A glimpse of Las Vegas’ past — and future

Everything seems hands-on, except the cactus. There are buttons to activate exhibit stories, a lever to show how a steam engine builds power, faucets to turn to reveal correct answers to recycling questions, touch-screens, joysticks, fossil scanners and a chance to try to fit broken pieces of Indian pottery together.

Children duck into little caves to see all manner of snakes, birds, lizards, tortoises, gila monsters, and a gray fox the size of a large house cat sleeping in his air conditioned lair by day so he can venture into his outdoor enclosure at night.

Over the years, more than 250 wildlife species have been documented at the springs. But the site was neglected for decades — with little but industrial-looking water works and a couple of weathered wooden derricks left to mark the spot designated as a national historic site in 1978.

The Las Vegas Valley Water District, which owns the land, established a nonprofit to raise funds, reshape and operate the preserve.

Critics decry the Strip-level ticket prices — $18.95 for adult out-of-towners, with kids under 4 free.

But entry is free to the eight acres of demonstration gardens and 1.25 miles of trails now open and winding through an area dubbed the cienega — Spanish for a desert wetland, with native plants, bird and animals.

Davis tallied more than 30,000 paying customers in the six weeks after the preserve debuted in June with a concert by pop singer-songwriter Jewel in a 2,000-seat artificial turf amphitheater.

Another lesson. Turf conserves water; grass guzzles it.

Solar panels shade cars in the parking area and generate enough electricity to power 70 percent of the preserve. The water system is designed to be self-sustaining — flowing through exhibits, buildings and restrooms, collecting "gray water" for treatment, then irrigating native desert and drought-tolerant trees and flowers.

Preserve designers applied for platinum Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council after using recycled and reused materials to build buildings demonstrating energy efficiency and resource sustainability.

The lesson, echoed with a banner in a Desert Living Center pavilion: "Nothing Disappears."

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