Ethics panel to hear citizen’s complaint vs. county inspectors

Erin Neff

Tuesday, Aug. 3, 1999 | 11:10 a.m.

The state Ethics Commission will hold a confidential hearing in Las Vegas next month regarding a citizen's complaint that county building inspectors solicited "contributions" from contractors prior to approving their projects.

The commission would neither confirm nor deny this morning that it is investigating the confidential complaint filed by Las Vegas resident Robert Rose, a military retiree who has filed numerous ethics complaints against public officials. Rose said today that he has received notice the commission will hear the case on Sept. 16 or 17.

Rose's complaint names Clark County Manager Dale Askew, Building Director Robert Weber, Assistant Building Director Ronald Lynn and several other former or current county officials.

The complaint alleges Askew and former assistant county manager Bonnie Rinaldi oversaw special privileges to Weber and assistant building inspections managers Gregory Franklin and Gary Houk. Assistant human resources director Raymond Visconte is also named in the complaint.

Rose alleges that Weber, Lynn, Franklin and Houk solicited money from contractors doing work in Clark County over an eight-year period. The solicitations allegedly were requested by inspectors for a golf tournament sponsored by the Southern Nevada Chapter of the International Conference of Building Officials.

In December 1998, for example, Rose alleges the Rio hotel-casino was refused a request for an occupancy permit on an area under construction.

The county's supervising building inspector at the time, Marc McAnally, refused to issue the permit, but later said he was told by Franklin to write a "conditions letter" of approval.

The Rio expansion was built by Marnell Corrao who had recently contributed, or would contribute, $2,500 to the Southern Nevada Chapter of the International Conference of Building Officials.

Weber, Lynn and Franklin are past presidents of that chapter and Houk is currently a board member, according to Rose's complaint.

McAnally, a former Metro Police officer, was fired and later indicted by a Clark County Grand Jury on 13 counts of falsifying inspections.