Collins’ motive on plant vote questioned

Wednesday, June 7, 2006 | 7:37 a.m.

When the majority of Clark County commissioners attempted to shut down the sole plant supplying concrete to the Hoover Dam bypass bridge project, they said it was because the company had a record of operating plants without a permit.

But the actions of at least one commissioner suggest they took into consideration more than just land-use issues.

Commissioner Tom Collins adamantly opposed Casino Ready Mix's request for a special-use permit for its batch plant near Eldorado Valley, despite warnings that it could jeopardize the $234 million bridge project.

In a 4-3 vote split along party lines, Collins and other Democrats rejected the permit request at a meeting last month attended heavily by union officials.

Commissioners said the concrete company had been operating without a permit in that location for two years and had done the same elsewhere in the past.

"They were breaking the law and we did the right thing," Collins said at the May 3 zoning meeting.

But it's clear now that Collins was intimately involved with the International Operating Engineers Union's effort to put pressure on Casino Ready Mix, a nonunion firm.

Before a February County Commission meeting, Collins told the firm's vice president, Kyle Goerlitz, that the permit request would be denied unless the company agreed to pay prevailing union wages, according to a lawsuit the company filed against Clark County.

The issue was tabled at that meeting.

Later, Goerlitz met with Collins at his office and agreed to pay his workers union wages, according to court documents. Collins picked up the telephone, called the union office and left a message saying Goerlitz had consented.

This week, Collins admitted to having those conversations with Goerlitz, but said his vote to deny the permit had nothing to do with union issues.

"This is not a union issue," he said. "This is a guy not following county code."

Asked why he spoke to Goerlitz about union wage issues, Collins said, "I was trying to help him work out a deal so they would stop protesting him."

Republican Commissioner Bruce Woodbury, whose district encompasses the concrete plant, said Collins' actions were out of line.

"That's not an appropriate focus for land-use issues," he said. "It has no business in that decision."

Despite any agreement reached in Collins' office, union representatives opposed the company's permit application at the May 3 meeting, and the majority of commissioners voted against it.

Collins insists the permit denial was necessary because, although the county's public response office had cited the plant for operating without a permit in April 2005, no effort was made to shut it down. The company later applied for a permit in October.

"The commission had to do something because the DA's office wouldn't," Collins said.

Deputy District Attorney Rob Warhola said Tuesday the delay was in part because of confusion over whether the company could apply for a permit in light of the moratorium.

He said the district attorney's office will wait to enforce the commissioners' decision until a judge decides whether to grant Casino Ready Mix its request for a temporary restraining order against the county.

Executives with Casino Ready Mix have not returned several phone calls from the Sun.

Meanwhile, federal officials who initially expressed concern about the commissioners' decision and its effect on the bridge project say they expect construction on the 2,000-foot bridge over the Colorado River to continue.

Voters in Clark County Commission District G will find an anomaly on their ballots in November, and Republicans aren't likely to be happy about it.

Because of an exception in state law, Commissioner Rory Reid and his lone challenger - fellow Democrat Matthew O'Neil - will not face off in an August primary. That's because when there are two candidates from the same party and no other challengers, the candidates appear on the general election ballot, not the primary ballot, according to the secretary of state's office.

Republican Chuck Hurley, a county staffer, planned to challenge Reid but dropped out of the race shortly after filing.

Reid had more than $1 million in campaign money at the beginning of the year and has hired veteran Democratic political consultant Dan Hart.

But Clark County Republican Chairman John Hambrick said those factors have nothing to do with the lack of a Republican in the race.

"I am going to have to take the blame," he said. "The bottom line is we did not do good candidate recruitment."

As a result, Democratic, Republican and independent voters alike will choose between two Democrats in November.

In another union-related issue, Clark County's contract negotiations with the union that represents its rank-and-file employees will start next week, ending a four-month stalemate.

The county refused to negotiate with the Service Employees International Local 1107 when it learned that the union wanted more than 160 members at the bargaining table. In the past, negotiations took place behind closed doors with a maximum of 10 representatives from each side.

Now, in a compromise with the union, County Manager Thom Reilly's office has agreed to allow 50 union observers to attend the negotiations.

"We are trying to move the process forward," said Don Burnett, the county's chief administrative officer. "With any negotiating process, each side needs to be willing to compromise."

The compromise comes after the union, which represents about 8,300 county staffers, filed a complaint with the Nevada Employee-Management Relations Board, accusing the county of unfair labor practices for refusing to negotiate.

The county, in turn, filed a countercomplaint asking the labor board to restrict the union's bargaining team to 10 members.

County officials have argued that scores of union members could intimidate county negotiators and encourage union negotiators to refuse compromises.

Union officials say the presence of so many members is necessary because of the variety of county employees, from animal control officers to information technology workers.

Despite some wariness, Burnett said the county changed its stance because time is running out. A ruling from the labor board could take several months, and the current contract between the county and its employees expires June 30.

"Fifty is still a lot," he said. "We are hopeful this will not disrupt the bargaining process."

Negotiations are scheduled to start June 12, but Burnett is skeptical that a final contract will be signed by the June 30 contract expiration date. After all, it took the two parties more than four months just to decide how many people should be at the bargaining table.