Print edition for January 24, 2001

Editorial: Pay hike can't pass smell test: This insistence on sticking with the pay raise has been baffling, especially since it flies in the face of a longstanding practice among local, state and federal governments to require elected officials to run again before accepting a pay raise. The voters should have a say in deciding whether their representatives are deserving of the annual boost in their pay -- $5,000 for each councilman, $8,000 for the mayor -- a principle that obviously was lost on the City Council.

De La Hoya set to fight at MGM Grand: De La Hoya, 32-2, has said he will fight once more at 147 pounds before advancing to the junior middleweight division. For his comeback fight he'll take on Gatti, who is 33-4.

New casino proposed near Lake Havasu City: Expansions to the existing casino would include 300 new Las Vegas-style games, Shuttleworth said.

Commission approves rule letting problem gamblers work in casinos: Missouri's Disassociated Persons Program allows problem gamblers to have themselves permanently barred from casinos. Violators can be charged with trespassing.

Obituaries for January 24, 2001: Grady W. Barnard, 44, of Las Vegas died Monday in a local hospital. He was born Oct. 25, 1956, in Billings, Mont. A resident for 20 years, he was a painter.

Officials: New airline needs more promotion: "We need to get the usership up for this airline ASAP for it to continue," said authority member Larry Sinagoga. "If we don't in the next few months, we are back to ground zero. (That) will make it that much more difficult to ever have another airline in this area."

Last surviving fire tower in Nevada gets spot in history books: Fire prevention and detection became a priority around Lake Tahoe in the early 20th century, as the area developed into a vacation-resort hotspot. Lookout towers were built on peaks and mountains, with an observation radius of about 30 miles.

Savvy wine buy: '98 Old Vines Zinfandel: Available at Lee's Discount Liquors, $24.99, and Las Vegas Wine Company, $24.99.

Wodka makes move in Orleans tournament: Jeff Lizzi of Sandusky, Ohio, increased his first-round lead of two pins to 27 pins on Tuesday. Mike Miller of Albuquerque, N.M., and Ryan Shafer of Elmira, N.Y., were second and third, respectively.

Epicurean Awards honor Las Vegas' finest: Las Vegas Life magazine will celebrate the winners of its Epicurean Awards 2001 with a grand bash tonight at the Four Seasons. The exclusive invitation-only event is a recognition of Las Vegas' ever-burgeoning wining and dining scene.

'POV Vegas' host leaving: Host Mark Shaffer is leaving the show at the end of his contract period, April 26, to pursue other opportunities. Shaffer has been the host of "POV Vegas" since it debuted on July 12, 1999.

Health officials concerned about environmental costs of rail trench: Health officials also are worried the city has failed to take enough soil samples to "appropriately characterize what type and what levels of contaminants exist in the soil."

Consumer advocate petitions for moratorium on power plant sales: Brendan Riley; Tim Hay asked the state Public Utilities Commission for an immediate moratorium on the power plant sales pending a PUC review to see if the sales "remain in the public interest."

Jury seated in Tahoe child killing case: Sandra Chereb; Thomas Soria Sr., a former computer technician, faces a potential death penalty if convicted of the March 19 abduction and killing of Krystal Steadman.

Columnist Elizabeth Foyt: Stars flock to Caesars for Reynolds: Elizabeth Foyt; Exuberantly celebrated, Saturday's Black and White Ball 2001 honored Debbie Reynolds as Woman of the Year. A significant social event for Southern Nevadans, the most elegant affair was a benefit for Nevada Ballet Theatre and was sponsored by Cartier.

Columnist Dean Juipe: Magazine too kind to Kambala: Dean Juipe; It was refreshing to see Kaspars Kambala sitting on the bench and cheering, enthusiastically at that, for his teammates.

Columnist Jon Ralston: Santa Guinn's gifts may not be enough: CARSON CITY -- Listen to the huzzahs for Gov. Kenny Guinn's State of the State speech:

Columnist Muriel Stevens: Shoppers thwarted by bankruptcy: Except for the time spent in San Francisco, I haven't had much luck shopping.

Lawmakers criticize Guinn's education budget: Brendan Riley; Don Hataway, Guinn's deputy budget chief, told members of the Assembly Ways and Means and Senate Finance committees that they had to keep in mind "the whole picture" when reviewing the proposed school spending.

Del Webb profit improves: Del Webb Corp. of Phoenix, a big home builder in Las Vegas and Henderson, today said its second-quarter profit increased 65 percent as profit margins improved.

GOP seeks more nuke plants: Benjamin Grove; WASHINGTON -- Senate Republican leaders are preparing a sweeping 259-page energy bill that includes a strategy to increase nuclear power production nationwide. The plan even calls for America to reconsider building nuclear plants.

Vegas home builders hit with defect allegations: Pacific Deerfield Owners Association sued Pacific Properties and Development Corp. and Pacific Homes, alleging defects in its 104-unit condominium complex at 9901 Trailwood Drive.

Orleans Open Tuesday results: PBA Orleans Casino Open standings after Tuesday's qualifying through 18 games. The top 24 qualifiers advance to match play:

Local news briefs for January 24, 2001: A man was found shot to death behind the wheel of a car that crashed into a block wall Tuesday night.

CART rookie crashes during testing at LVMS: CART rookie Bruno Junqueira got his first taste of driving on a superspeedway Tuesday morning during the second day of Target/Chip Ganassi Racing's two-day test session at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Columnist Peter Benton: Popular golfer regains top award: Peter Benton; At last week's annual Southern Nevada Amateur Golf Association awards banquet, the popular and personable Brady Exber walked away with the year 2000's top honor: championship division player of the year.

Kincaid's ties to facilities boss run deeper than campaigning: Adrienne Packer; Clark County Facilities Manager Bill Barrett has been admonished more than once in the last eight years for helping Commissioner Mary Kincaid with her campaigns for the District B seat.

Proposals for disabled backed: Advocates for disabled Nevadans are applauding proposals by Gov. Kenny Guinn to make it easier for such individuals to keep their jobs and obtain state services.

Police warn cabbies about robbers: Keith Paul; Metro Police are warning all taxicab drivers to be on the lookout for robbers after 14 holdups of drivers in the past three weeks -- including two on Tuesday.

Solutions sought for state building woes: CARSON CITY -- Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, asked a pointed question Tuesday that he hopes will lead to smoother state construction projects in the future.

Gravel firm faces record fine: A Clark County sand and gravel mining company faces potential fines that may be the largest for dust violations in the county's history, officials said Tuesday.

Conflict claimed in air quality audit: The head of a committee charged with finding a company to do an audit of a controversial pollution-control program says Air Quality Division employees misled him to promote a company with close ties to regional governments.

Columnist Victoria Sun: Windy course added to rotation: Victoria Sun; When the Las Vegas Senior PGA Tour stop was played at the TPC at the Canyons in 1997, players blew a gasket.

Guinn extols drug plan, despite its rocky start: CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn is again touting his program for low-income senior citizens that will allow them to buy prescription drugs at a reduced cost.

Federal officials check houseboat exhaust at Lake Mead: Federal researchers are at Lake Mead this week testing carbon monoxide levels of houseboats.

Columnist Jeff Haney: Kickoff bettors may be outsmarting themselves: There's a good reason Las Vegas oddsmakers put all those wacky cross-sport Super Bowl propositions on the betting board.

Jury acquits Metro officer in drug case: Kim Smith; After just 30 minutes of deliberations Tuesday, a Metro Police officer was found not-guilty of drug-related charges.

Dutton, longtime county assessor is dead at 77: Former longtime Clark County Assessor Jean Dutton was not your typical politician.

Letter: Groups sanction discrimination: United Way of Southern Nevada's failure to withdraw funding to the scouts, and send a clear message that it opposes discrimination of any kind, is truly disturbing. Is it "united" in sanctioning discrimination?

Letter: Compassion? Don't bet on it from president: They view it from the perspective of his lack of experience in foreign affairs, and their concern is easily justified. But I do not feel the American people are leery enough of the intent of this man. While he campaigned under the false pretenses of being a "compassionate conservative," in truth he is a hard "right-winger," to say the least. His Cabinet appointments speak volumes.

UNLV going for big score in D.C.: Steve Addy; Who: Rebels at Georgetown When: 4:30 p.m., Thursday Where: MCI Center, Washington D.C. TV: KFBT (Ch. 6) Radio: KBAD, 920 AM

Community news briefs for January 24, 2001: Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman will host a town hall meeting at 1 p.m. Thursday to discuss issues of concern to the gay and lesbian community.

Boulder City Council offering voters alternative in pay question: Jeffrey Libby; In a move governed by protocol, the Boulder City Council voted Tuesday to trundle out the Charter Commission before putting a question on the June ballot that would preserve raises the council voted itself last summer.

Letter: Commentators should go home: Watching former President Clinton go home with wife Hillary and daughter Chelsea gave me hope for us ordinary citizens, but not for long.

Leukemia cases are certain: Two suspected cases of childhood leukemia in Fallon have been confirmed, Nevada health officials said Tuesday, bringing to 11 the number of children stricken with the cancer in the past three years.

Voucher plan debated: Terry Webster; President Bush's plan to offer vouchers for private schools is stirring heated debates in education circles in Nevada and throughout the nation.

After initial praise, governor's budget hit with criticism: Erin Neff; CARSON CITY -- Lawmakers agree that state employees, university professors and classroom teachers need higher salaries.

Guinn wants to switch male, female prisons: CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn has switched directions and intends to reopen the state prison at Jean with all women inmates and convert the privately run women's prison in North Las Vegas to an all-male center.

Highly touted QB commits to Rebels: Steve Guiremand; Bonita Vista High School in Chula Vista, Calif., is located just a short drive away from Qualcomm Stadium where San Diego State plays its home football games.

Candidates begin filing for spring municipal elections: Erin Neff; Las Vegas and Henderson city council incumbents are looking to sweep easily into new terms on April 3 as elected officials in North Las Vegas and Boulder City face more hurdles.

Delay sought in LV natural gas price increase: Southern Nevada's primary natural gas provider is seeking its third -- and largest -- rate increase in four months.

Colony Capital pulls takeover bid: The acquisition of Pinnacle by Harveys, an affiliate of Colony Capital of Los Angeles, was thought to have been in trouble since Harveys pulled a $625 million high-yield bond offering in December because of tough market conditions. Harveys had previously extended the deadline to close the deal from Jan. 15 to Jan. 31, but said it will not re-extend this deadline.

Regent remains in bankruptcy; bridge financing is approved: David Strow; A bankruptcy judge has approved plans by creditors of the Regent Las Vegas to lend the Summerlin hotel-casino $20 million, a critical step in keeping the Regent open while its bankruptcy case proceeds.

Experts to take over hotline: ST. LOUIS -- A hot line for Missourians who are compulsive gamblers is about to become more professional.

LV trash haulers join Teamsters: Republic, formerly known as Silver State Disposal Service, is the franchised trash hauler for Southern Nevada. STS hauls trash from Republic pickup sites in the city to a landfill near Apex.

County blocks Indian casino: HUDSON, Wis. -- The St. Croix County Board voted to oppose a proposed Indian casino at a dog track.

Judge slashes witness list for Williams' DUI trial: Kim Smith; The witness list for the trial of Jessica Williams -- facing manslaughter and DUI charges in the deaths of six teenagers -- got considerably shorter Tuesday after a judge ruled some defense witnesses aren't relevant.

Retailer shutting 50 stores -- none in Vegas area: Penney has seen its market share slip for several years as it was outflanked by discounters and trendier retailers. Analysts say the company was slow to update its stores and suffered from poor marketing and stale merchandise.

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