Commission upbeat about challenges

Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2004 | 9:01 a.m.

Growth and its effects on Clark County's government and residents are the major challenges facing Southern Nevada, county commissioners said Tuesday in their annual State of the County report.

Despite the ongoing strains on transportation, medical and social services, the local environment and virtually every other aspect of government services, the commissioners still came out with a report that seemed more upbeat than last year's.

Commissioners cited several successes over the course of the last year, including the financial stabilization of the county's University Medical Center and health system, passage of new ethics rules and reforms of the land-use planning process.

"For as long as there has been a Las Vegas and a Clark County, growth has been our mantra," Commissioner Mark James said. "It's part of our fabric and part of what's made this community one of the nation's most dynamic."

He cited the growth rate, which annually adds about 70,000 people to the fastest- growing major metropolitan region in the country.

"With this tremendous growth, however, there has come increasing angst," James said.

Citizens group

James and Commissioners Rory Reid and Bruce Woodbury have proposed creating a citizens group, similar to ones convened last year to deal with the UMC fiscal crisis and ethics reforms, to recommend strategies to deal with the pace of growth.

James said the "community growth management initiative" would be an ambitious effort to "engage the community in an honest, open and inclusive dialogue about growth, how we manage it and about what it means for our quality of life."

Reid agreed.

"This board soon will be taking a comprehensive look at perhaps the most important issue facing this community -- growth management," he said. "As we have done in the past year, we must continue to engage the public in the process, we must work toward consensus and we must operate with the public interest in mind."

Woodbury said transportation and air quality, two issues heavily affected by the rate of growth, remain top priorities for the county.

He promised that work would continue on the Las Vegas Beltway, that the existing 53-mile highway that came together last year would be widened. Woodbury also promised new construction on transportation projects along the Strip.

He said two major air pollutants -- carbon monoxide and fine dust -- have lessened in the last several years, a testament to the county's air quality work. But ozone, a hazardous component of smog, is increasing, and the county will have to do more to fight the problem, Woodbury said.

Water and growth

Commissioner Myrna Williams, who is often the commission's lead voice on water- related issues, took a different view of the drought that has led to mandatory water-use restrictions throughout the county. The problem with water is not growth, she said.

"The growth in our community has brought many benefits and challenges, but growth is not the reason we need to use our water smarter," Williams said. "Water is not the cause of increases or decreases in growth."

The drought that has sent water levels tumbling in Lake Mead, the source of almost all the water used in Clark County, is the problem, she said. And the residents of the county are responding, trimming consumption from 318,000 acre-feet of water in 2002 to 272,000 acre-feet this year.

Williams cited efforts by the county to cut water use at parks and promised the efforts would continue.

Future of UMC

Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates said UMC is emerging from the fiscal crisis that required a $38 million infusion in December 2001, but more work needs to be done. She said one of the issues challenging the region is the cost of obtaining medical malpractice insurance for local doctors working at the hospital.

Atkinson Gates said a four-story, 175,000-square-foot addition to UMC for burn, wound and intensive care would come this year, part of the effort to keep UMC the top trauma hospital for the region. The $54 million project will be funded with bond proceeds and capital funds acquired through restructuring existing debt, she said.

Commissioner Mary Kincaid-Chauncey spoke on public safety issues, saying that security at McCarran International Airport will continue to improve. She said the county will spend $10.5 million in federal funds to improve emergency planning.

Kincaid-Chauncey noted that fire, police and emergency services continue to deal with increased demand due to the growing population.

"Continuing to provide adequate fire and emergency services staffing for new facilities becomes more challenging every year," she said. "During the upcoming budget cycle, we will once again tackle the tough issue of deciding how to provide sufficient staffing for future planned fire stations."

She said the commission would need to work with Sheriff Bill Young and Metro Police to find the funds needed for more officers. Clark County, with Las Vegas, provides the funding for the department.

Commission Chairman Chip Maxfield, who took over the top position on the board in November after federal prosecutors unsealed a corruption indictment against the-Chairwoman Kincaid-Chauncey, closed the annual report.

Neither he nor any of his colleagues directly referred to the federal corruption probe. Besides Kincaid-Chauncey, the probe also led to the indictments of former Commissioners Dario Herrera and Lance Malone as well as a guilty plea from former Commissioner Erin Kenny, who is cooperating with the investigation.

All were implicated in a cash-for-votes probe involving Michael Galardi, who, at the time, owned local topless clubs.

Stability of state

Rather than the corruption probe, Maxfield talked about growth. He noted that 70 percent of Nevada residents now live in Clark County.

"The financial stability of Nevada is ultimately dependent on the economic stability of Clark County," Maxfield said.

He said the commission has worked to use existing fiscal resources wisely in the midst of a tough economic downturn and unfunded mandates from Carson City increasing the county's responsibilities for social services. Nonetheless, the county continues to receive high marks from financial analysts, he said.

"This will be even more important in the future as we continue to deal with the impacts of growth, unfunded mandates and the changing demographics of our community," Maxfield said.