Police focus on battle over park

Erin Neff

Friday, Aug. 18, 2000 | 11:36 a.m.

Wednesday's volatile City Council meeting to discuss the financially troubled Las Vegas Sportspark led to some very public airing of the city's political dirty laundry.

And it was City Councilman Michael McDonald's name being taken to the cleaners.

Now Metro Police have been asked to determine whether McDonald broke any laws by allegedly trying to broker the sale of the Sportspark to benefit his employers, who are partners in the facility.

"If there's even a question as to public integrity of an official, I think it's incumbent on the mayor to ask for an investigation," Mayor Oscar Goodman said Thursday.

Goodman and City Manager Virginia Valentine met with Sheriff Jerry Keller early Thursday to ask for Metro's assistance in sorting out the truth.

During Wednesday's council meeting, Sportspark partner Don Schlesinger said McDonald came to the facility in May with his friend Rick Rizzolo and Rizzolo's attorney Dean Patti to inquire about investing in the recreation center.

McDonald said he and Rizzolo, the owner of the Crazy Horse Too strip club, were simply scouting a site for a charity softball tournament.

Larry Scheffler, another minority partner at the park and McDonald's boss at Las Vegas Color Graphics, disputed Schlesinger's claims and said McDonald was telling the truth.

But a contract drawn up by Patti that would have executed the sale of the park to either the city or to a third party was entered into evidence by City Councilwoman Lynette Boggs McDonald.

The document seemed to dispute McDonald's claims and support Schlesinger's theory.

Because Goodman didn't want to make the judgment call, he asked for help.

Deputy Chief Ray Flynn said the city's request has been forwarded to Metro's intelligence division.

"Everybody wants to ensure that no criminal acts occurred," Flynn said.

If investigators determine that evidence suggests a law has been broken, Flynn's criminal division will step in for a full-blown probe, he said.

If the probe turns up unethical, but not illegal, behavior, Metro has no jurisdiction, Flynn said.

Meanwhile, the highly watched replay of Wednesday's fiery council session has led to talk of a citizen effort to recall McDonald and a separate citizen request asking for input from the city and state ethics commissions.

McDonald has recused himself from the current Sportspark items, however, sources say he has discussed the sale of Sportspark freely with his council colleagues.

On Wednesday, McDonald asked the council if he had lobbied any of them. None answered.

Meanwhile, others have seen McDonald talking about the sale of Sportspark.

Clark County Commissioner Lance Malone said he saw McDonald talking to Goodman about the sale of Sportspark after a recent Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority meeting.

When Malone said he stepped in to see if the two were talking about any joint city-county projects, he got the sense that McDonald only wanted Goodman's ear.

"That was all the conversation I ever had about Sportspark, and I left them alone," said Malone, adding that Commissioner Mary Kincaid was also present.

Meanwhile, LVCVA Executive Director Manny Cortez recently issued a memo to the board telling them that the convention authority has no interest in buying Sportspark, Malone said.

McDonald is chairman of the LVCVA board.

In another Metro investigation, police are trying to determine if anyone at City Hall broke any laws by helping a controversial church open near a proposed topless club.

Annette Marie Patterson, Rizzolo's sister and bookkeeper at Crazy Horse, opened the church just days before the council was set to vote on a tavern license for a building owned by political consultant Sig Rogich.