Las Vegas City Councilwoman Victoria Seaman must be crestfallen. Her best efforts to hand a local developer and political benefactor a bale of money to call off the dogs of litigation over the fate of the former Badlands Golf Course busted out just a day before delivery.

Seaman didn’t exactly drive a hard bargain. In the name of fiscal responsibility, she had what she described as a negotiation with EHB Companies to dismiss with prejudice a series of lawsuits, one of which has gone against the city and is on appeal at the Nevada Supreme Court, in exchange for a package worth at least $64 million. That includes a $49 million settlement and another $15 million toward constructing the flood drainage facilities necessary to make some of the real estate usable.

And that victory would have helped bolster and bankroll the conversion of the former Badlands course inside the upscale Queensridge neighborhood into a large condominium development. The city would have found itself suddenly fully onboard and nodding like a bobblehead doll after several years and millions spent in hard-fought litigation.

Practically a secret until reported by The Indy, the item was quietly placed on the agenda for last Wednesday’s city council meeting. A simple vote would have short-circuited the appeal and essentially forfeited to the developer.

On Monday in an interview with KLAS-TV, Seaman remained the picture of confidence — even if her stated reason for resolving the Badlands litigation was head-scratching.

“I am hopeful that Wednesday could be the beginning of a settlement,” she said. “If most of the council approves this settlement offer, we will take all the necessary steps to resolve this quickly. I’ve been able to take it to this point, and I hope my colleagues realize that a resolution allows us to take this matter back into our hands rather than the courts making this decision. This council cannot continue to kick the can down the road any longer and put our taxpayers at risk.”

No one in politics likes unnecessary can-kicking and putting taxpayers at risk, but the “solution” supposedly negotiated would have been an enormous windfall. It failed not because of building criticism, but officially because the negotiating parties had a last-minute disagreement on its generous terms.

The rush to settle came while the city is at the Nevada Supreme Court appealing last year’s decision by District Judge Timothy Williams to award EHB $34.1 million after determining the city improperly interrupted its Badlands development plans.

Adding an intriguing twist to the timing of the item’s appearance, it came just days after District Court Judge Monica Trujillo reversed a previously dismissed lawsuit filed by EHB against the city and placed it in the developer’s favor. She ruled the city’s denial of the developer’s idea for a 65-acre parcel constituted an unlawful taking despite its lack of an approved plan.

Of course, some might call that the perfect time to make a move for a jaw-dropping settlement: Make the big payout for fear of potentially being forced to pay an even larger one.

By the sound of some of the agenda item’s backup material, approving the settlement would have left zero wiggle room for the city. It reads in part, “The settlement is contingent on the City Council’s consideration and approval of certain land use entitlements for the property. Upon payment of the settlement funds and approval of the land use entitlements, the pending cases will be dismissed with prejudice and the City will receive a full release of liability.”

“Land use entitlements?”

Hey, I’m still trying to wrap my head around throwing in up to $15 million to improve a private developer’s flood plan and another $49 million to make peace while rubber-stamping its various projects.

Seaman’s efforts increasingly remind me of the days when gambler and golf course developer Bill Walters cast his spell over city hall. The difference in the current case is simple: Walters wasn’t holding a gun to the head of the city when he won his favorable approvals. EHB Companies has papered the landscape with costly litigation against the city. By my count, four are still ongoing.

Perhaps at some point, someone at city hall will step up and explain to the lowly taxpayers whether the city has the cash on hand to make such a payout.

For me, that’s still the $64 million question.

John L. Smith is an author and longtime columnist. He was born in Henderson and his family’s Nevada roots go back to 1881. His stories have appeared in Time, Readers Digest, The Daily Beast, Reuters, Ruralite and Desert Companion, among others. He also offers weekly commentary on Nevada Public Radio station KNPR.