North Las Vegas: Council postpones ambulance decision

Diana Sahagun

Thursday, Dec. 16, 1999 | 11:50 a.m.

In what could be an end to the discussion for now, the North Las Vegas City Council followed its Las Vegas counterparts and postponed a decision to grant Southwest Ambulance a franchise.

Council members voted unanimously Wednesday night to postpone the item indefinitely to give the council more time to understand the issue. Both Southwest and American Medical Response representatives attended the meeting but neither gave a presentation.

City Manager Pat Importuna said it is to the council's discretion when -- or if -- it will revisit the issue.

Wednesday morning the Las Vegas City Council voted to postpone the decision until Feb. 2.

Both cities' delays come on the heels of a lawsuit filed Monday against Clark County by American Medical Response -- Southern Nevada's lone ambulance provider.

The Clark County Commission decided Dec. 7 to process Southwest's application for a franchise.

If the city of North Las Vegas had accepted Southwest's application, it could have been included in the lawsuit.

But Councilwoman Shari Buck said the threat of a lawsuit had nothing to do with the council's decision to postpone the issue.

"It's not because we feel threatened by a lawsuit or intimidated," she said. "It's an extremely important decision that affects life and death that the council needs to take seriously."

While the commissioners approved Southwest's application, the North Las Vegas City Council or Las Vegas City Council could kill the franchise proposal by voting against it.

The cities have an interlocal agreement with Clark County to cooperate with each other on emergency services and have the same franchise agreement with AMR. To change the franchise requires approval by all.

Mayor Michael Montandon, who made the motion to postpone the decision, said that after studying the issue before the meeting he was "so thoroughly confused, I wasn't sure what ambulances were for."