Project Name: Cadence
Project Location: Henderson, Nevada (East Henderson)
Project Summary: Cadence, a 2,200-acre mixed-use community in Henderson, Nevada, will be built on one of the
country’s largest brownfield sites. At full build out, the remediated land – cleared of the industrial chemicals that
had leeched into the soil and water over many decades – will be the site for a new sustainable community of
approximately 40,000 residents and workers that rejuvenates the area socially, economically and environmentally.
Purpose of Project: Located in the oldest part of the city, Cadence has an industrial history dating back to the
1930’s when the workers came here to build Boulder Dam and later in 1941when the U.S. government built a
industrial town so 14,000 workers could process magnesium for airplane parts and bomb making during WWII.
After the war, the industrial complex continued to be used for industrial production at the expense of contaminating
the land, air and water. A bold developer believed that this site should be rehabilitated in order to create a new and
better place for the town that grew up around the industrial complex. With the help of the state and city government
leaders, the remediation of nearly 500 acres of land (2.2 million cubic yards of contaminated soil) has been
completed to lay the foundation for a new sustainable community to grow; bringing new people, jobs, housing,
shopping, entertainment, schools, civic facilities, BRT transit and needed tax dollars to this older area of the City.
Role of Landscape Architect - The landscape architect was the land planner, urban designer and landscape
architect that prepared the community master plan and entitlement/zoning documents including a comprehensive set
of development standards. Additionally, the landscape architect has developed the community website and prepared
conceptual design for the Phase 1 streetscapes, parks and environmental graphics and signage in the community.
Special Factors:
A comprehensive environmental analysis and remediation plan was prepared for the land but it was done with the
foresight of how the land should be used after remediation was complete. The community master plan was
structured so that the community could be built as areas of the land were environmentally cleaned. This added some
complexity to how the community framework of streets, open spaces and development parcels were organized in
order to give the developer(s) flexibility to move the development forward as they saw fit.
Significance:
As the prime consultant, the consultant worked closely with the developer and engineers to achieve new road and
park standards for Cadence. Specifically, Cadence has established new park requirements like smaller neighborhood
and pocket park sizes that can be spaced more closely together than other typical residential developments. A
majority of all homes are within a ¼-mile walking distance of a park, open space or nature way. Moreover, the
community will use reclaimed water for landscape irrigation however the gray water infrastructure will take many
years for the City to build. In the near term, there is a plan for a dual water system that will eventually become a
single reclaimed system. For that reason the landscape standards and approved plant list for Cadence were
coordinated with the City and experts at UNLV to ensure that a water conserving landscape could survive regardless
of the type of irrigation water.
Responding to the Surrounding Context:
Bordering the site is the Las Vegas Wash - one of the region’s more important open spaces that will convey water to
Lake Mead - the region’s primary water supply. Because Cadence is upland of the Wash, it has located a major
sports complex and lower density development nearby. Additionally, there are two major nature ways /drainage
corridors in the community that provide areas for storm-water collection, water quality treatment, habitat, recreation,
and pedestrian/ bikeway connections. The nature ways will provide green linkages between the Wash, Cadence and
the existing residential and commercial areas.
Sustainability, Special Features and Design Elements - Design with the End User in Mind
COMMUNITY BUILDING AND CONNECTIVITY – The rehabilitation of the land is only one part of the story. The
developer and planner decided that Cadence would be unlike any other new community in Las Vegas because it
wouldn’t have cul-de-sac road networks, “walled” neighborhoods and large parks that are spaced too far apart for
people to walk to them. Community building starts with people’s ability to move and engage one another on foot on
in public setting. To that end, the layout of the streets and neighborhoods was modeled after traditional urban
neighborhoods where gridded streets and fenceless neighborhoods allowed for social engagement to occur.
However, to make Cadence truly a pedestrian-oriented community, the plan needed to create a network of streets
that make it easier to connect all the community amenities and destinations within it. Streets have been designed in a
grid pattern, narrower that most, helping to reduce the amount of asphalt paving from a typical city roadway profile.
LED street lights are being considered for major streets which will further reduce the amount of energy consumed
by this community. On-street parking and “bulb-out” conditions at intersections are accommodated on streets and
they will help create a safer, more convenient path for pedestrians than typical suburban communities. Many homes
will face onto important streets as opposed to backyards and screen walls that are customary in most communities in
Las Vegas.
Based on a climate study that was prepared by the planner, site and architectural standards have been written that
will help to reduce peak water and energy demands of home and business owners in the hot summer months because
standards require addressing things like natural wind patterns, solar orientation, shading devices, and sustainable
building materials and details. Additionally, the climate study helped the planner determine how to capture the wind
and where to provide shading along streets and key public spaces
DESIGNED FOR DIVERSITY AND AFFORDABILITY – Lastly, this community has been designed with diversity and
affordability in mind. A range of housing types and price points is required as part of the entitlements for this land.
Neighborhoods will be defined by mixture not homogeneity. Each neighborhood will have no fewer than three
product types of different price ranges. In all, over 15 different housing options will provide a wealth of choice for
people.
Cadence Image Descriptions:
Cadence 1 | Context: The Cadence community will be located approximately 15 miles from the Las Vegas Strip, 10
miles from Lake Mead and 1 mile from the City of Henderson City Hall. Bordered by older residential
neighborhoods, strip commercial centers, industrial complexes and the Las Vegas Wash, one of Clark County’s
most drainage and ecological corridors.
Cadence 2 | Brownfield Remediation: The property was formerly part of a large Industrial complex in which land
was contaminated over many decades making it one of the largest brownfield development sites in the country.
Over a quarter of the property’s 2200 acres was remediated enabling the development of a new sustainable
community to emerge from what has been a wasteland.
Cadence 3 | Adjacent Industrial Park: The Black Mountain Heavy Industrial park is comprised of contaminated
soils, which impact the water quality that discharges into the Las Vegas Wash.
Cadence 4 | Existing Brownfield Context: An environmental analysis and remediation plan was completed for the
property, illustrating the air, soil and water pollution that impacted the site in 1940. Cadence lies between Black
Mountain Industrial park and the Las Vegas Wash, making this site one of the most important priorities for the City
of Henderson. (Image Courtesy of the Landwell Co. and DB Stephens and Assoc. Inc.)
Cadence 5 | Proposed Remediation Strategy: Millions of cubic yards of contaminated soil were removed from the
site and several large nature ways/drainage corridors have been planned to treat and convey storm water to the Las
Vegas Wash. (Image Courtesy of the Landwell Co. and DB Stephens and Assoc. Inc.)
Cadence 6 | Master Plan: Unlike a lot of communities in Las Vegas, that have gated residential neighborhoods,
circuitous road networks and car oriented development , Cadence was designed with community building in mind
and the following planning attributes: 1) Mixed Use District and Villages 2) Gridded street network and pedestrian
orientation 3) Nature Ways/ Open Space Corridors connecting existing and new development areas to the Las Vegas
Wash 4) Network of neighborhood and pocket parks 5) Mixed Housing 6) Open, Connected Neighborhoods 7)
Major Sports Complex 8) Integration with City Bird Preserve and Las Vegas Wash Improvement 9) Affordability/
Range of housing prices 10) Energy and Water Conservation.
Cadence 7 | Urban Core Vignette: The Mixed Use District is comprised of a resort casino/hotel, main street retail
center, urban park, cultural facility, BRT transit center and a range of low to mid rise housing and office space.
Additionally, the district is part of an urban renewal zone where sales taxes will be used to fund new public
improvements in the older, obsolescent areas surrounding the project.
Cadence 8 | Village Center Vignette: Mixed Use Village Centers will integrate regional/ community retail with
MFR & SFR housing , professional office space, community facilities such as a fire station and pocket parks that
create inseparable physical connections.
Cadence 9 |Water Conveyance: The diagram shows how water is conveyed through neighborhoods and streets so
it can be discharged in the nature way/ linear drainage corridors that strategically transverse the 2200 acres. These
vital corridors will provide new habitat for multiple species, cooler micro-climates for people and sustainable desert
landscapes that help to clean the water before it enters the Las Vegas Wash.
Cadence 10 | Central Park Lake Vignette: Cadence Central Park will be the heart and soul of the community. It
will offer recreational, passive and educational outdoor programming and amenities. A small lake will provide a
source of reclaimed water for the desert landscapes that UNLV helped conceptualize with the team.
Cadence 11 | Park Connectivity: Cadence represents one of the first communities to use smaller neighborhood and
pocket parks that are generally located within ¼ mile of every home, business and school. This required an
agreement between the Developer and the City’s Park and Recreation Department to build and maintain smaller
parks than typical park standards required.
Cadence 12 | Overall Central Park Vignette: The 50-acre Central Park will provide programming (i.e. sports
fields, play grounds, community center, outdoor amphitheater, wetland interpretive area, etc) that will appeal to all
people who live or work in East Henderson. The park was designed to provide views of the Las Vegas valley and be
sustainable by limiting turf areas, using desert or climate adapted plans, offering wind and solar power for lighting
and integrating bio-swales and wetlands within areas of the park. Moreover, the plan calls for houses to be alley
loaded along the park, enabling cars to park on it and for pedestrians to cross it safely,
Brownfield Brownfi eld Remediation Area
10 Miles to
Lake Mead
Future Cadence
Community
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Las Vegas Wash
Open Space Corridor
Las Vegas Wash
Preserve and Nature Center
Boulder HighwayBoulder Highway
Lake Mead ParkwayLake Parkway
Las Vegas Strip
Mount Charleston
Henderson
City Hall
Brownfield Brownfi eld Remediation Area
Future Cadence Community
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Las Vegas Wash Open
Space Corridor
10 Miles to Lake Mead -
Las Vegas’s Primary
Water Supply
Boulder Highway
Lake Mead ParkwayLake Parkway
Boulder Highway
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Future Cadence
Community
Cadence
Community
Brownfi eld
Remediation Area
Cadence Nature Way / Bioswale
Surface Conveyance Corridors
Cadence
Community
LEGEND
Cadence Sports Park (125 acres)
City of Henderson Bird Preserve
Clark County Park
Mixed Use District (135 acres)
Mixed Use Village Center
Fire Station
School
Employment Park
Central Park (50 acres)
Cadence Nature Way/Bioswale Surface
Conveyance Corridors
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Boulder HighwayBoulder Highway
Lake Mead ParkwayLake Parkway
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Las Vegas Wash Open
Space Corridor
LEGEND
Urban Park/Plaza
Pocket Park
Cadence Nature Way/Bioswale
Surface Conveyance Corridors
Future BRT Transit Station
Existing Development
Future Casino/Hotel Development
Single Family Housing - Attached and
Detached, 6 - 18 du/ ac.
Multi-family Housing - Attached and multi
level, 12 - 35 du/ac
Mixed Use Development - Retail or offi ce
with offi ce or housing above
Desert Landscape/Bioswale Surface
Conveyance Corridor
Black Mountain Heavy Industrial Site
2 12 Boulder Highway
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LEGEND
Community/Service Retail
Multi-family Housing
Single Family Housing - Attached and
Detached, 6 - 16 du/ ac.
Fire Station
Shade Trellises for Retail Promenade
Rain Gardens in Planting Areas
Pocket Park
Native Desert Landscape
Residential ‘Neat’ Street
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Boulder HighwayBoulder Highway
10 miles to
Lake Mead - Las Vegas’s
Primary Water Supply
Lake Mead ParkwayLake Parkway
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Las Vegas Wash Open
Space Corridor
LEGEND
Cadence Sports Park (125 acres)
City of Henderson Bird Preserve
Clark County Park
Mixed Use District (135 acres)
Central Park
Micro Pools at Intersections
Bioswale / Surface Conveyance
Park / Drainage / Recharge Zones
Seep Area Capture Wells
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LEGEND
Minimal Lawn for Active Recreation
Single Family Housing - Alley Loaded
Native Desert Landscapes
Wetland Island or Wetland Bench
Community Center
Bioswale Surface Conveyance Wetland
Area
Cadence Nature Way / Bioswale Surface
Conveyance
Reclaimed Water for Irrigation of Public
Landscapes
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Boulder HighwayBoulder Highway
Lake Mead ParkwayLake Parkway
Black Mountain
Heavy Industrial Park
Las Vegas Wash Open
Space Corridor
LEGEND
Cadence Sports Park (125 acres)
City of Henderson Bird Preserve
Clark County Park
Mixed Use District (135 acres)
Central Park
Pocket Park
Parks Adjacent to Schools
Cadence Nature Ways / Bioswale
Surface Conveyance Corridor
Galleria Trail
Lake Mead Trail Corridor
Urban Park / Plaza
**Circles Represent a 1/4 miles
Walking Radius
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LEGEND
Limit Lawn for Active Play Only
Reclaimed Water Pond for Public
Landscape Irrigation
Native Desert Landscape
Wetland Surface Conveyance
Cadence Nature Way
Wind Turbine/ Vertical Pylon
Focal Point
Park Structures with Solar Panels
Axial Pathways Relating to Mount
Charleston and the Las Vegas Strip
‘The Knoll’, Overlooking Mount Charles-ton
and the Las Vegas Strip
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Design Workshop Landscape Architecture Archive
