Henderson City Council briefs

By Jeremy Twitchell

Wednesday, July 22, 2009 | 11:45 a.m.

Henderson residents honored for collegiate contributions

The Henderson City Council recognized residents Robert and Sandy Ellis on Tuesday for their ongoing contributions to Nevada State College.

The Ellises presented the Nevada State College Foundation with a check for $50,000 at the meeting, bringing the total amount they have given to the young institution to more than $300,000.

“The Ellises are examples of citizens in our community where if you ask, they help, and sometimes you don’t even need to ask and they’ll help,” Mayor Andy Hafen said.

Robert Ellis, who has lived in Henderson for more than 40 years, is also known for his contributions to local youth sports and assistance to students from low-income families at Whitney Elmentary.

“I think the Nevada State College is probably the best thing I’ve ever seen since I’ve been here,” Ellis said.

Employees recognized for saving coworker’s life

The City Council issued commendations for 19 city employees credited for saving the life of a coworker who went into cardiac arrest on March 31 at City Hall.

When employees found employee Ken Lowery unconscious and not breathing, one group began performing CPR, another employee called 911 and another group grabbed an automated external defibrillator (AED) and began using it on Lowery.

Paramedics arrived a short time later and took Lowery to the hospital, where he ended up having a quintuple bypass.

“(My coworkers) absolutely, as the doctor said, saved my life,” Lowery said. “They said on the table that I was almost gone.”

Mayor Andy Hafen credited quick thinking by employees and a city program to place AEDs in city building and police vehicles for saving Lowery. The program is credited for saving three lives since it was implemented three years ago.

During the presentation, Lowery’s co-workers presented with him with a gag gift: a T-shirt with AED paddles already attached.

“How do you thank this many people?,” Lowery said. “I now have about 20 people who I can’t say no to if they come to me for a loan.”

Park projects put to bid

The Council unanimously voted to put three park projects out to bid, including a new park in the south part of the city and two trail projects.

The park, Reunion Trails, will be built on four acres at Chapata Drive and Casady Hollow Avenue (two blocks northeast of Stephanie Street and Paseo Verde Parkway). The site is actually 14 acres, but the city has given 10 acres to the Clark County School District for a future elementary school.

The district has no set plans for the site, however, and it is planned to be used for an open grass area in the meantime.

The second project will be three trailheads for the Amargosa Trail, an extensive trail that runs roughly alongside Paseo Verde Parkway from Gibson Road to St. Rose Parkway. The trailheads will also serve as small parks, and will be located at Paseo Verde Parkway and Pacific Cascades Drive, Horizon Ridge Parkway and Shaded Canyon Drive, and Siena Heights Drive and Wanderer Place.

The third project is a pedestrian footbridge, which will cross St. Rose Parkway and connect the Siena Heights Trailhead with Cactus Wren Park.

Estimated project costs for the three projects total $12.6 million. All three projects are being funded by the Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act, which allows local municipalities to use a portion of the proceeds of federal land sales to build parks and trails projects.