Guinn joining Norwest board

Thursday, Sept. 19, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

Las Vegas businessman and political hopeful Kenny Guinn has joined the board of directors of Norwest Bank Nevada.

Guinn, a Republican candidate for governor in 1998, said the move ensures continuity as the two banks join forces. Norwest bought PriMerit from Southwest Gas; the two banks merged in July.

"They usually ask people off that (the former company's) board to sit on the new board and that's what they have done," Guinn said.

"Kenny Guinn will be an excellent addition to our Norwest Bank Nevada board of directors," President and CEO David Downs said in a prepared statement. "He is an outstanding individual who brings tremendous strength and expertise in the area of community relations and strong leadership skills. Kenny's leadership and financial abilities have already proven to be extremely valuable to Norwest as Kenny was key in the communication between Norwest Bank and the Southwest Gas Corp. during the recent acquisition."

The former Clark County superintendent of schools from 1969 to 1978 also serves on the boards of Boyd Gaming Corp., Oasis Residential Inc., and Del Webb Corp.

Guinn says he will give up membership on all the boards at some point in the future when he formally announces his political intentions. He said public officials shouldn't serve on boards of private companies.

"I would remove myself that's what I would do eventually," he said.

Guinn joined PriMerit in 1978, was appointed president and chief operating officer in 1980 and was promoted to CEO in 1985. In 1987 he was named chairman of the board of PriMerit. That same year he was named president of Southwest Gas, later being appointed to chairman and CEO of Southwest Gas.

He said his duties on Norwest's board require him to attend one meeting a month that doesn't last a full day. He did not disclose the pay, but said it is a small stipend that is considerably less than the compensation for being on the board of a publicly held company.

"It's not like on a publicly held board" which pay directors something like $25,000 to $35,000 a year, Guinn said. His other three directorships are on boards of publicly held companies.

"Norwest Bank Nevada's strategic plan includes strengthening our involvement in the communities served by Norwest Bank," Downs said. "Kenny's years of involvement in Nevada communities will be an excellent resource in assisting the bank not only in Las Vegas but throughout the state."

In 1994, Guinn was appointed interim president of UNLV for one year, serving at a salary of $1. He is currently chairman and trustee of the Nevada Gaming Foundation for Educational Excellence and former chairman of the board of trustees for the UNLV Foundation.

Norwest is a $77.8 billion company with 3,294 locations in 50 states, Canada, the Caribbean and Central America. It has 50 locations in Nevada, including 28 in the Las Vegas area.