The Henderson Democratic Club Clark County Commission District G Debate: Part 2

(Continued from Part 1, also at Stonewall)

So where was I? Oh yes, we were talking about the SNWA Water Grab when we had to leave yesterday. Let's pick it up from there.

The final question was for each candidate to describe how he or she is different from the others and what his or her priorities will be when on the Commission. David Parks got to answer first, and he went into detail on his past local and state government experience, experience that ranges from handling the Las Vegas city budget to working on RTC transportation plans to serving in the Nevada Legislature. He then said his priority will be to make Clark County a model (in a good way!) government for America and improve the overall Southern Nevada quality of life.

Greg Esposito was next, and he described how he has a different set of skills. He came here in 1991 on a Greyhound bus, then went from kitchen handyamn to plumber and pipefitter to Clark County Commission candidate. He said his priorities will be economic recovery, doing what he can on the local level to address the foreclosure crisis, bringing new industries to Southern Nevada, address crime, and take on the UMC challenge.

Ron Newell then answered, admitting that he's a novice to politics and that he was inspired to run by a Shermie column in The R-J. (Huh?) He also said he has common sense that he'll be using when on the board.

He was followed by Mary Beth Scow, who said that she's the only candidate who has already served on a large government board. She talked about her six years of service on the Clark County School District Board of Trustees (and chairing it for three of those years). Scow then said she's already "dealth with thorny issues", "been getting her fingernails dirty", and has a "heart to help the community". Scow then said he priorities are creating new jobs, fixing Southern Nevada's economy, improving education, preventing blight, and keeping more families in their homes.

And then, what we were all waiting for... We were finally at closing statements! Greg Esposito started and kept it concise. Ron Newell, however, did not... Let's just say he went on for a little over the 30 second time limit. (The moderator had to stop him at about a minute.) Mary Beth Scow then delivered a bit of a surprise with her closing statement, using it to declare false the rumors that have been spreading about her being anti-union and "not a real Democrat". She declared she's been a life-long Democrat, has never had a problematic relationship with the unions, and is a proven "consensus builder". David Parks was last, and he again stressed his experience and that he's ready to do the job.

And after some club business and a few intros to some other local candidates, the meeting was adjourned.

So what do I think? To be fair, I personally won't endorse any candidate at this time (and Stonewall as a club will not make a primary endorsement) and I'll check my biases at the door to deliver as honest an assessment as possible.

To a certain extent, Jon Ralston is right that we didn't hear enough specifics on enough issues. There was plenty of talk of "studies" (especially on UMC and the home rule issue) and plenty of generalities thrown around. However, the debate was still far from the throwaway that Ralston seemed to marginalize it as. We were still treated to some interesting policy revelations.

David Parks and Mary Beth Scow did have their shining moments when they brought forward their past experience and demonstrated some real know-how on how county government works. And for the "newcomer", Greg Esposito was able to go toe-to-toe with Parks and Scow on offering up some innovative ideas (especially on sustainable development!) that may just work. And while Ron Newell did have some odd moments at times, he also added something worthwhile to the conversation.

So who won last Wednesday? Well, I'll let you read my notes and decide for yourself. :-)

The Long Awaited Henderson Democratic Club Clark County Commission District G Debate!

(Also at Stonewall)

OK, I know I've been keeping you waiting for almost a week now. Sorry about that. As you can tell, I've been super busy! Yes, yes, and I took Thursday off.

Again, sorry about that. But hey, now we get to talk about the Clark County Commission! Many thanks to the Henderson Democratic Club for hosting this event last week and giving us a chance to get to know David Parks, Greg Esposito, Mary Beth Scow, and Ron Newell.

So what happened? If you follow Stonewall's Twitter page, you know. And if you couldn't, then let me recap it for you right here, without that pesky 140 character limit. ;-)

So let's start with who showed up. We had all four above mentioned Democratic candidates, plus the Chair of the local branch of the League of Women Voters to moderate. Oh yes, and a certain Las Vegas Sun columnist also dropped by to take it all in.

And while I can understand Mr. Ralston's frustration over the lack of specifics on some issues, I also have to give the candidates some credit for offering some ideas on some of the issues we really care about. So where did the drama begin?

Let's start with the first question on how Clark County government will survive with less revenue. County Planning Commission member Ron Newell answered by expressing his view that the county should "be run like a business" and that more county worker layoffs are absolutely necessary. Clark County School Board Trustee Mary Beth Scow, on the other hand, focused more on bringing in new revenue. While she did suggest streamlining county government, she also talked about raising more money for the county by bringing in new jobs in fashion, furniture, senior care, and putting in more and better requests for more federal stimulus dollars. State Senator David Parks also beat the drums for more economic diversification and local government consolidation. And finally, former Plumbers & Pipefitters (Union) Local 525 chief Greg Esposito also mentioned finding new ways to bring in new revenue as well as focusing more on community empowerment and letting neighborhoods take on their own problems (like graffiti).

The next question was about future population growth in Southern Nevada and how to handle it better (than these last 20 years of epic growth followed by epic meltdown). Mary Beth Scow reiterated the importance of enticing more senior citizens to move to Clark County to provide new opportunities for economic diversification. (I guess this means we'll soon need more doctors, nurses, and home health care workers.) She stated that just gaming & mining can't take care of us any more, so diversification is necessary. Now David Parks, on the other hand, addressed the continuing need for us to update our infrastructure, as well as completing infill development to fix "leap frog development" (aka places like Rhodes Ranch). Parks specifically addressed the need for better roads, more mass transit, more high-tech jobs, and more businessed relocating from the "poor business climate" of California (sorry, Cali). Now Greg Esposito expressed a little relief that growth is no longer too rapid and "now we have a chance to breathe". He stressed the importance of improving neighborhood parks, curbing excessive water usage, and encouraging more green building and overall more sustainable development including smarter transit options & closer employment centers. Ron Newell, meanwhile, showed support for slower growth, better planning, better infill plans, and getting long-planned public works projects up and running ASAP.

After that, the sparks really began to fly! Why, you ask? Oh, we got the question that's always on our minds: HOME RULE. David Parks was first to answer, and he expressed full support for Clark County home rule. He explained the precedent set by NV governed by Missouri's "Dillon's Rule", explaining that Clark County can do whatever state of Nevada says we can do... So if the state lets the county take more control of our tax dollars and chart our own course, it's completely legal and totally doable. Parks stated that home rule would be good for us because "government which is closest to the people is best for the people".

But interestingly, Parks turned out to be the only candidate to fully endorse home rule. Greg Esposito countered that we need to be careful what we wish for, as this needs to be studied first so the county can be aware of possible negative "unintended consequences". He even said that if done wrong, home rule can become our "Prop 13". (California's now infamous property tax initiative that has all but crippled the state.) Ron Newell and Mary Beth Scow both echoed Esposito's concern, but then veered in different directions. Newell focused on Clark County and again stressed consolidating local government, while Scow was a little more open to home rule (even if not endorsing it just yet) citing her experience with CCSD enduring many state "unfunded mandates", constant micromanaging, and state raids of CCSD funds (like this year's budget fiasco).

The next question moved onto the perpetually troubled UMC hospital and what the county should do about it. All candidates expressed praise for Rory Reid, former University of Nevada chief (and current KVBC-3 TV station owner) Jim Rogers, and Rogers' plan to make UMC a teaching hospital. And since all four essentially said the same thing, I'll leave it there. (On this issue, sadly, Jon Ralston was right that no one really had anything new to offer.)

After that, the following question was on transportation on what the county should do on road improvement and RTC transit expansion. Greg Newell started the response train by showing support for a possible ACE ("light rail like" rapid bus) line connecting Downtown and The Strip to Henderson. (Henderson still has no rapid transit yet, but RTC has talked recently about possibly bringing an ACE Line here like the new Downtown/Strip ACE Line and North Las Vegas' MAX Line.) Scow echoed his support, but also stated she'd like an actual light rail line running on the existing Union Pacific railway (something Newell said he opposes) and said this would be a smart way to snatch more federal stimulus funds for mass transit, along with developing a plan for improving the (long neglected) 95 Freeway on the East Side from Downtown to Henderson. Parks then explained how his past experience dealing with local transit issues with Clark County (like his work on developing the original CAT system in 1992!) shows he's ready for today's transit problems. He also showed support for a possible light rail line to Henderson, as well as a high-speed rail line to California (he hinted he leans more toward Maglev over DesertXpress, but overall contrasted with Newell expressing doubt that we'd ever get any new train to Cali). Greg Esposito then countered with his own experience growing up in New York City (where they have real mass transit!), then coming here in the early '90s and discovering just how much Las Vegans love their cars. He then said that if RTC can succeed in finally building the 215 Beltway around the valley, that they can be more creative in following through on their transit plans and giving more workers more viable alternatives to their long car commutes.

Now once this was done, the sparks started flying again! This time, the other big question on SNWA's long planned "Water Grab" to build a pipeline from Northern Nevada's (and Utah's!) Snake Valley to pump their water down south for our use. Now all four candidates (likely much to the chagrin of PLAN and most Northerners) endorsed the Water Grab, but to various degrees. Scow was first and most supportive of this, as she flat out stated that "Clark County carries the state, so the rurals can't cut us off at knees!" However, she did also say that SNWA needs to be more sensitive to rural needs and move forward in the most environmentally sensitive way possible. Parks echoed this, but also said that the county should consider other possible plans since "Lake Mead's third straw" won't be enough and the state Supreme Court ruled against SNWA. Newell said that water conservation will be key to our survival, but that all new water options must be on the table, including getting California to build more desalinization plants along its coast to free up more Colorado River water for Nevada (again, sorry Cali!). Esposito agreed with Newell on conservation, while also agreeing with Scow that we need to tread carefully in pursuing SNWA's Snake Valley plan.

Now there was a little more in the debate that I'll get to later today, along with more of my honest assessments of the candidates and the District G race. But without a doubt, last Wednesday wasn't really a snoozefest to those of us crazed policy wonks. (Sorry, Mr. Ralston.) ;-)