Monorail route has senator agitated

Larry Henry and Cy Ryan

Friday, June 27, 1997 | 11:17 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Are taxpayers being taken for a ride?

Sen. Bill O'Donnell thinks so when it comes to a monorail planned for downtown Las Vegas and the northern end of the Strip.

Under a proposal from the Clark County Regional Transportation Commission, the monorail will run from Cashman Field to the Stardust hotel-casino, with stops at the Fremont Street Experience and the Stratosphere Tower, among others.

At a Senate Transportation Committee hearing Thursday, O'Donnell, the Las Vegas Republican who chairs the panel, criticized transportation officials for mapping out a monorail route that caters to tourists but doesn't help commuters who have to fight traffic every day going to and from the suburbs.

The cost to taxpayers could top $580 million.

RTC officials argue that the city's lifeline -- Strip casinos -- is being threatened by clogged traffic.

"We are where other communities were 20 years ago that are suffering grave consequences in their central business districts," said RTC Director Kurt Weinrich. "Our central area is the resort corridor."

At the southern end of the Strip, casinos on both sides of the road are petitioning the Legislature for privileges to help them complete their own private systems. Mirage Resorts Inc. on the west side and a coalition on the east, headed by the Hilton and the MGM Grand, are moving forward, to the dismay of some of their casino neighbors who worry about being left out.

Assembly Bill 333, which is being amended in O'Donnell's committee to accommodate the Hilton coalition, offers all the monorail participants a break.

The RTC wants to bypass normal contract procedures so it can speed up a construction cycle already expected to last five years.

The casinos want to avoid having to pay a franchise fee to operate private monorails.

Some also want to be exempted from Public Service Commission regulation while retaining the power of eminent domain, meaning homeowners and small businesses that try to block a monorail path can be forced out.

Hilton Senior Vice President Gary Gregg argued that taxpayers benefit from the casino plan because they can ride those monorails without have to pay to build them.

"We want to spend $80 million in Hilton dollars and zero in public dollars," he said.

Artful dodger

Big-time art buyers, including Mirage Resorts Chairman Steve Wynn, apparently aren't going to receive a tax break on expensive purchases.

Despite support from arts advocates and Assembly Speaker Joe Dini, D-Yerington, Assembly Bill 535 is expected to die in the Senate Taxation Committee.

"They don't have the votes," says committee Chairman Mike McGinness, R-Fallon.

After a hearing Thursday, Mirage lobbyist Punam Mathur indicated the company won't continue pushing for the bill.

"We can count the votes," she said.

According to news accounts, Wynn is buying high-priced art to display at the Bellagio hotel-casino, now under construction on the Strip.

The bill would provide a break on sales taxes and personal property taxes if a person who buys artwork costing more than $25,000 displays it for 20 hours a week for 35 weeks a year.

Critics said the tax break does nothing to help up-and-coming Nevada artists and would chip away at the state's tax revenues.

Deadbeat docket

A few legislators who played in a charity basketball game but didn't contribute the required $1,000 have paid up after being dubbed Deadbeat Donors in SUN news stories.

Assemblymen David Goldwater, Dario Herrera and John Lee, all D-Las Vegas, have completed their obligation to the Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada, which sponsored the game.

Lee used leftover campaign contributions, while many of those who played received commitments from special interest groups to make good on the donation.

Those who participated in the game but still haven't contributed include Gov. Bob Miller and Assembly Floor Leader Richard Perkins, D-Henderson. Others are Assemblymen Mark Manendo, Morse Arberry and Wendell Williams, all D-Las Vegas, and Assemblyman Jack Close, R-Las Vegas.

A few players complained privately that Goldwater, captain of the Democrat team, never explained that they were supposed to pay.

Assemblyman Tom Collins, D-North Las Vegas, another who hasn't paid, said Goldwater agreed to take care of the cost for other players, but officials from the charity say that hasn't happened.

"Maybe after they get out of the session, they will have time to follow up their commitments," said Boys and Girls Club spokeswoman Kathy Blankenship.