I examined a small portion of the Huntridge Neighborhood once before. Specifically I talked about the Huntridge Diner, which as you might guess is located in the historic Huntridge area of old Las Vegas. If you ever drive along Maryland Parkway just South of Charleston, you will be passing right through the Huntridge area. There are several subdivisions using the Huntridge name, but generally the area is just referred to as “Huntridge.” Just to the south of E. Charleston Blvd, on Maryland Avenue, you will notice that the street parts into Northbound and Southbound lanes with a park in between. Click here for a LLV map showing historic neighborhoods in Las Vegas.

Here is a picture of Huntridge Circle Park. It won awards for design and innovation. According to the official Las Vegas Web Site, the park boasts the following amenities: Grass Amphitheater, Shaded Outdoor Stage, Jogging/Walking Path, Community Garden, Playground, Water Play Area, Climbing Boulder Open space. That sounds like a winning combination, particularly in an older residential area like the Huntridge neighborhood. But, wait, what’s that in the picture? Park Closed? A joke, maybe? Unfortunately, no. Huntridge is a neighborhood pulling itself back up. The diner is great, the people are friendly and the houses are livable. Due to some troubles involving homeless people during the middle of the past decade, the park has been closed for several years now. But it will be re-opening anon (that means “pretty soon” to Shakespeare fans) as the site of the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial. They’d be thrilled if you clicked the link and visited their site, and so would I.

The centerpiece of the Huntridge area is, and has been since 1943, the Huntridge Theater.

The Huntridge Theater sits across Maryland Parkway from the Huntridge Drug Store. It was built during World War Two, and up until the 1980s it was the premier place in Las Vegas to go to a movie. At one time a group was planning to convert it to a performing arts center, but that has not happened. There is still a movement to preserve and update the theater for twenty-first century audiences, which some people insist would be a good thing not only for Huntridge, but for all of the Las Vegas Valley. When I look at the picture, I’m not sure it will be possible, but if the old theater does see new life, then I’ll be among those cheering its return.

But, the park already has a savior, and an improving economy will most likely find someone wanting to re-open the theater in some form. So, what of the people who live in Huntridge? Where will you find them?

The answer is that you will find them in neat, prewar houses arranged both East and West of Maryland Parkway, between Oakey and Charleston.

The homeowners have had decades to customize their property. Here is an example of a decorated exterior along a residential street. There are other examples of artistic treatments of houses as well, but most of the houses actually remain amazingly true to their origins, with typical Southwestern variations on the themes of bungalow and ranch predominating. There are no street names worthy of the LLV ongoing effort to uncover weird street names, but you can see women’s names and other personal touches in some of the streets. In one instance, Francis goes to the right while Jessica goes to the left. Was it a political statement? We’ll never know.

What we can say for certain is that the Huntridge Park subdivision, in particular, is home to one of the finest neighborhoods for mid-century modern architecture in town. The area is known as “Maria Elena” after a cul-de-sac of the same name which could be used as a museum of high-end mid-century modern housing. In these times, a house on Maria Elena Drive should close escrow shortly for a bit under $200,000.00, which is a tremendous bargain.

Among those who lived in this area are Liberace, plus a woman whose house I mentioned in my two-part Beyond the Mint article last fall, Mayme Stocker, who held Clark County Gaming License Number One. The current owner has a copy of that license on display to this day. The founder of the Las Vegas Sun, Hank Greenspun, had a home in the area as well, and many casino managers and employees lived in the Huntridge area during its heyday of the 40s through 70s. Even though it wasn’t a master-planned community, Huntridge had many of the aspects of one, as it contained park space, shopping, entertainment, and good housing for a mixed population.

Huntridge is an area of hope. Hope for the future, exemplified by the new Veterans Memorial and the Huntridge Diner, plus the hopes for the Huntridge Theater. The area demonstrates the problems of an old urban core re-positioning itself for a new century. There are problems, sometimes enough to close a park, but there are also solutions that come from the people in the neighborhood who know what a livable, friendly area looks like, and who work to make that area happen outside their doors. I can see quite a rennaisance for Huntridge over the next decade. And I can’t wait to watch it happen.