In memory of

     By Ray Parker
     View staff writer
      At the northern end of Camino Eldorado, where the road turns from concrete to desert, former Mayor Jim Seastrand's family recently gathered for the groundbreaking of a new 23-acre park.
      Seastrand Park will be North Las Vegas' largest neighborhood park once it is completed in May and will include five soccer fields, two baseball fields, volleyball, tennis and basketball courts, as well as picnic areas.
      The Seastrands, city officials and Pardee Homes representatives stood under a large tent on a desert hilltop to take part in the groundbreaking ceremony, where Rosel Seastrand, matriarch of the family, spoke about what the park means to her family and the city. Joining Seastrand, who traveled from Utah to attend the event, were her two sons, Doug and Russ, and six of her grandchildren.
      "He would have been so pleased," Rosel Seastrand said about the park being dedicated in her husband's name. "(Jim) would have just loved it, it's such a wonderful legacy because children were so important to him."
      Jim Seastrand served on the City Council from 1975 to 1997, the last 16 years as mayor. He died at age 68 on Nov. 2, 1997, after collapsing while speaking at a religious conference in Las Vegas.
      In 1990 the city secured 1,800 acres from the Bureau of Land Management and, with Pardee Homes, created Eldorado, the city's first master-planned community. That event signaled a major shift for the city, allowing for a well-designed community with upscale homes.
      "We knew we had to get development going of this kind in the city," said Councilman William Robinson, who served on the committee Seastrand headed. "It gave us 1,800 acres and the rest is history."
      Almost 10 years later, there are 1,900 families living in Eldorado, and the number will eventually grow to 5,000.
      The $3.5 million park, located at the northeast corner of Camino Eldorado and Centennial Parkway, will be built by Pardee Homes and turned over to the city after completion. In exchange, the city turned over 34 acres of vacant land to Pardee.
      The arrangement is beneficial to both. Pardee will be able to complete the park much faster then a government agency.
      "Pardee will begin construction in a matter of weeks; it would have taken the city eight months or more," said Eric Dabney, director of parks and recreation.
      The James Seastrand Park will be a welcome addition to North Las Vegas, which lacks many recreational areas offered by the valley's other municipalities.
      In 1996, a consulting firm evaluated the city's park situation and concluded the city needs more than 400 acres in parks by the year 2000. The cost for such an expansion would be $45 million, far beyond what the city could finance.
      Even so, three new parks opened last year, the biggest being the 10-acre Theron Goynes Park at 3909 W. Washburn Road. The $2.7 million park contains a lighted, regulation-size baseball diamond, volleyball court, jogging path, horseshoe stations, playground and picnic areas.
      Two smaller parks also opened. The five-acre Richard Tam Park at Lone Mountain Road and Donna Street, and the eight-acre Gold Crest Park, at Craig Road and Revere Street.