Crews were in the process Thursday of demolishing the shuttered Grant Sawyer building near downtown Las Vegas to make room for an affordable housing project.
The building, at 555 E. Washington Ave., housed Nevada state employees before officials relocated them to a more modern office park near Harry Reid International Airport about two years ago.
Last year, a Lennar Corp. subsidiary won auctions with the state and the city of Las Vegas to purchase the 22 acres where the Grant Sawyer complex sits and the 50-acre Cashman Center across the street.
The developer plans to build about 1,100 detached, single-family homes in the $400,000 price range for first-time buyers, Jack Robb, chief innovation officer at Gov. Joe Lombardo’s office, noted Thursday. Lennar proposed 290 of the homes for the Grant Sawyer location and 781 houses for the Cashman site. The city of Las Vegas approved the project this year.
“This project represents a holistic view that Gov. Lombardo wants to bring forward,” Robb told reporters from the busy site occupied by workers in heavy machinery. “It’s efficient and effective state government.”
The state originally intended to renovate the aging government building and adding a second tower, he said. The plan, however, had a $475 million price tag compared with the purchase of the current, more spacious office space that cost $213 million, Robb said.
The office building, named after the late former Gov. Grant Sawyer, was built in 1995.
Throughout time, the property was afflicted by leaking sewage, abnormal temperatures, mold complaints and dilapidated infrastructure, according to the state.
The housing project came together by coincidence as the state and the city were trying to unload the properties about the same time, Robb said.
“The project is the result of close collaboration between the Lombardo Administration and the City of Las Vegas and advances the city’s long-term vision for redevelopment of the Cashman District,” Lombardo’s office said in a statement.
Demolition plans for the Cashman site were unclear.
The Grant Sawyer location is currently in the hands of Lennar, which is handling demolition and its costs, Robb said.
Demolotion should be completed within 12 weeks, he said. The first home should be available for sale within the next 24 months, he added.
