Commission candidates stick to issues in debate

Thursday, Oct. 28, 2004 | 9:38 a.m.

Six of the most prominent candidates for Clark County Commission gathered at KLVX Channel 10 studios Wednesday, and their discussion was as notable for what it wasn't as for what it was.

Instead of the rancorous mudslinging that has characterized much of the three campaigns for District F, B and C, the candidates mostly stuck to issues affecting their districts and Clark County. Mitch Fox, the forum moderator on the public television station, instructed the candidates in a letter and in person to stay away from the allegations and accusations that have taken up airtime and filled mailboxes in the last weeks of the campaign.

The forum pitted the three Democrats -- Assemblyman Tom Collins, Clark County Deputy District Attorney Jerry Tao and Assemblyman David Goldwater -- against their Republican opponents -- North Las Vegas City Councilwoman Shari Buck, Commission Chairman Chip Maxfield and Commissioner Lynette Boggs McDonald.

The program will be broadcast at 8 tonight on KLVX.

On some issues the candidates mostly agreed. On a proposal to cap property tax increases at 6 percent annually, the candidates said windfall wins for local governments should not be a result of skyrocketing housing values.

Boggs McDonald, who was appointed to her position in March, said she supported a cap, but wanted to know what the latest assessments would be before committing herself to a number. Those assessments should come out of the Clark County assessor's office around the end of the year.

Goldwater, her opponent, said he wanted to ensure that "the most vulnerable, seniors, veterans, low income" families had access to local government services they need. He suggested that county tax rates could be lowered instead of instituting a property tax increase cap.

Maxfield noted that the decision would be up to the Legislature to make, but said he supported a cap to stop the size of government from growing.

His opponent, Tao, agreed that everyone supports a cap of some kind, but the ultimate size has yet to be determined.

Tao and Goldwater said they both are concerned about the pace of growth in Clark County and supported measures to ensure developers pay for all needed infrastructure before new projects are approved. The same issue extends to the region's efforts to conserve water and broaden the portfolio of sources for the resource beyond the Colorado River.

"We have to slow down growth or else we will have a problem with our water future," Goldwater said.

"All the conservation efforts in the world aren't going to help if we keep growing at our current pace," Tao said.

The candidates generally agreed that more police are needed and that the master land-use plans need to be respected. Maxfield noted that when he joined the county commission four years ago, land-use plans were frequently changed at the request of developers. He and Commissioner Bruce Woodbury, who has only a third-party opponent in this election, worked to change the rules governing how those master plans could be amended, Maxfield said.

"We've been fighting against inappropriate zone changes for four years," he said. The master plan rule changes passed last year by the county were "the most extensive overhaul in decades, if ever."

"We have done extensive changes to there to make sure the citizens of the county are represented," he said.

Goldwater, however, criticized the "culture" of the county commission that allowed unpopular zoning changes. He targeted the approval of Station Casinos' 200-foot tall tower in Summerlin that sparked community opposition.

"It should truly be a neighborhood casino and not a towering, Strip-style casino," he said.

His opponent, Boggs McDonald, formerly a Las Vegas city councilwoman, served on the board of Station Casinos during the debate over the casino height.

Collins said serious, long-term planning has to occur. Buck said it is important for commissioners to listen to the concerns of their constituents.