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| Tropical Estates Ad - 10/20/63 |
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| The Casino House Built by 'Val' and Lee Valentine, Completed 1964 |
In
August
2011 we learned that a portion of Paradise Palms had been carved into a
place called Tropical Estates. Towards
the final two years of Paradise Palms’ build-out most of the individual home
builders began distinguishing themselves and their homes through sub-marketing
names, a trend which we still see carried out in present-day master planned
communities. Priced between $33,000 and
$66,500 – a hefty $248,600 to $497,300 in 2013 dollars – Tropical Estates were
modern ranch-style homes which lined both sides of Pawnee Drive between Sioux
and Oneida Way, all 300 feet of Nakona Lane, and Commanche Drive between the
western edge of the Algonquin Circle cul-de-sac and Nakona Lane. It also appears that Tropical Estates stretched
into the western portions of Seneca Lane, Ottawa Drive and Seneca Circle - including the handful of large two-story models that are on those streets,
which explains the heftier price tags that Tropical Estates garnered.
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| Valentine's Day Themed Tropical Estates Ad - 2/2/64 |
Featured in the Tropical Estates models were sunken Roman
Baths, showers with planters in them and decorative concrete block-enclosed
courtyards. Some of the most unique
concrete block patterns are found in the Tropical Estates homes that aren't
seen elsewhere in Paradise Palms. It’s
these features that help to spot the difference between the Americana Homes and
Tropical Estates homes on Seneca Lane and Ottawa Drive - as the Tropical
Estates homes start mid-block, the tell-tale Tropical Estates features are the
presence of the front courtyards and unique decorative screen block, features
that Americana didn't offer.
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| Original Tropical Estates Royal Blue Sunken Roman Tub (Photo Courtesy Brian Moy) |
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| Examples of Tropical Estates Decorative Concrete Block, Typically Not Seen On Other Paradise Palms Homes |
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| Examples of Tropical Estates Decorative Concrete Block, Typically Not Seen On Other Paradise Palms Homes |
In August 1964 the Las Vegas Sun ran an article featuring
husband and wife team Val and Lee Valente, owners Vallee Development who were
the builders behind Tropical Estates, standing in the backyard of their newly
constructed home on the 1st and 18th holes of the
Stardust Country Club, at the end of Cochise Lane. This home is more commonly referred to as ‘The
Casino House’ for its starring role in the 1995 film Casino, and is one that draws quite a few visitors to Paradise
Palms. The article gives some great
insight into builders Val and Lee Valente, who built the home based on a
modified version of one of their Tropical Estates homes.
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| Distant Cousins? The former Valentine Residence (Above) and a Tropical Estates Home (Below) |
Lee Valente, a diminutive platinum-blonde, had been
building houses in Bakersfield, Visalia and Lemore California with her husband Val
until 1962 when the decided to transplant their large family-owned and run business
to booming Las Vegas. Building
semi-custom homes at Tropical Estates was their first foray into building in
Las Vegas, which was soon followed by Bella Estates at the southwest corner of
Decatur and Edna.
Vallee Development employed children, in-laws, siblings, nephews,
aunts and uncles and of Val and Lee. The
5,400 square-foot nine-room, five bathroom home on Cochise Lane was a perfect
place for family gatherings when the Valentine’s weren’t hard at work. It’s unclear what became of the Valentines as
ownership of their home on Cochise Lane was in a different name by 1966, and construction
of phase one of Bella Estates ended in 1965 with six years passing before phase
two resumed in 1971; however, their nephew, Don Spence lives nearby in the home
once occupied by Lee’s sister and brother-in-law, near Sahara and 15th
Street.
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| Las Vegas Sun , 8/16/64 |
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While the photo quality is a bit grainy, seen in the
background is the brand-new Stardust Golf Course, with newly planted pine
trees. Seen across the driving range and 1st and 9th fairways
are the backs of the green and white custom ranch-style home on Spencer Street,
the Palmer & Krisel Model 8B to the south of it, and the custom home that neighbor Tim O. owns to the south of that.
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