Officials check out electric auto during energy fair

Jeffrey Libby

Friday, Sept. 14, 2001 | 9:18 a.m.

The Lido electric vehicle looks like a miniature antique car and drives like a musclebound golf cart.

Nevada Electric Vehicle salesmen were lauding the Lido, with its 1,000-pound payload, for its utility, cleanliness, and efficiency -- the $10,000 vehicle averages about 40 miles for every 30-cent recharging.

The Henderson-based electric car company was one of about 20 energy-thrifty companies that put their best foot forward Thursday at a "Green Town Hall" meeting, hoping to attract some of the $3 million Boulder City has to spend to offset pollution from a proposed power plant.

City Finance Director Bob Kenney jumped out of the vehicle breathless after a quick spin that hit a top speed of 25 mph. "It's quiet, it's fast and it's good looking," he said.

"Every cute girl we passed was looking," John Hoole, community development director, said.

About seven salesmen, mostly balding, laughed. Some 1950s rockabilly music was playing from the tape deck.

What would they use the vehicle for? "Fun," said Kenney. "We have a new golf course coming."

Inside the Recreation Department gymnasium behind City Hall, the mood was also light.

Councilman Joe Hardy, who organized the event, said the event was about "having an open mind."

Armed with that attitude, a person could better understand the machinery Ethel M Chocolates uses to transform grease byproducts left from chocolate manufacturing into potable water. Or a person could envision a fleet of city vehicles running on propane, especially after Dale Ashby, of Dale's Texaco, noted he has already installed a propane filling station at the west end of town. Or with all of Nevada's sun why not build enough solar cells across the Eldorado Valley to power a large portion of the Southwest?

"Our commitment in Boulder City is to have clean air, clean water and green land," Hardy said.

That is why, earlier this year, Boulder City withdrew from the Las Vegas Valley air quality district. Under the old guidelines, Boulder City would have been limited to planting trees and paving roads with the $3 million Copper Mountain Power will pay to offset expected pollution from its proposed 600 megawatt natural gas-fired plant in the Eldorado Valley, about 17 miles southwest of downtown.

Hardy says the flexibility Boulder City gains by not including itself as part of the Las Vegas Valley's air quality plan will actually help the city do more to reduce pollution.

No decisions were made Thursday, but the choir gained more volume.

Resident Randy Phelps, who stopped by riding his 1997 12-volt Zap ElectriCruizer bicycle, checked out displays and showed off his own bike.

"It's fun," Phelps, a pilot for the Bureau of Reclamation, said. "People look at you. They say, 'Look that guy's not pedaling,' and I'm going 15 mph up the hill."