Brown named chairman of flood control board

Erin Neff

Friday, Jan. 15, 1999 | 12:11 p.m.

Las Vegas City Councilman Larry Brown on Thursday was elected chairman of the Clark County Regional Flood Control District Board.

Brown has served on the board since July 1997 and has extensive experience and understanding about Southern Nevada water issues due to his former employment with the Las Vegas Valley Water District.

In September, Brown helped fast-track eight city flood control projects through the district board, including the final phases of the flood prevention measures at the Charlestown Underpass.

As chairman of the $67.7 million district board, Brown said he hopes to continue to accelerate projects.

"Even if we save six months or a year on a project, that doesn't sound like much, but it results in a real-time savings to the taxpayers," Brown said Thursday after he was unanimously elected chairman.

The $13.7 million Charlestown project will be completed by October 2000 -- a full four years sooner than originally planned. The fast-track will help resolve the problem of high flood waters closing the underpass during significant storms.

And, Brown said, finishing a project in 2000 could save millions in construction costs due to price increases for the same equipment over the years.