Boulder City market stong, outlook good

If you haven’t been to Boulder City in the last year or so, you would notice immediately the change to the entrance where Nevada Highway and U.S. Highway 93 separate. Seated beneath an iron arch at the entrance to old town now is a winged allegorical figure seated on a cement block, a replica of those down the road at Hoover Dam. Also there are two side towers, representing the dam intake towers.

On the other side is a large LED screen broadcasting announcements. It was purchased with a grant from the Las Vegas Convention Visitors Authority, and looks slightly too high-tech for the area.

Businesses in the city’s historical district have been encouraged to add arched porticos to their storefronts as well as red tiled roofs to match the style of the City Hall building. Even the local bus stops carry the theme, with red-tiled roofs.

When the valley experienced the recent recession, Boulder City’s real estate market was impacted, “but not at the proportion to Las Vegas,” said Jill Rowland-Lagan, CEO of the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce. “Having a large retirement population protected us from a lot of negative impact,” she said. The city’s median age is 55, so the majority of the population is well-vested in their homes. “We lost a few younger families though,” she added.

Due to growth restrictions, there is a more limited inventory, and that has made a difference, said Beth Aldworth-Miller, broker-owner of Plaza Realty. “The outlook is very good. The market is very strong. We feel very positive about it,” she said, adding that “the higher end (over $500,000) market has not come back as strong.”

Boulder City is considered Southern Nevada’s first master-planned community. In the early 1930s, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power built homes to house its superintendents working on at the Hoover Dam. LADWP operated the dam until 1985.

In 1987, they auctioned off about 60 houses at $80,000 to $90,000 each.

“These are some of the nicest homes we have,” according to Bret Runion of Desert Sun Realty &Associates. “They were built to last 100 years or more. Some of them have hardwood floors 2 inches thick.” And they would be in the $250,000 to $300,000 price range today, he added.

These bungalows feature wide, green lawns, porches and garages in the back, accessible by alleys. Not the automobile-centric, open floor plan with huge closets homes of today. About 24 of them have basements.

“Most builders here don’t know how to build basements,” Ruion said. “It’s not that hard.”

They are pedestrian friendly, within walking distance of parks, schools and downtown.

The sole home retained by LADWP is a corporate retreat center atop a peak hill near Denver Street and Nevada Way, overlooking Lake Mead. Its nearest neighbor, Larry Ray, lets his husky run around the property. The retired commercial pilot, who moved to Boulder City in 1995, says the best thing about living in there is its distance from the hectic metro area.

“Away from Las Vegas is very, very nice.”

Ray owns two homes in the area, one of which is octagonal. Both have wonderful views of the area. But neither would probably fall within the restrictive covenants, conditions and restrictions that imposed by the typical Las Vegas homeowners association.

The most expensive homes in the city are in the Lake Mead View Estates, visible on the right side of U.S. 93, heading south toward the Dam. A new development of 10 single-story homes on a one-third acre is in construction there. It’s called Tamarisk Heights, being developed by RPS Homes. Lots without a view start at $599,000.

Alternately, there are homes within a couple blocks of that development for sale in the multimillion dollar range.

Runion showed Real Estate Millions an estate sale single-story home built in 2002 at 211 Copper Ridge, priced at $1.5 million, although it sold for $2.25 million 10 years ago. Not only does it come with lake views visible from three of the four bedrooms, it features a theater-quality pipe organ in the living room. The organ has three separate sound systems and is air powered with an electrical pump installed in the garage.

The home has a garage large enough to park an recreational vehicle inside it; a kitchen with a separate caterer’s area, and a master bedroom with two walk-in closets, fireplace, lake and pool views.

“This house would probably be priced at over $2 million if it were in Anthem,” Runion said.

Like much of Las Vegas, Boulder City homes appreciated greatly over the last two years, according to Runion, “but that’s unsustainable. Now, we’re moving back into a normal growth balance.” He said if you take out the peak years of 2005-2009, over the past 10 years, the home values have appreciated at a normal rate. “I see that continuing for the future.”

Longtime resident Linda Faiss wouldn’t dream of living anywhere else. “It’s not that inconvenient, a little more than a half hour to downtown or to the airport.” Faiss is a partner in the Faiss Foley Warren Public Relations &Government Affairs located in downtown Las Vegas. “On top of that, I have a fabulous lake view out my back door! It’s a jewel, an enchanted little town.”

She is in her second Boulder City home, with a view of Lake Mead. “There are not too many homes in Nevada with lake views, except Lake Tahoe,” she said.

She feels like she’s living in a rural community but with access to many conveniences.

“We have benefit of being close to Las Vegas, but no pollution.”

Boulder City has its own police and fire departments, city services and hospital. Its residents enjoy the lowest power and water rates in the state, due to a long relationship with the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation. It is the only city in the state that receives power directly from Hoover Dam.

It’s also the only city in the state where gambling is prohibited, and don’t expect to be buying medical marijuana here anytime in the near future. The issue was voted down by the City Council earlier this year.

Its economic future is anchored in ownership of a dry lake bed in the Eldorado Valley, 100 acres of which have been leased to private businesses that generate electricity for Southern California. It is also a huge tourist destination for visitors from around the world, and locals who embrace the city’s slogan, “A world away for a day.”

Boulder City lacks the transient nature of its northern neighbors. Lagan, who grew up there, reminisces about a childhood practice of riding bikes down to the dam and rubbing the toes on the winged figures for good luck. Walking with her near her office, she is greeted by residents and business owners, including Jim Amstutz, who is doing construction on his new restaurant to be called Scratch House, which is expected to be completed next year. He plays Santa Claus in the town’s annual Christmas parade, in which several churches have floats with Jesus in the manger.

You can’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia visiting downtown Boulder City, with its vintage stores, old-fashioned ice cream parlor, small motels, downtown holiday lights and absence of chain restaurants.

For a nominal fee, residents can stake a claim in a community garden administered by the city’s Parks and Rec Department. It is located near an abandoned water filtration plant which will likely be reincarnated in the near future when deed restrictions are lifted in 2015.