The remnants of buildings that once surrounded the famed Moulin Rouge hotel and casino in the historic Westside neighborhood. The buildings were schedule to be demolished shortly after these images were taken. Years of neglect and fires claimed the original building.

The remnants of buildings that once surrounded the famed Moulin Rouge hotel and casino in the historic Westside neighborhood. The buildings were schedule to be demolished shortly after these images were taken. Years of neglect and fires claimed the original building.

Starting at a young age, Bob Bellis' parents instilled upon him the importance of being a good neighbor and a community advocate. He was raised in Pahrump and moved to Las Vegas circa 1984. A few years later, he was living in the John S. Park neighborhood where his deeply rooted tradition of community found a purpose—preserve a historic area of Las Vegas. He enumerates the downside of living in John S. Park, but quickly adds reasons for remaining as the neighborhood reinvents itself for the next generation. Bob has not been an idle resident and headed up the creation of the John S. Park Neighborhood Association starting in 2000. Bob touches upon the history of the community and its evolution to a more diverse profile. Yes, two homeless people were living in the backyard when he moved in, but John S. Park is not a crime-riddled place to live he explains. The more looming threat of high-rises is an issue that concerns him.

From the UNLV Libraries Single Item Accession Photograph Collection (PH-00171). Photo credit: Nevada Historical Society.

Las Vegas Grammar School stands on a desert lot. Bare trees scatter the landscape around the school. [Taken 1910-1920]. This building was later named the "Historic Fifth Street School."

The historic key used in 1868 for Panaca Co-op in Nevada.

Steve Evans is a native of Henderson, Nevada; living there when it was little more than an industrial town. In this interview, Steve tells of his humble life in Henderson's Carver Park community to becoming the owner of a home formerly owned by a teenage mentor, Flora Dungan, who founded Focus, a youth counseling program where he worked. Steve's penchant for architecture threads through this narrative. Among the stories he shares is of his efforts to recover information about his John S. Park home, which was built in 1964, designed by Kennard Design Group of California and considered the best example of mid-century modern architecture in Las Vegas. In addition, Steve is an informed observer of a community in transition. He tells about the thriving commerce of Fremont Street shifting to Maryland Parkway, the beginning of the Arts District, the impact of events on the John S. Park Neighborhood sense of community, events such as the Stratosphere wanting to build a roller coaster as well as the movement to give John S. Park a historical designation. Steve left Las Vegas for a few years to purse his career in social justice and activism. He returned home and has been a involved in community service, a City Planning Commissioner, Chair of the Downtown Design Review among other committees.