All over the map

Saturday, June 19, 2004 | 12:44 p.m.

WEEKEND EDITION

June 19 - 20, 2004

Eleven of the dozen candidates for the Ward 2 seat have appeared on "Face to Face With Jon Ralston" during the campaign. Only Nevada Stupak, who agreed to appear and then backed out at the 11th hour, was not interviewed. What follows are excerpts from those programs:

Margarita Rebollal

Code enforcement hasn't been forceful enough to get the homeowners to refurbish their homes and keep their homes the way they should be looking and not look the way they do right now ...

I would like to see housing for families. I would like to see parks.

I would like to see an area that is developed that is consistent with what we have right now and develop on that.

Steve Wolfson

If I am fortunate to win on June 22nd in this election, every one of my decisions is going to be based on citizens come first.

Quality of life, every one of my decisions is going to consider how is this going to affect the citizens of Ward 2 and all of Las Vegas because I recognize even though I am elected to represent Ward 2 all of my decisions will affect the city of Las Vegas and everybody in the Vegas valley. ...

I have a lot of concerns and I want to contribute and I want to do something about it.

Duane Stephens

We are looking at controlled growth. We are looking at the fact that we live in a desert. So we are going to have water issues. So let's educate the people that move here ...

We need to deal with traffic because it also affects people's quality of life. On a daily basis if you are stuck in traffic you are clogging the air and you are not very happy about it. So we need to be more proactive and continue to take these proactive approaches and make Ward 2 and the city of Las Vegas a better place. ...

What I don't want to be is paternalistic. I do not want to make decisions for the constituents. I want to make decisions on behalf of what the constituents tell me.

Bob Genzer

It is true that there are a lot of developers that are very much behind my candidacy, the reason for that is because they know with me they will get a fair shake. I have never ever told anyone that you could not do something that I didn't tell someone else you could not do or vice versa.

That is the way I have always worked. That is the way I have built my career. That is why I think there is so much support on that side.

On the other side of the fence there are many homeowners that have called me that I have met through the years as well who are very much behind my candidacy because they know at the same time that I have always been fair with them.

Joanne Levy

You can count on me to manage growth and the way that I would manage growth is smart growth. It is growing smartly. It is engaging the neighbors. It is engaging elected officials. It is engaging the utility companies. It is engaging everyone who needs to be part of the process into making sure we are growing smartly ...

Southern Nevada elected officials have to realize it is no longer a turf situation. We have to work together to make sure we are growing the way Southern Nevada needs to grow. We need to be proactive not reactive on the way that we are going to develop.

Richard Truesdell

I think people really realize that the city of Las Vegas has the most open planning process. We encourage people to come down and be involved. I have attended several neighborhood meetings in every ward ... to try to understand how those issues come to planning ...

If we want to stop our traffic issues we need to develop our infill pieces, we need to stop spreading to the hills. The planned communities are great, but as we go farther out and if we put our employment centers downtown only, we will fill up by 95, we will fill up the Summerlin Parkway, it is like a funnel.

Everyone comes from their neighborhood street, they go to their regional streets, they go to the highway and as long as we have construction we have issues out there, we are going to have that.

Martin Manke

I think that what I bring to the table is just a fresh approach and not the standard ways of doing business. I agree though with my opponents in the sense that we do need responsible growth, continued growth. I understand that our economy is based significantly on the continued growth and new construction in addition to helping to develop Ward 2 though.

I think it is also important to follow suit and help with our older neighborhoods and filling in land pieces but also moving downtown and helping to revitalize the downtown area by building for sale residential units as opposed to just rentable units ...

I think the one thing is re-exploring the monorail system. I know that in the paper I was quoted as saying that I am a big opponent of the monorail system despite the fact that the city takes a look at that and say it is a no go or in the past.

John Hambrick

It is not a partisan race but Senator Ensign was kind enough to give me a few good words. He saw me work. He happens to live in the ward. His son is involved in the youth activities that I am connected with.

I have assisted Lynette Boggs McDonald in her congressional run. Jon Porter, Brian Sandoval I assisted in their campaigns and they have seen me work. I roll up my sleeves and I do what it takes and I will do the same thing for Ward 2.

I will roll up my sleeves and get it done, try to build a consensus and people will see by my history. Research all the candidates. Look at every candidate -- not at the promises but what they have done in the past.

Gabriel Lither

The neighborhood casino that we are receiving is in fact now going to be a neighborhood casino. Before, its original plans, it was going to be a Strip-size casino with fifteen hundred rooms, three hundred feet tall.

We have knocked off one-third on both the height, one hundred feet, and the number of rooms now is five hundred rooms. I think that is very important. We have also received some other considerations from Station Casinos as part of the negotiations ...

The casino was already zoned there. Would I personally prefer if no casino were there? Probably. But it has been zoned there for a long time. That wasn't what our fight was about. We realize they had permission to be there. We were just trying to keep it a good fit for the neighborhood.

Firouzeh Forouzmand

So we need recreation facilities. We have addressed some of them for the senior citizens but we have not exactly addressed those involving the children and the youth, especially teens. I feel that the teen issue is getting neglected.

My children are not at that age yet but they will be and that seems to be a concern of many of the parents that I am involved with ... Have more recreational facilities for when they get out of school and then they are off the street and in recreation centers, either by having the reduced rate memberships or simply a free situation for them. To have Foosball tables, ping-pong tables, something to keep them occupied physically and mentally and off the streets.

Steve Greco

I am kind of embarrassed at one point that Summerlin, which is the number one master community if not the nation the world, is receiving all this negative press. I think we should have taken a leadership role with the synthetic grass issue. I am for that issue.

I think the homeowner should have that right. It looks phenomenal. It is not a cheap task. It is an expensive project to entertain at one's home and I am for that.

I think the board needs to be more open at least in trying certain avenues to accommodate our homeowners here in Summerlin ...

One thing I would like to see happen is light synchronization, traffic signal synchronization. It makes the major arteries flow better. ... Then maybe we need better equipment, more advanced equipment so it will work better. Cutouts for the buses. We need that. Also, increased awareness on car-pooling.

Can a criminal defense attorney who knows how to use the media -- and is quick with a sound bite but knows nothing about City Hall -- defeat opponents who are solid but stolid, beloved by the development community and presumably could slide effortlessly into the job?

Steve Wolfson may be a poor man's Oscar Goodman, but he is not poor, having raised more than six figures for the contest. And he is trying to do just what Goodman did five years ago, which is use his money and personality to overwhelm a relatively boring field -- including city planning boss Bob Genzer and planning commissioner Ric Truesdell, who like then-City Councilman Arnie Adamsen and developer Mark Fine in 1999, have much more knowledge but not nearly the presence.

But this is less stark than deciding whether flash beats substance, whether experience trumps sizzle. This is not just a three-way race as it was five years ago, but a 12-person contest -- and much of the time this seems like The Dazed Dozen, as a majority of the candidates, while they want to give us a voice and do the right thing and make a difference, basically have no clue how to do any of those.

And while Goodman won in a landslide, this not-so-special election is likely to be decided by hundreds of votes, with three obvious wild cards who could tilt the dynamic -- the peripatetic Nevada Stupak, the callow scion of Bob Stupak whose valleywide peregrinations have led him to Ward 2 to try to snatch a seat; Gabriel Lither, the earnest attorney who made his bones by burying Station Casinos' dream of a 300-foot tower at Red Rock Station and whose grass-roots network is intact; and Joanne Levy, widow of a former councilman and an effervescent Realtor (is that redundant?) who is spending a fortune of her own and actually has an idea or two.

erhaps the greatest difference, though, between then and now is that the race Goodman won in 1999 altered the course of city history. The real issue this year, despite all the Sturm und Drang rattling mailboxes, is whether the outcome really matters at all. What's one more political pygmy added to Oscar and the Five Dwarves since His Honor so dominates the council with the force of his personality and intellect that no one dares challenge him. Boggs McDonald wasn't afraid of him, but I don't see anyone in the current field who has the gumption to take him on.

This monthlong scrum represents a distillation of the best and worst of democracy as only about 4,000 votes will be cast and less than 1,000 (perhaps only 500 or so) surely will be needed to win. A premium will be placed on candidate-to-voter contact, which presumably gives almost anyone a chance, but the candidates with money -- Wolfson, Genzer, Truesdell, Stupak and Levy -- can afford more mail pieces and consultants who know how to spin a good message and then get folks to the polls.

It is heartening to see the energy and sincerity of first-time candidates such as Firouzeh Fourouzmand, the coordinator of the West Charleston Performing Arts Center, and Margarita Rebollal, the executive director the East Las Vegas Development Corp.

The raw intensity of Citibank's Steve Greco is something to behold, as is the energy of attorney Martin Manke, and Duane Stephens, who works for an engineering firm. And John Hambrick, a longtime GOP activist, is a loyal trench worker who sees the City Council as the natural reward for his efforts helping Republican candidates.

But those six have little chance to win because they cannot tap into the resources the other half-dozen can bring to bear and will have to rely on friends, family and business acquaintances to tally their votes. Beyond that they have neither the money nor the skills to mount a successful campaign -- or so it looks, even in this crazy schematic.

So who has the upper hand? Do I dare venture a guess? This is one horse race where the handicapping is difficult, if not impossible. And yet I soldier on:

In 1999 Goodman the trial lawyer talked of the apple and the rotting core, downtown Las Vegas. He wanted to make developers pay more, even though he didn't know how. He would be the outsider trying to fix City Hall.

Wolfson's campaign is almost a duplicate, albeit even lighter. Just listen:

His plan to fix air pollution: "If I am fortunate to win on June 22nd in this election, every one of my decisions is going to be based on citizens come first. Quality of life, every one of my decisions is going to consider how is this going to affect the citizens of Ward 2 and all of Las Vegas because I recognize even though I am elected to represent Ward 2 all of my decisions will affect the city of Las Vegas and everybody in the Vegas valley." ("Face to Face With Jon Ralston," May 28)

But vacuous though his campaign may be -- he's also against sleaze and is for parks -- Wolfson has effective endorsements (cops and firefighters) and a consultant who knows how to win in Gary Gray.

Like a good trial lawyer and much like the mayor, Wolfson knows how to connect with people, singling out residents at a recent Charleston Neighborhood Preservation forum and insisting he is on their side. And he shares one other quality with Goodman -- chutzpah.

One of Wolfson's mail pieces implied he had something to do with stopping the 300-foot Red Rock Station tower, which drew Lither's ire. When he was asked about the claim at a recent forum, Wolfson lamely explained that he was too busy setting ethics for the state bar.

The man who boasts he is not tied to the developers has plenty of ties to lawyers, who accounted for nearly all of his $100,841 in reported contributions. Wolfson essentially claims he can be all things to all people, including one memorable moment at a forum when he said he was the candidate to challenge Goodman if the mayor needed to be challenged. And, a few breaths later, he defined himself as a consensus-builder.

His money, his relentlessness, his visceral appeal to folks, though, make him the favorite.

Genzer sounds intelligent and thoughtful when talking about issues, too. To wit:

"If you look at one of the things we are trying to do at the city of Las Vegas, we are looking at plans and I will use the Northwest Town Center as an example, of trying to move the job base. At the present time part of the issue as I see it with traffic is everyone is going to the same place at the same time. Where are the jobs? The jobs are downtown and the jobs are on the Strip. In the case of Town Center we are trying to create a job base where people live." ("Face to Face," May 28)

Despite Genzer's knowledge and preparation for the job, the real political issue for him is whether he will be a shill for developers. His $66,000 in contributions came almost excessively from prominent developers who have become rich in the city --- men like Randy Black, with whom he once invested, Barry Becker, Kevin Parkinson and Hank Gordon.

Does this mean, as Genzer argues, they know him to be a reasonable man, or does it mean that they know he'll be their guy on the council? (Genzer also must deal with the sticky question of what happens if he loses. Can he go back to being the head of the planning department after taking all this money from the folks he regulates?)

Genzer has done a credible, cogent job at the forums at which he has appeared and some last-minute kind words from Boggs McDonald can't hurt. Add his money and friends and he is a viable contender.

Truesdell, who is being assisted by grass-roots maven Steve Wark, has tried to distinguish himself by focusing on a promise to roll back property taxes (which he could not do as a councilman and would need legislative assistance). But I bet the Sun City folks love him for it -- and they vote.

Truesdell is quite articulate and understands zoning issues because of his vocation and Planning Commission experience. He didn't bat an eye in defending his support of that Social Security Administration building that some neighbors protested in western Las Vegas:

"There is always going to be a position that they want no development. That is not what we need to do. If we want to stop our traffic issues we need to develop our infill pieces, we need to stop spreading to the hills. The planned communities are great, but as we go farther out and if we put our employment centers downtown only, we will fill up by 95, we will fill up the Summerlin Parkway, it is like a funnel. Everyone comes from their neighborhood street, they go to their regional streets, they go to the highway and as long as we have construction we have issues out there, we are going to have that." ("Face to Face," June 1)

Truesdell has raised just under $50,000 from the same support base as Genzer, although he has a few friends in the legal (Will Kemp -- $5,000) and gaming communities (Coast Hotels -- $2,500 -- and Jack Binion -- $5,000) who helped out. He is clearly an Establishment candidate and his friendship with The Family Goodman, which began because he is involved at The Meadows School, run by Carolyn Goodman, would provide His Honor with yet another ally. As if he needs one.

"I can stand up for the neighbors and make developers work with neighbors to have a good quality of life for their particular neighborhood and that is why I chose to run in this election," he said on "Face to Face" last month.

Lither is tapping into the same group of Summerlin activists who were his allies in that fight. He also is a member of the LDS church, which still helps in local politics. And he seems to win converts everywhere he goes with this style.

Even other candidates like him -- two of his contributions came from Assemblyman David Goldwater, who hopes to take Boggs McDonald's spot on the County Commission, and Jerry Tao, who is challenging Commissioner Chip Maxfield. I would not be so cynical to suggest Goldwater and Tao hope Lither returns the favor with some assistance in their campaigns.

If he wins, it would be a triumph of behind the scenes toiling over campaign cash.

Dad, the former Vegas World and Stratosphere boss, tried to win seats for years in local government, using controversial tactics such as gift baskets for seniors. Sister Nicole once ran for the City Council even though she didn't know where City Hall was. But Nevada is the best candidate the family has produced -- he is personable and presentable -- but he uses the same kind of shadowy tactics.

He moved into the district to run, showing his desperation to serve. And his mail pieces are full of rhetoric, misspellings (including of folks he claims endorse him), some real plans (consolidation of police agencies, free CAT passes for students) and faux endorsements, including the implication that he and U.S. Sen. Harry Reid have a close relationship.

The message of that last-minute piece -- "What would Senator Reid do in this position?" -- is identical to a mailer put out by Janet Moncrief, who has had a relationship with a Bob Stupak, in her successful bid against then-Councilman Michael McDonald.

Must be a coincidence, eh? It would be so unfair to say that a Nevada Stupak win would provide Bob Stupak with access to two out of seven votes on the council. Yes, so unfair.

Stupak reported raising $26,000, including $4,000 from Stupak the Elder. But remember there was plenty of time to pour more money in after the disclosure deadline and this race is all about last-minute efforts. Stupak the Younger is a real factor here and if the aforementioned quartet split the vote, he could sneak in.

Levy is being backed by the Realtors trade group, which sent out a mail piece on her behalf. And, unlike many of the contenders, she has a few ideas. They are not revolutionary -- tax incentives for businesses, environmental credits for projects, more accountability. But she does not come across nearly as vapid as some of the other hopefuls.

Hard to believe GOP endorsements matter much in a City Council race, but some Republicans may be swayed while some Democrats may be turned off. The rest of the field will be lucky to get more than 100 votes each.

So what could turn the tide in the final hours before Tuesday? Could Goodman weigh in for Truesdell? Doubtful. Will there be more mysterious attacks on Wolfson from Tony Dane, who worked for Moncrief in her race? No doubt.

But when the smoke clears and we have a new council member Wednesday morning -- notwithstanding a possible recount -- will this expensive experiment in a compressed time frame really have made any difference in the future of the council, considering the current de facto strong-mayor form of government?

Not a chance.

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