IT COUNTS MORE THAN YOU THINK

Voting This Wednesday Will Speak Truth To Power

(March 30th, 2009)]

This Wednesday Laughlin citizens will have yet another opportunity to vote for local representatives. An ad hoc straw poll will be held from 7:00 A.M. until 7:00 P.M. at the Laughlin Community Church at 2910 Needles Highway, next door to the Mobil Gas Station. Every registered voter is eligible to cast a vote. As I said back in October, it really does matter who sits on the Town Advisory Board. Many have felt that the Occupation has become a fact of life and we’re helpless to do anything about. And yet already, one illegitimate Board member has been forced to resign. So everyone needs to vote. For the record, I will once again list the candidates I endorse – and why.

Kathy Ochs has steered the Board with a steady hand as Chair and has one of the best understandings of the tortured workings of zoning laws and regulations on the Board. She has kept discussion at Board meetings civil even during times of bitter controversy. She was instrumental in creating the Laughlin Higher Education Corporation with the goal of bringing a satellite campus of UNLV to the south end of town. During her tenure as Chair of the Public Works Committee, a construction timetable for the badly needed improvements to the North End of Casino Drive was finalized. And with Board Vice Chair Gary Sheler, who chaired the Board’s Public Safety Committee, having left the Board, her professional law enforcement experience may be needed to take over that committee.

Ed Cooper brings a unique skill set from his many years of experience as a municipal attorney that we can’t duplicate. He has become our de facto town legal counsel and we can’t afford to lose that right now. He keeps the county on its toes since the career bureaucrats in Las Vegas know that they can’t obfuscate with the usual legal jargon when it comes to Ed. He also wrote the new proposed legislation to incorporate Laughlin and single handedly created an Economic Development Corporation for our community. As Chair of the Community Development Committee, he has presided over the busiest Board committee with numerous and well attended public hearings on topics from incorporation to badly under funded infrastructure.

Cheryl Crow, Chair of the Parks and Recreation committee, has been a long time supporter of improved parks and recreation infrastructure in Laughlin for many years. She has excellent working relationships with not only the county Parks and Recreation staff, but also the people involved with the Boys and Girls Club, the local schools and local athletic programs, relationships that have taken years to build. She also has an intimate working knowledge of the programs her committee oversees and can see when programs aren’t working or need help.

Novelt Mack, Chair of the Social Services Committee, brought his many years of work with social services agencies, including his prior work as President of the Family Resource Center to bear on his committee work. He has been instrumental in getting our towns’ medical community better connected with residents letting them know what services are available here. He is working to bring area physicians together next year to meet and discuss Laughlin’s needs.

Fred Doten, a graduate of the United States Military Academy, brings not only years of both leadership and management experience from both his years with the United States Army Corps of Engineers as well as private corporations, he brings the skill set of an engineer. Laughlin has numerous issues, from poorly maintained roads, to the need for road expansion, water system growth, and serious issues in deficient wastewater infrastructure and future development, all of which will benefit from having a professional engineer on the Board.

We welcome the public’s feedback. Please send your Letters To The Editor to editor@laughlinherald.com