Abstract
The MacDonald Ranch Development Records (1972-2010) contain correspondence, maps, master plans, architectural drawings, civil drawings, and landscape drawings primarily detailing the community development process of MacDonald Ranch, one of the oldest master-planned communities in Henderson, Nevada. Additional materials include project management documentation; land assessments and investigations; municipal infrastructure studies and construction plans, including water use and drainage, environmental impacts, traffic and roadways, and electricity; property title and sale documents; and various additional materials documenting the community development process.
Finding Aid PDF
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Related People/Corporations
Scope and Contents Note
The MacDonald Ranch Development Records (1972-2010) contain documents, maps, master plans, architectural drawings, civil drawings, and landscape drawings primarily detailing the community development process of MacDonald Ranch, one of the oldest master-planned communities in Henderson, Nevada. Master plan drawings include phasing diagrams, land use allocation studies, land surveys, parcel maps, and topographic maps. Architectural drawings include overall site plans, commercial building plans, and conceptual sketches. Civil drawings include plans detailing street proposals and modifications, water and sewer work, power and electrical work, and slope and drainage analyses. Landscape drawings include landscape development plans for community entryways, golf courses, and country clubs. Included in the drawings is an early plan of the Green Valley master-planned community.
In addition to the architectural, civil, and landscape drawings, the collection includes records documenting the planning and development process for the communities Sunridge at MacDonald Ranch and Foothills at MacDonald Ranch. These materials consist of land use and planning documents such as appraisal reports and land assessments, engineering studies and plans, construction and landscaping plans, and environmental, geotechnical, and hydrology studies and reports; project management documents including correspondence, pro formas, proposals and contracts, and building schedules; property sale documents including title reports and property covenants and restrictions; and legal correspondence relating to various disputes. Additional materials include site maps, plat maps, and parcel maps.
Access Note
Collection is open for research, with the exception of materials that are restricted to protect personally identifiable information. Restrictions are noted at the file level of this inventory and will be open for research use on September 30, 2069.
Publication Rights
This material is made available to facilitate private study, scholarship, or research. The donor, Rich MacDonald, transferred all right, title and interest they had in the MacDonald Ranch Development Records (MS-00892) to UNLV. However, some material may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by UNLV. Users are responsible for determining whether permissions are necessary from rights owners for any intended use and for obtaining all required permissions. Acknowledgement of the UNLV University Libraries is requested. For more information, please see the UNLV Special Collections policies on reproductions and use or contact us at special.collections@unlv.edu.
Arrangement
The collection is organized into three series:
Series I. Sunridge development records, 1986-2010;
Series II. Foothills development records, 1985-1998;
Series III. MacDonald Properties records, 1972-1996.
Biographical / Historical Note
The MacDonald Ranch, developed by Richard “Rich” MacDonald Jr., is one of the oldest master-planned communities in Henderson, Nevada. Originally from Nevada, Rich’s parents, Richard “Mac” MacDonald, Sr. (1924-2014) and his wife Francis MacDonald (1924-2017), lived in Hawaii for twenty years, founding one of Hawaii’s largest real estate firms. After Sam Boyd showed the MacDonalds two square miles of property south of Las Vegas, Nevada, they, along with their son Rich, moved back to Las Vegas and began the development of MacDonald Ranch in the early 1980s.
At creation, the 1,200 acre MacDonald Ranch community included approximately 500 custom homes, that focused on the natural landscape through varying levels of elevated views. It would eventually total four villages of more than 3,200 acres containing two 18-hole golf courses, public and private schools, office parks, and retail centers. Rich MacDonald has continued to develop luxury homes, affordable homes, and commercial properties in Henderson for the last thirty years.
Sources:
Evans, Charlotte. “Las Vegas Icons.”
Las Vegas Review-Journal Obituaries. “RICHARD MACDONALD.”
Las Vegas Review-Journal Obituaries. "FRANCIS MACDONALD."
MacDonald Highlands. “Dragon’s Reserve at MacDonald Highlands offers 360-degree views.” MacDonald Highlands. April 5, 2017. Accessed July 17, 2018. http://www.macdonaldhighlands.com/2017/04/05/dragons-reserve-macdonald-highlands-offers-360-degree-views/.
Nevada Business Magazine. "MacDonald Ranch: Family’s Vision Becomes Reality in Hillside Community."
Wang, Andy. “How Developers are Turning Vegas Land into Multi-Million Dollar Luxury Spaces.”
https://vegasmagazine.com/vegas-properties-developers-are-turning-into-luxury-spaces.
Preferred Citation
MacDonald Ranch Development Records, 1972-2010. MS-00892. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/f13d2x
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated in 2018 and 2024 by Rich MacDonald; accession numbers 2018-039 and 2024-046.
Processing Note
In 2018, as part of an archival backlog elimination project, Jimmy Chang rehoused and arranged the materials, wrote the finding aid, and entered the data into ArchivesSpace. In 2024, Landon Paljusaj processed accession 2024-046. This work consisted of rehousing materials into new boxes and/or folders, updating the collection’s arrangement and description, and integrating the existing materials into the newly-created series. Many folders were in good condition and were reboxed as-is. Folder titles in quotes indicate that the title was copied from an original folder that was discarded. Some of the materials were categorized by the creator with a label and number corresponding to an internal filing system. These labels were transcribed into the general note field.