision map in March 2018 on a nearly 22-acre parcel at 3651 S. Highway 160. Seven of those acres are slated for the Silverton’s project, according to a March newsletter from Spring Mountain.

The project is pegged for several developments, including a retail center, a major-brand hotel and a casino and movie theater to the Spring Mountain development.

The development will also bring “a major brand 110 all-suite hotel connected to a casino to be designed and operated by Silverton.”

The hotel and casino at the commercial development were planned to break ground in the summer of 2018, with a target completion date in early 2019.

The casino plans to have “over 200 slots, five game tables, a sports book and café, along with restaurant and retail opportunities,” a newsletter from Spring Mountain stated.

Phase II is still in the conceptualization stages and will be announced at a later date, according to a newsletter from Spring Mountain.

Water infrastructure

Infrastructure work for both the residential and commercial projects occurring at Spring Mountain were planned to wrap up in the early part of 2018. Those efforts were pegged to raise two 550,000-gallon water storage tanks, just north of the track’s main facility area.

The water and sewer treatment project had an estimated cost of $13.4 million.

Great Basin Water Company was approved in August 2016 by the Nevada Public Utilities Commission to expand its service territory by 120 acres.

Great Basin was allowed to construct a stand-alone water and wastewater infrastructure and associated facilities under the PUC approval. Spring Mountain was required to pay all associated costs for development of this infrastructure, Great Basin officials stated in a Sept. 2, 2016 Pahrump Valley Times article.

Water rights were also a necessary part of the development at Spring Mountain and necessary for Great Basin Water Co. to provide service, according to Wendy Barnett, President of Great Basin Water Co.

“Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch (SMMR) was an annexation into our service territory, and they had to bring the necessary water rights to be served,” Barnett said in a written statement.

She continued, saying that “the water rights dedication to the utility is governed by the Nevada Division of Water Resources and the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada, both of which regulate utilities like Great Basin Water Co. The water rights are allocated to the parcels within Spring Mountain to meet their service needs and are held by the utility.”

Water conservation has been a big concern by some state and county officials.

In December 2017, Nevada State Engineer Jason King issued an order halting drilling of a domestic well without first obtaining two acre-feet of existing water rights in the Pahrump Artesian Basin.

The order followed the Nye County Water District Governing Board’s vote to send a letter to the state engineer’s office in support of the action. The letter was sent by Oz Wichman, general manager of the Nye County Water District.

According to a news release from the state engineer’s office, the order will help protect the owners of existing water rights in the area, along with existing domestic wells in the Pahrump Basin. The Pahrump area has the highest concentration of domestic wells in the state with approximately 11,280 existing wells, the engineer’s office reported.

Barnett said Spring Mountain does take measures to conserve water.

“For instance, they have installed a catch basin for stormwater for basin recharge and they are also using traditional desert landscaping,” she said. “Additionally, growth inside our service territory is good for our existing customers as it spreads our fixed costs over more ratepayers and helps keep rates down. Great Basin Water Company is very excited about this addition to the community and the tourism it brings to Pahrump.”

Contact reporter Jeffrey Meehan at jmeehan@pvtimes.com