Las Vegas News briefs

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

* HEFTY GIFT -- Officials from Wells Fargo Bank gave a $300,000 check to the city of Las Vegas Wednesday, money that will be used to seed businesses in West Las Vegas. The money will be used to start a revolving loan fund for firms that set up shop in the Las Vegas Enterprise Park, defraying office space, equipment and technical help costs. The park, at Martin Luther King and Lake Mead boulevards, is designed to get new businesses to locate in the city, offering jobs and increasing the tax base.

* GRANT SOUGHT -- The city will seek a $4.5 million grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, money aimed at creating 645 new homes in a depressed area of West Las Vegas. The money will be used to match private dollars to create new residential and commercial development in the so-called Homeownership Zone, bordered by Carey Avenue on the north, Lake Mead Boulevard on the south, H Street on the east and Comstock Drive on the west. The City Council authorized City Manager Larry Barton to waive all plans check and permit fees for new or rehabilitated homes in the zone.

* MORE BUS SHELTERS -- There will be more bus stop shelters in Las Vegas under agreements approved by the City Council Wednesday. Bus Stop Shelters of Nevada will continue to operate 130 existing shelters in the city, and build at least 50 more. The city will get $62 per shelter monthly, or 15 percent of the gross advertising revenue from each unit, whichever is more. All the shelters must meet disabled standards. The contract extends to 2004, but has two five-year extension options.

* EMERGENCY WORK -- The city invoked an emergency state law in order to make $70,000 worth of repairs at the Desert Mobile Home Park, 1500 N. Lamb Blvd. According to city building official Paul Wilkins, insulation on underground wiring had worn off, posing an electrocution hazard in the event of rain, old fuses had been replaced with new ones of the wrong amperage and general maintenance had been neglected. Despite several discussions with owner Jane Romer of San Gabriel, Calif., no repairs were made, Wilkins said, prompting the city to declare an emergency and order a contractor to perform the work. A lien will be placed on the mobile home park so the city can recoup the costs of repairs, Wilkins said.

* WATER TREATMENT -- The city will build a water treatment plant in northwest Las Vegas, where growth has taxed all city services to their limits. The 100-acre site at Cheyenne Avenue and Durango Drive will include two sedimentation facilities, a preliminary treatment plant, an administration building and a discovery center for the public along with recreation facilities.