Las Vegas business briefs

Friday, March 21, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Local

* SMALL BUSINESS WORKSHOP -- A workshop focusing on small business concerns and issues that may not be felt by larger companies will be held next week. On Thursday, March 27, a panel of city, county and state representatives will address these small business issues in a workshop. The workshop will be held at the Clark County Government Center in Room 1119 and starts at 8:30 a.m. and ends at 11:30 a.m. For additional information, contact Terry Johnson, small business advocate for the Nevada Department of Business and Industry, at 486-4335.

* TAX STANCE -- The Southern Nevada Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties has taken a stance on tax initiatives that would raise money for improving Southern Nevada infrastructure. The organization, which represents 211 professionals in development, engineering and other real estate-related industries, backs a proposed quarter-cent increase in sales tax for Southern Nevada, provided that monies go only for water deliver systems in Southern Nevada and that water connection charges are capped at current levels. The group also supports the split of the tax between water and sewer improvements and the proposed real property transfer tax from 65 cents per $500 increment of value to $1.25 per $500 increment if the additional monies are used to create a new fund dedicated to water, sewer and road improvements.

Regional

* AREA CODE TO SPLIT -- A growing demand for phone numbers caused by the proliferation of fax machines, modems, cellular phones and pagers will force a split Saturday of California's largest area code. The current 619 area code stretches from San Diego to Arizona and Mexico to Mono County, excluding Los Angeles and Orange counties. After Saturday, all but San Diego and its immediate area will change to the 760 area code. In the first 50 years since area codes were introduced in 1947, splits in California only occurred about 10 times, Bennett said. Pacific Bell plans to make as many splits over the next two years.

To contact the SUN business news desk, call 259-4083 or e-mail mike@lasvegassun.com