December 20, 2022

Sheriff Wehrly

was not present at this time.

Deputy Clerk Elizabeth

Westerlund swore in County Clerk Mark Kampf. Mr. Kampf then swore in the other newly elected officials. 2. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT (up to three-minute time limit per person.) Action will not be taken on the matters considered during this period until specifically included on an agenda as an action item (first). Nichole Walters with No Opinion News talked about how the dean of a private school gave sex toys to children and talked about spit versus lube; Kyle from the FBI exposing sexual misconduct with top ranking officials in the FBI management; abuse of counter- December 20, 2022 2. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT (up to three-minute time limit per person.) Action will not be taken on the matters considered during this period until specifically included on an agenda as an action item (first)-Cont’d. terrorism resources to investigate parents at school board meetings; and the election crimes cheat sheet prior to the 2022 election. She then stated Genie’s Hot Dogs was vandalized. Her big picnic table was stolen along with a few other things. She had been there for seven years with no issues, but had now had issues for the past five weeks. Sleep in Heavenly Peace raised almost $4,000.00 at their fundraiser on Saturday. The Pahrump Holiday Task Force would have its annual community meal on Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Lastly, Ms. Walters stated she wanted paper ballots and no use of the tabulators as the tabulators did not catch the over-votes and the hand count did. Erika Gerling was present in Beatty

Ms. Wosk

and Doug Shane from Pets Are Worth Saving said they were looking for a place to move to and wondered if the Board had buildings owned by the Town of Pahrump that they could possibly lease or rent.

Commissioner Carbone

said he would talk to them off-line. Ammie Nelson congratulated the newly elected officials. She said that Anthony Greco and Matt Sadler had great success in the Sleep in Heavenly Peace fundraiser. Diane Southworth shared information from the last community outreach meeting as well as upcoming meetings in the community. Tim Bohannon congratulated the elected officials. He said the first Nye County Parks and Recreation Advisory Board meeting was on December 7, 2022, in Round Mountain and it was well attended. The next meeting would be January 4, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. in Round Mountain. Stanley Schaffer talked about how James McDougall, Vincent Foster, and Jeff Epstein, were all dead and were associated with the Clintons and the Tea Party; how Obama’s IRS, the FBI, the DNC, the Biden campaign and social media all colluded to affect the 2020 election; how he would not put the vaccine in his body as it would not prevent the disease; the speed limit at the edge of town needed to be lowered to 55 mph; and Title 9. Kellen McDowell informed the community of the Affordable Housing Committee’s first meeting on January 5,2023, at 11:00 a.m. on Zoom. Michael David Garcia spoke of how the Constitution could be revoked; child trafficking; and that he had video evidence of the Nye County Sheriff’s Office unlawfully engaging with children at the school without anyone’s knowledge. December 20, 2022 2. GENERAL PUBLIC COMMENT (up to three-minute time limit per person.) Action will not be taken on the matters considered during this period until specifically included on an agenda as an action item (first)-Cont’d. Regarding the vaccine, Pat Minshall said there were 225 million people in Japan, 104 million of which were vaccinated, and less than 52,000 had died from COVID. The United States had 235 million people, 90 million of which had not been vaccinated, and there was a total of over one million COVID deaths. Darrell Lackey stated people were constantly telling him about how they went to “homeless hill” behind Smith’s where there were hundreds of rigs because there were no programs in the County. Louis Baker advised his dog got shot along with a neighbor’s because someone said they had the inherent right to kill dogs, which he did not understand. He also had not been able to get the police report. 3. Commissioners’IManager’s Comments (This item limited to announcements or topiclissues proposed for future workshopslaqendas)

Commissioner Jabbour

thanked Contracts and Grants Manager Stephani Elliott, Lorina Dellinger, Jaynee Reeves and William Stark for assisting with the workshop last night. The ARPA feedback was that it was a phenomenal presentation. He then advised the slide at Honeysuckle Park had been fixed and he thanked Nichole Walters for staying on top of that.

Commissioner Strickland

recognized the new electeds and said she looked forward to working with them. There was a Central Nevada Regional Water Authority (CNRWA) meeting a couple of weeks ago and she thought it was interesting that the meeting held yesterday had to do with the Legislative Council and the CNRWA’s BDRs. There was an interim Natural Resources Committee which had requested $1 .2 million for cloudseeding, which Nye County was already doing with Desert Research Institute.

Commissioner Cox

congratulated Commissioners Jabbour and Strickland for their win. She wished Commissioner Blundo a great future in his new endeavors and thanked

Commissioner Carbone

for all the things he had done over the past year.

Commissioner Blundo

asked the new Sheriff for a formal investigation into the events when a Commissioner received Schedule I narcotics in the mail which seemed to have gone by the wayside. He said he would write a letter of support for a YouTube speaker who advocated for small businesses throughout the country. He asked that NHP be included in public safety items for their input. Commissioner Blundo then read a letter into the record he wrote about his four-year term. Stephani Elliot stated the ARPA small business grants were available and she encouraged people to apply before the first round closed on January 1 5, 2023. December 20, 2022 3. Commissioners’IManager’s Comments (This item limited to announcements or topiclissues proposed for future workshopslagendas)-Cont’d. Regarding the ARPA workshop, Tim Sutton advised the Town of Tonopah reached out along with a couple of businesses and asked for assistance as they had a lot of people interested in applying but they did not know the process. Staff held an impromptu meeting which was recorded and would be available for anyone who wanted view it. 4. Approval of the Agenda for December 20, 2022 (Non-action item) Tim Sutton said items 5, 25-30, and 39 could be removed from the agenda. 5. For Possible Action — Emergency Items This item was removed from the agenda. TIMED ITEMS

Commissioner Strickland

wondered why anything was going forward when the County just voted in a moratorium.

Ms. Ransel

said she would take that back to the decisionmakers at BLM. She then provided an update on other renewable projects in the southern Nevada district.

Commissioner Jabbour

stated BLM was managing public lands for the counties, not for private industry. Ms. Ransel needed to take the message back to the BLM that they needed to respect the people of the communities in and bordering Nye County.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to have public workshops to get input from the people and have that as part of the back-up when the Board made a final decision.

Commissioner Carbone

said staff just needed to be given direction.

Commissioner Blundo

withdrew his motion. Darrell Lackey thought it would be a good idea to use some of the money to eliminate homelessness. 7. 10:00 a.m. Presentation by Beth Ransel, the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Southern Nevada District Supervisory Proiect Manager regarding the status of Copper Rays Solar Project and Environmental Impact Study (EIS), and an update on other renewable energy projects in Southern Nevada District-Reopened. This item was reopened for public comment only. Vivien Wilkinson talked about how solar panels did not put out a lot of energy and destroyed the land. Ammie Nelson said she attended Webinars for a couple of solar projects and it seemed they did not listen to the people who spoke against them. Patty Hobson wanted to know who would benefit from all of the solar in the County because the citizens would not. Tim Bohannon said he stood in a balance of commerce and ecosystem. He wanted to make sure the ecosystem was taken care of, but he was open to good presentations that took that into account before, during, and after use prior to doing anything with them. Darrell Lackey stated people in the solar industry did not track the sun. Linda Clark wondered why Nye County was being singled out to provide all of this power for everyone else. December 20, 2022

Commissioner Carbone

opened the public hearing.

Mr. Melms

explained they were appealing the denial of the CUP as they believed the decision of the Town of Pahrump board was incorrect and it was not fully considered. The findings were very minimal at the hearing and effectively it was decided this was not the appropriate spot with no justification or explanation. Mr. Melms felt the location was appropriate as it fell within a qualified census tract, which was an area specifically designated by Housing and Urban Development as an area that required long-term and affordable housing because of the number of individuals living below the 65% average monthly income for the area. It was also within a mile or a little over a mile of stores, employers, and the hospital. Mr. Melms said they had concerns about the way in which the board addressed the matter and some possible conflicts of interest that may have come up which were addressed in the letter Mr. Livingston provided.

Mr. Livingston

said they addressed issues brought up in public comment. They had also looked into the water usage and spoke with Great Basin. They provided new calculations, but they had the water rights available to meet the 30.26 acre feet they needed

Commissioner Strickland

said she was unclear as to why at the Water District Governing Board meeting Mr. Livingston did not offer up that he had the ability to buy more water rights if Great Basin needed more to service the area. She asked if that was a problem.

Mr. Meims

said that would not be a problem at all and they would be happy to buy more water rights.

Commissioner Strickland

said she had no pecuniary interest in this project. The only reason she brought up the water rights was because they were brought up at the meeting she could not attend. She stated she would not broker them water rights even if they wanted to buy them from her as that would be unethical.

Commissioner Carbone

noted at the meeting that Section 8 and vouchers were brought up. They did say no Section 8, but they said something about vouchers.

Mr. Meims

did not believe they would actively recruit Section 8, but if someone came to them with a voucher he did not think they could turn them down under the previous grant program. He advised they did not receive final approval for that grant and would go December 20, 2022 10. 10:00 a.m. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion, and — — — deliberation on an Appeal of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission’s denial of Conditional Use Permit Application CU-22-33-Cont’d. through a separate program through the Nevada Housing Division looking for tax credits, which would fund 50% of the project, and private funding would cover the other 50%. Half of the units would be market rate and half would be affordable. Ken Ideker added the private investor wanted a certain percentage of the housing units to be made available to the VA and they were going to go forward with that if possible.

Commissioner Jabbour

pointed out Mr. Livingston’s letter said that he would lease to a broad sector of lessees, including Section 8.

Mr. Ideker

believed Commissioner Jabbour was confusing the idea of active solicitation versus accepting applications. Also, because of the Equal Opportunity Housing Act, he did not believe actively refusing someone because they came with Section 8 vouchers would be a breach of some sort. They would not be actively targeting people with Section 8 housing.

Commissioner Jabbour

felt like they were hiding Section 8.

Commissioner Strickland

said there were rules in fair housing.

Commissioner Cox

said any landlord could deny a right to have Section 8.

Commissioner Strickland

said not when they were getting grants. She pointed out Section 8 was already throughout the valley with about 132 vouchers. Vouchers allowed the federal government to step in and pay a portion of the rent which would allow someone to move into a better standard of living.

Commissioner Blundo

said the Board did not want to see this turn into a slum.

Mr. Livingston

advised the project did have a management leasing office and it would be in the interest of the owner to maintain the value of the project. When people applied to move in they would be vetted.

Commissioner Cox

asked for the name of the owner.

Mr. Melms

said it was Las Vegas Executive Services, which was primarily owned by Sophie Ideker.

Commissioner Cox

asked why they were not doing this in Las Vegas instead.

Mr. Ideker

said Las Vegas did not have a need for it as much as Pahrump. December 20, 2022 10. 10:00 a.m. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion, and — — — deliberation on an Appeal of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission’s denial of Conditional Use Permit Application CU-22-33-Cont’d.

Commissioner Cox

stated it was not needed in Pahrump either as it encouraged things people did not want. She was all for everybody having affordable housing and there was a place for it, which was not an apartment complex. The place was individual housing with the vouchers. She was very concerned about what this could end up as along with them buying all the water rights that other people who were building houses would need. She thought they could build houses on all the land they had and there was too much water in this project. MarIa Zlotek reminded the Board this appeal was of the decision below. The appellants stated the reasons for the appeal of the RPC’s decision and the Commissioners could ask questions or review the record to determine if the denial of the RPC would be upheld, modified or reversed. She thought the discussion was getting off the agenda item. Mark Kampf swore in Planning Director Brett Waggoner.

Mr. Waggoner

explained the applicants appeared before the RPC on October 12, 2022. The use they wanted to do on this property required a CUP. The reason the zoning was recommended was because the type of project they were proposing was mixed-use. It was a 4-2 vote to deny the application and the applicant was appealing that decision. When this item was before the Board previously Mr. Waggoner personally questioned whether the findings were appropriate because they were very vague.

Commissioner Strickland

said the situation could be remedied by the Board allowing the CUP and then the whole project could be looked at in the next item.

Mr. Waggoner

added the denial went against the Planning Department’s recommendation for approval. Linda Clark said she worked in the field for 27 years in California. The tax credit was good for the applicant as he would get a rebate if he provided low-income housing and offered discount prices. Many of them were successful if the management was good, but for others the selection was not good and enforcement was terrible. Projects like this opened the community up to a number of issues. Patty Hobson disagreed with putting a three-story apartment building in the proposed area. Ammie Nelson said at the meeting in October dozens of people from that area showed up and the CUP was turned down because of some of the comments they made, one of which was the higher crime rate in the area since the Circle K went in. December 20, 2022 10. 10:00 am. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion, and — — — deliberation on an Appeal of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission’s denial of Conditional Use Permit Application CU-22-33-Cont’d. Bill Barnett said he lived in the area and was speaking for the community. Everyone was against it. It was not a good area for an apartment complex and there was no infrastructure there to support more people.

Mr. Abbatte

talked about a study done by Cornell University that showed that these types of buildings did lower the value of the surrounding property. An article from the L.A. Times showed this type of structure caused residential single-family dwellings to vacate the community causing an increase in taxes to the community and the residents. There was no guarantee that this would help the Pahrump residents. John Shewalter said the concept of affordable housing was a fantasy. Two things created it good paying jobs and the willingness to take those jobs. The RPC rejected this with good cause and he recommended the Commissioners follow their lead. Rebecca Hayword said there was a need for affordable housing as there were no high paying jobs in the town and hard working families were being priced out of their homes. Laura Larsen said this was a rural area, not a suburb, and this would make Pahrump a suburb. She did not think it was good for the community or the County. Diane Southworth supported the project as there was a need for affordable housing. Eva Futch stated there was a need for affordable housing and she supported the project. Jesse Burke did not believe this project was reliable or good for the community as it would drop surrounding property values and cause more crime. Maryan Hollis stated her objections to the project and asked the Board to say no. Laura Stewart talked about the trashed cars and homes within two miles of where she lived. Affordable housing was needed and the entire community needed to be cleaned up instead of blaming the people who did not pay rent for destroying the community. Dannette Wheelock did not believe a three-story high rise was appropriate and would bring in more crime. John Koenig said the hardest thing to do as an RPC commissioner when trying to turn something down was to come up with findings to refute the findings of a staff member who had more time to do so. He did not think the Commissioners should turn it down because the findings were not valid. December 20, 2022 10. 10:00 am. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion, and — — — deliberation on an Appeal of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission’s denial of Conditional Use Permit Application CU-22-33-Cont’d. Ed Coed hart, vice chair of Nye County Water District, said this came before them about a week ago and they turned it down based on the finding they were not satisfied with the information given to them. He would like to have those items revisited once the Commission had acted. Dan Weeks said his main concern was not the water availability but the relinquishment factor and that number was not delineated in the information provided.

Commissioner Carbone

closed the public hearing.

Mr. Melms

did not think the findings were sufficient and there were some concerns about the process, which were outlined in the letter. He stated Pahrump had a housing problem not enough and too expensive. He said Pahrump had a 17.8% poverty rate and 29% of the children in the community lived below the poverty line. This would bring $20 million of construction work and at least ten permanent jobs, plus jobs created by several commercial properties within the development. Mr. Melms said they would be able to help a large number of people who desperately needed it.

Mr. Livingston

said one-third of their property was commercial. He felt this was an opportunity to bring growth to that site and develop the commercial strip along Blagg. This would also be a trigger to not build out the remainder of the site as apartments but as a mixture of different housing units. It was completely in their interests to make sure the project succeeded. They were not here to build a slum.

Commissioner Strickland

made a motion to reverse the decision of the Regional Planning Commission on the CUP because 1) they did not fully consider the project, 2) a commissioner on that board had a conflict of interest, and 3) Brett Waggoner pointed out there was a staff recommendation to support this particular project just for the CUP; seconded by Commissioner Blundo.

Commissioner Strickland

explained the Planning Department recommended supporting it, and the RPC did not look at just the CUP. They looked at the whole project, not just changing the permissive use. With a CUP this project could move forward maybe designed in a different way.

Commissioner Blundo

said he understood the comments from the public, but he wanted to give them an opportunity with conditions.

Commissioner Jabbour

did some research through the Sheriff’s Office and found there were multiple accidents per day at Blagg and Basin. He felt people were not paying attention there because of the Circle K, and crime had increased as well since that went December 20, 2022 10. 10:00 a.m. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion, and — — — deliberation on an Appeal of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission’s denial of Conditional Use Permit Application CU-22-33-Cont’d. in, but right now the discussion on this item was about the findings and the appeal of how those findings were brought forth at the RPC meeting.

Commissioner Carbone

opened the public hearing. Linda Clark asked if there would be two elevators and if there were laundry facilities available on each floor. Ammie Nelson pointed out the water usage of 9.8 million gallons per year was a tremendous amount of water that Pahrump did not have. She also mentioned how many problems there were with flat roofs in this part of the country. She wondered about parking and noise coming from the units and did not believe the project belonged in this location. Herman Lewis agreed with Ms. Nelson as far as water usage and said traffic would also be an issue. If Pah rump wanted to remain rural it needed to stay away from high density zoning. Daniel Weeks, general manager of the Nye County Water District (NCWD), said he consulted with the Planning Director as to the water usage who confirmed that commercial, multi-family, high-density dwelling was perhaps the only residential zone that did not require water dedication and relinquishment of water back to the State. The efforts of all departments across the County to bring down the over allocation was vital. This project moving forward without making a dedication was a clear inequity. Diane Southworth hoped this was approved as it was a necessary thing. Darrell Lackey said people went on Section 8 and never got off of it as there was no incentive to. There was also a water problem and green water came out of the taps in Ash Meadows, which to him meant the water levels were dropping. Ed Goedhart, member of the NCWD, concurred with Mr. Weeks. All people in residential housing had to bring three acre feet to get one acre foot. He urged the Commissioners if there was a general development agreement going forward to make a viable commensurate-type of requirement for someone in a high-density housing situation. December 20, 2022 9a. ZCMP-22-20: An application for a Minor Master Plan Amendment of approximately 8.45 acres of a 29.97-acre parcel from Rural Density Residential (RDR) to Community Development Area (CDA)-Cont’d. 9b. ZCMP-22-17: An application for a Zone Change to change 8.45 acres of a 29.97- acre parcel from Neighborhood Commercial (NC) and Village Residential (yR-b) to Calvada Commercial (CC) -Cont’d. Helene Williams, chair of the NCWD, said there was no green water in Basin 162 that had been reported to that board and if someone had seen it they should report it. She then advised it was a 5-0 vote by the NCWD to deny the project based on the presentation made. Tim Bohannon said he knew there was a shortage of multi-family housing in Pahrump, but that existed throughout the State. He had asked the NCWD and the RPC that as the town was developed out further to give thought in the recommendations if there was a shortage of housing in the area and what the water impact was.

Commissioner Carbone

closed the public hearing.

Commissioner Strickland

did not think water usage should even be a discussion as multi family was the lowest water usage there was.

Commissioner Blundo

asked for answers to Ms. Clark’s questions.

Mr. Livingston

said the project was four buildings that would form a cross, two of which would have elevators. The whole ground floor would be ADA accessible and the other units would be ADA accessible. Each unit would have its own washer/dryer so there was no laundry room. They were also recycling water for other uses.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Livingston to speak to devaluation of the surrounding properties.

Mr. Livingston

explained the project met all guidelines for landscaping buffers, so it would be buffered by trees. The way the building was laid out the bedrooms were facing the inside, not the neighbors’ yards. He did not believe this project would devalue the surrounding properties

Mr. Melms

mentioned a study from UC Irvine that found affordable housing projects increased property values by almost $9.50 per foot.

Commissioner Blundo

asked if they understood a development agreement would come back to the Board if this was approved.

Mr. Livingston

responded yes. December 20, 2022 9a. ZCMP-22-20: An application for a Minor Master Plan Amendment of approximately 8.45 acres of a 29.97-acre parcel from Rural Density Residential (RDR) to Community Development Area (CDA)-Cont’d. 9b. ZCMP-22-17: An application for a Zone Change to change 8.45 acres of a 29.97- acre parcel from Neighborhood Commercial (NC) and Village Residential (VR-1O) to Calvada Commercial (CC) -Cont’d.

Mr. Melms

said he absolutely understood that and would be amenable to any sort of development agreement. Ken Ideker said due to the size of the project they could make space from the street to allow for the impacts, and from the neighbors immediately abutting it.

Commissioner Cox

did not think the County would see any taxes from this property for years. There was already one complex going up next to the Circle K facing Basin which would house about 400 people and she did not want to see the area get saturated. She said she could maybe support a two-floor senior complex, but not a three-level family complex. She was also concerned with the amount of water.

Commissioner Carbone

said the original design showed no elevator and asked if there was a space to add one with no problems.

Mr. Livingston

said yes, in the corners.

Commissioner Carbone

asked if covered parking with solar had been considered.

Mr. Livingston

said they were talking about solar, and he thought covered parking made sense.

Commissioner Carbone

asked how solar would calculate into their $22 million grant.

Mr. Melms

said any solar expense would be offset by the tax credit received.

Commissioner Strickland

made a motion to approve ZCMP-22-20 and ZCMP-22-17; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 3 yeas. Commissioners Carbone and Cox voted nay. December 20, 2022 II. 10:00 a.m. For Possible Action Public Hearing Discussion and — — — deliberation on ZCMP-22-16: An application for a Conforming Zone Change to change one (1) parcel totaling approximately 1.87 acres from Open Space (OS) to Village Residential (VR-8) or Suburban Estates (SE), or an alternative zoning district as recommended by staff, on property located at 581 S. Ishani Ridge Court, Pahrump, NV. Assessor’s Parcel Number 035-722-27. Ricardo Luis Montalvo — Property Owner. Edgar Montalvo ApplicantlAgent. Brett Waggoner said on October 12, 2022, this item was heard by the RPC, which recommended approval to the Board of County Commissioners. When it was presented to the Commission before staff had made a recommendation for SE zoning to put restrictions on, but unfortunately the language of the agenda item did not allow the Board to consider that suggestion from staff, so it was re-agendized and brought back. Edgar Montalvo was present to answer questions.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked Mr. Waggoner to provide the definition of open space.

Mr. Waggoner

did not think there was a definition in the Code, but an open space zoning allowed many different types of uses, such as a shooting range, animal race tracks, amusements parks, etc.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked if this was purchased under the County’s tax sale.

Mr. Montalvo

stated it was a private transaction.

Mr. Waggoner

clarified the property was originally sold through the Treasurer’s trust sale and Mr. Montalvo purchased it from that individual.

Commissioner Jabbour

understood it was listed as vacant land, not open space, so the previous owner was aware of the uses. What could happen was everybody that wanted to purchase vacant land under the category of open space would set precedence.

Mr. Montalvo

said they were not aware of the open space zoning.

Commissioner Carbone

asked if the water company could provide water and sewer.

Mr. Montalvo

said he got an e-mail a long time ago. They gave the fees for sewer and water, but now he was worried about the inspections they had to go through and that there might be some issues that they needed to work on.

Commissioner Cox

asked Mr. Montalvo what they planned to put on the property.

Mr. Montalvo

said a single-family house, nothing else.

Commissioner Carbone

opened the public hearing. December 20, 2022 II. 10:00 a.m. For Possible Action — — Public Hearing — Discussion and deliberation on ZCMP-22-16-Cont’d. Ammie Nelson said she was at the RPC meeting for this item. The owner was asked a lot of questions and walked through every one of them. The RPC voted to approve this because of that questioning and Ms. Nelson supported this item.

Commissioner Carbone

closed the public hearing.

Commissioner Strickland

made a motion to approve ZCMP-22-16 as suburban estates; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Carbone

opened and closed the public hearing.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve; seconded by Commissioner Jabbour; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

assumed the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners. December 20, 2022 SITTING AS THE GOVERNING BODY OF UNINCORPORATED TOWN OF PAHRUMP

Commissioner Carbone

made a motion to adopt the proposed change to the Veterans Day flag placement procedures; seconded by Commissioner Jabbour; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Carbone

made a motion to appoint the three individuals listed; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Carbone

assumed the Chair the Board of County Commissioners. SITTING AS THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS These are items that Staff recommends for approval. The Board reserves the right to move any consent agenda item to the regular segment of the agenda should issues arise that need to be addressed. Discussion of any item from the Consent Agenda Items that needs review before a decision is made.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas. December 20, 2022

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas. December 20, 2022

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve items 16-24; seconded by

Commissioner Strickland

; 5 yeas. SITTING AS THE NYE COUNTY LICENSING AND LIQUOR BOARD

Sheriff Wehrly

was present and assumed the Chair of the Licensing and Liquor Board. GAMING 13. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to approve a Gaming License for Sartini Gaming, LLC. dba Golden Route Operations, LLC. for leased space for slot machines within Rhinestones Dance Hall located at 1700 Pahrump Valley Blvd. Suite 83, Pahrump, NV. Blake Sartini Applicant.

Commissioner Blundo

disclosed he had a privilege license in Nye County, but he had no pecuniary interest in this item. The applicant was not present. December 20, 2022 13. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to approve a Gaming License for Sartini Gaming, LLC. dba Golden Route Operations, LLC. for leased space for slot machines within Rhinestones Dance Hall located at 1700 Pahrump Valley Blvd. Suite 83. Pahrump, NV. Blake Sartini Applicant-Cont’d.

Sheriff Wehrly

explained two applications were submitted on March 30, 2021 but because the owner of Rhinestone’s changed his business plan they did not go forward with those. A new one was submitted, background checks were conducted, and there were no changes.

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to approve; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 6 yeas SITTING AS THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

Commissioner Carbone

assumed the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners. BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

Commissioner Blundo

advised he asked for this item. He felt the upcoming utility rate increase was taxation without representation and he wanted to have a discussion about it and an answer as to why they were going up.

Commissioner Strickland

stated she would rather have the District Attorney request further information instead of suing. Darrell Lackey felt the District Attorney should get involved. Ammie Nelson also believed the District Attorney should get involved. Richard Goldstein said years ago a vote was made on their power lines. They promised they would not raise the rates for nine years, but this was the second rate hike in a couple of years. He felt the District Attorney needed to sue them for breach of contract. Since this was a co-op, John Bosta believed the members needed to approve a rate hike. He thought the District Attorney should file a lawsuit because of the rate hike not being taken to the members. Laura Larsen said the District Attorney should go after yEA. Herman Lewis said he would like to have Brian Kunzi, the new District Attorney, handle the lawsuit in-house. Sam Jones agreed the County needed to sue yEA. Brian Davis wondered what the goal of the lawsuit would be. He would agree to sue to break up the company to foster competition. Anthony Greco said before a lawsuit was started an account should be opened and everyone could pay their bill to that instead of VEA until answers were given. William Cams suggested amending the motion to direct the District Attorney’s Office to look into everything and see if there was a proper suit. If the County lost the suit, it may empower VEA to continue down the path they were on. December 20, 2022 31. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to authorize the District Attorney to institute legal action against Valley Electric Association for raising utility rates-ConVd. Helene Williams, speaking as a private individual, said she supported the suit but before that she would like to have counsel investigate with the PUC if they were a 501(c)12 or 501(c)3 as they held many different 501s. As a 501(c)12 they should be reimbursing funds back to the members and they had not done that. Chelsea Fischer was disappointed VEA would not come to the meeting and answer questions. She felt like this was forced extortion as if people did not pay their power bill it would be disconnected.

Commissioner Carbone

thought an evaluation should be done, which could lead to a lawsuit.

Commissioner Cox

thought the $10 million VEA promised the County should be included in the lawsuit. She was willing to go along with an investigation.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to authorize the District Attorney’s Office to institute legal action against VEA for raising the utility rates regarding the evaluation of possible breaches of that social contract as stated here, the raising of the rates after sale of transmission line, the increases to the internet service, evaluating the non-profit status, and other companies’ non-profit status, engaging, and then returning to the Board for final consideration to engage in a legal proceeding as formal as a lawsuit; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

hoped this would cause VEA to engage.

Commissioner Jabbour

said in October Commissioner Blundo brought forth a resolution for Italian American Month. At that time Commissioner Jabbour asked about the rest of the people who resided in the County and that was what this was about. Diane Corbary pointed out November was Native American Heritage Month and suggested the Board not overlap. Anthony Greco said America was named after an Italian and the resolution should be approved.

Commissioner Jabbour

said he would be happy to move it to December. December 20, 2022 32. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to approve, amend and approve or reject Nye County Proclamation No. P2022-13: A Proclamation Recognizing November as All Americans Heritage Month in Nye County-Cont’d.

Commissioner Strickland

pointed out it stated indigenous people so it was inclusive and she thought it was appropriate.

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to adopt; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 5 yeas. CLERK

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint Sara Rivers and Mary Schoeck to the expired terms to end January, 2027; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint Larry Marshall to the unexpired term to end January, 2025; seconded by Commissioner Blundo. John Bosta did not see how someone could be appointed to an advisory board when an advisory board did not exist. He had a friend who owned property in Belmont who told him this advisory board did not represent the community.

Commissioner Carbone

assured Mr. Bosta the board existed.

Commissioner Jabbour

directed staff to readvertise for the other open position.

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint Gary Davis and Marc Light to the Nye County Board of Equalization to terms ending January, 2027; seconded by

Commissioner Cox

; 5 yeas. December 20, 2022

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint Harris Brokke, Cindy Kaminski, Randy McLean, Arlene Melton, Allen Metscher, and Carrisa Tashiro to terms expiring January, 2024; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Jabbour

directed staff to readvertise as there was one additional open position.

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint as County Representative of the Nye County Debt Management Commission Cindy Kaminski for the term starting January, 2023 through January, 2025; seconded by Commissioner Blundo; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Cox

made a motion to appoint Tim Bohannon, David Harris, and Holly Merritt for the term ending January, 2024; seconded by Commissioner Strickland. Tim Bohannon advised the advisory board had its first meeting on December 7, 2022. He was appointed secretary, Haley Hastie was elected chair, and Holly Merritt was the vice chair. He asked to have the other two positions readvertised.

Commissioner Cox

amended her motion to appoint Tim Bohannon, David Harris, and Holly Merritt for the term ending January, 2024, and to readvertise for the other two positions; Commissioner Strickland amended her second; 5 yeas. December 20, 2022

Commissioner Jabbour

made a motion to appoint Brenna Rogne to the Railroad Valley Advisory Board to a term ending January, 2025, and direct staff to readvertise for the open position; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to appoint John Koenig to the term expiring January, 2025; seconded by Commissioner Jabbour; 5 yeas. FINANCE

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to accept the program funding request and fund it from 10340 Grants; seconded by Commissioner Jabbour; 5 yeas. NATURAL RESOURCES

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas. December 20, 2022 PUBLIC WORKS

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve the purchase in the amount of $376,767.29 and fund it from 10205 Roads; seconded by Commissioner Strickland. Brian Davis thought one was bought last year.

Commissioner Strickland

said two were bought.

Mr. Davis

questioned the need for a third one, as did Commissioner Cox. Public Works Director Tom Boiling advised they had about 20 of them and this would be the fifth brand new one in the last three years in an effort to upgrade the ones from the 1980s still being used on the roads.

Commissioner Blundo

made a motion to approve Nye County Proclamation No. P2022- 14, a proclamation recognizing January, 2023, as National Radon Action Month in Nye County; seconded by Commissioner Strickland; 5 yeas. CLERK 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B from the following list of applicants: Leonardo F. Blundo, Williams Cams, Jennifer Clampit, Leonard V. Davis, Lillian Donohue Esg, Alexandra Fernandes, Michele Fiore, Michael Foley, Walter S. Grudzinski, William Hockstedler, Arthur Hodge Sr, Randall Jones, William R. Lutze, Frank Maurizio, Nichole McPherson, Ron Settje, Brian A. Thelaner, Robert E. Thomas, Ill, Sharon Wehrly, and Dale Wysocki; or 2) Readvertise for the appointment. Tim Sutton advised Leo Blundo and William Lutze withdrew their applications. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoi nt one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Commissioner Blundo

disclosed he was an applicant in this process. He expressed his gratitude to the Board for entertaining that, and he also apologized as he did not mean to make it a difficult process. Mark Kampf confirmed Commissioner Blundo withdrew his application before the meeting.

Commissioner Blundo

stated he would participate in the item since he no longer had a pecuniary interest. William Cams told the Board about himself and his work background.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what function other than criminal trials was Mr. Cams surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace handled.

Mr. Cams

said he read the entire NRS dealing with the Justice of the Peace twice and found they did a lot of interesting things, including the ability to rule on the constitutionality of State laws. He planned on looking at the intent of variou s laws.

Commissioner Blundo

mentioned an e-that mail was sent and asked Mr. Cams if he believed he would have any friction working with the newly elected Sheriff , to which Mr. Cams responded no.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Cams if he intended to run for re-elec tion if appointed.

Mr. Cams

stated he had full intentions on working to maintain the positio n.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Cams for any comments to working toward bringing other judges to the community.

Mr. Cams

said efficiency was one of his habits and he hoped to bring some of that to the court. If there truly was a long back-up of things, traffic citations seem to go fastest in the court and that might be something for a swing shift scenario. Jennifer Clampit told the Board about herself and her work background.

Commissioner Jabbour

ask Ms. Clampit what function other than crimin al trials was she surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace handled.

Ms. Clampit

said she was not quite surprised. She knew there were not only misdemeanor crimes but also civil laws along with TPOs. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Clampit if she would run for re-election, to which she responded yes.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Clampit for her thoughts on bringing senior judges to Pahrump from Las Vegas.

Ms. Clampit

thought that was a great idea. Applicant Leonard Davis was not present. Applicant Lillian Donahue was not present. Alexandra Fernandes told the Board about herself and her work experience.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what function other than criminal trials was Ms. Fernandes surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace handled.

Ms. Fernandes

said the weekend and holiday court surprised her as well as domestic battery cases having a jury trial.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Fernandes about the e-mail.

Ms. Fernandes

stated it was rubbish.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Fernandes if she would run for re-election, to which she responded she would.

Commissioner Blundo

asked for Ms. Fernandes’ thoughts on bringing judges to Pa h rump.

Ms. Fernandes

said that would be up to the court administrator if judges were needed. As far as bringing judges in, space would be needed and they would have to work with the District Attorney’s Office, and they would need more staff.

Commissioner Carbone

asked Ms. Fernandes if she would be receptive to have judges come in to train, to which she responded yes. Michele Fiore told the Board about herself and her work experience.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what function other than criminal trials was Ms. Fiore surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace handled December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Ms. Fiore

said she would use the word excited instead of surprised because a piece of legislation that would take effect January 1, 2023, was her original baby from 2013 as an assemblywoman where the criminal infractions were changed to civil penalties to match 37 other states.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Fiore if she would run for re-election.

Ms. Fiore

said she planned on it.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. Fiore for her thoughts on bringing judges to the community.

Ms. Fiore

felt whatever it took needed to be implemented. She would review the budget and see who could be pulled to get things caught up quickly.

Commissioner Blundo

said people thought Ms. Fiore quickly moved from Las Vegas to Pahrump because of this position. He asked her to please confirm when she moved to Pahrump.

Ms. Fiore

stated she bought two and half acres on Julie in June, 2022, and rented a place on November 15, 2022.

Commissioner Cox

asked Ms. Fiore how she felt about guns in the courtroom.

Ms. Fiore

thought firearms should be anywhere a person was, including her courtroom. Michael Foley, the current pro tern Justice of Peace, told the Commissioners what he had accomplished since he took the bench.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what function other than criminal trials was Mr. Foley surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace hand’ed.

Mr. Foley

stated he was shocked at the increase in volume and the gravity of the cases now.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Foley to address the e-mails.

Mr. Foley

said not everyone could be pleased and if people had questions they could always ask him.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Foley if he would run for re-election, to which he responded he would. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Commissioner Blundo

asked for Mr. Foley’s thoughts on bringing other judges to the community.

Mr. Foley

thought it was a great idea.

Commissioner Cox

asked Mr. Foley if he thought two new judges were needed.

Mr. Foley

stated the volume from last year to this year had gone up about four times, but the problem was space. An extra courtroom and more clerks would be needed to handle that caseload. Once the caseload was manageable he thought it would be okay, but as the community grew that would have to be looked at in the future.

Commissioner Cox

asked Mr. Foley if he was still willing to be a pro tem if not appointed today to help with the caseload, to which he responded yes. Applicant Walter Grudzinski was not present William Hockstedler said the Board had already seen his resume and heard his background. He felt he fit the canons and the criteria to be a judge.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what function other than criminal trials was Mr. Hockstedler surprised to learn the Justice of the Peace handled.

Mr. Hockstedler

said bond forfeitures.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Hockstedler if he would run for re-election, to which he responded yes.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Hockstedler for his thoughts on bringing judges to the Pahrump community.

Mr. Hockstedler

said he would like to, but if this ran efficiently, which he hoped to do, the caseload could be gotten under control and that would not be needed. Applicant Arthur Hodge Sr. was not present. Applicant Randall Jones was not present. Applicant Frank Maurizio was not present. Nichole McPherson told the Board about her work experience. She said she would not seek re-election. She wanted to go in and clean things up and leave a good courtroom for the next person. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked Ms. McPherson what functions surprised her.

Ms. McPherson

said not a lot since she had been in the justice system for so long. She felt surprises would come with individual cases and presentations in court, not so much in the work itself.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Ms. McPherson about the e-mails.

Ms. McPherson

did not know about them. She thought in general she was friendly and neutral.

Commissioner Blundo

asked for Ms. McPherson’s thoughts on bringing in other judges.

Ms. McPherson

stated she would utilize resources if a situation warranted it and reach out to her peers. Applicant Ron Settje was not present Brian Thelaner told the Board about himself and his work experience.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked Mr. Thelaner the same question about surprises.

Mr. Thelaner

said the 72-hour bail hearings.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Thelaner to address the letters.

Mr. Thelaner

stated he did not read them and was not concerned with them. Robert F. Thomas Ill said he put in his resume with no endorsements. He said he would run for re-election and provided his work experience.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what functions surprised Mr. Thomas.

Mr. Thomas

said none because he had been up close and personal to it and had been a judge.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Thomas about the e-mails.

Mr. Thomas

said as it was written in the e-mail it was rubbish.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mr. Thomas for this thoughts on bringing judges to the Pahrump community. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d.

Mr. Thomas

said a judge was not supposed to lobby politically, but he asked the Board to build an extra courtroom and get another Justice of the Peace because of the tremendous backlog.

Commissioner Carbone

asked Mr. Thomas if he was interested in being a pro tem if not selected.

Mr. Thomas

stated he would do what he could to improve the quality of life in the community. Sharon Wehrly provided her work experience in Nye County.

Commissioner Jabbour

asked what functions surprised her.

Mrs. Wehrly

stated none since the Justices of the Peace handled almost everything.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mrs. Wehrly if she would run for re-election, to which she responded yes.

Commissioner Blundo

asked for her thoughts on bringing judges in to Pahrump.

Mrs. Wehrly

stated other judges had jobs and unless they were a pro tern someplace else they had a courtroom of their own and had responsibilities. She would like to see more pro tem judges to be able to call, but that brought up the problem of courtroom space.

Commissioner Blundo

asked Mrs. Wehrly if there would there be an issue or conflict working with the newly elected Sheriff, to which she responded absolutely not. Applicant Dale Wysocki was not present. Brian Shapiro said he understood the Justice of the Peace had to have integrity. He showed a picture of Michele Fiore with panties on her face during COVID. The FBI also raided her home. He stated she had no integrity and was an awful human being. Amrnie Nelson thought Michael Foley should be kept in place and let the other candidates run when the time came. Pro tems could also work weekend court. Anthony Greco stated 65% of the people in the County told Sharon Wehrly to go away so he wondered why the Board would vote for her. Herman Lewis stated his support of Michele Fiore. December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d. Brian Turner stated his opposition to Sharon Wehrly and support for Brian Thelaner. Doug Knowles stated his opposition to Bill Cams and mentioned the first speaker lived in Clark County. Linda Clark did not like recycled people and said there were a lot of good candidates. She felt fresh blood was needed. Deanna Rogers asked the Board to not appoint any person who was not re-elected. Matt Morris stated his support of Bill Cams. Tim Bohannon said he was looking for someone who was focused on justice and peace in the community, had the education, knew the job, the cost of it, and the time it would take, as well as compassion for both sides. Louis Baker suggested the Board select three or five of the applicants to put some pro tems in, look at what they were doing and look at the existing caseload. Once that caseload was eliminated intelligent decisions could be made. Linda DeMeo stated her support of Michael Foley and said let the other applicants run for the position. Sam Jones told the Commissioners they had a tough job and he did not envy them. Pat Minshall stated her support of Sharon Wehrly. Tom Waters stated his support of Sharon Wehrly. Matt Sadler stated his support of Bill Cams. The Board took a brief recess to distribute their rating sheets. Tim Sutton stated the top three candidates were Michele Fiore at 116 votes, Michael Foley with 109 votes, and William Cams with 102 votes. Each of the candidates were given another two minutes to address the Commissioners and answer questions as to why they were the best candidate, the indigents, Second Amendment rights, and if they would be willing to be a pro tem.

Commissioner Cox

made a motion to take the list as it was and select Michele Fiore since she had the majority of the votes, had the ambition and knowledge, and had a December 20, 2022 33. For Possible Action Discussion and deliberation to: 1) Appoint one member to the Pahrump Justice of the Peace, Department B-Cont’d. recommendation from President Trump which spoke loudly; seconded by Commissioner Strickland.

Commissioner Carbone

commented he was looking for someone with experience and Michael Foley was already doing the job.

Commissioner Blundo

assumed the Chair of the Board of County Commissioners.

Commissioner Cox

thanked the staff for hanging in with the Commissioners and wished everyone a Merry Christmas.

Commissioner Strickland

also thanked the staff for hanging in and thanked

Commissioner Blundo

for the four years. ______________day December 20, 2022 48. Commissioners’IManacier’s Comments (This item limited to announcements or topic/issues proposed for future workshopslaqendas)-Cont’d.

Commissioner Jabbour

told Commissioner Blundo he appreciated and respected his service as a Commissioner. He then reminded everyone to protect their children, conserve water, and spay/neuter their pets.

Commissioner Carbone

said as a Commissioner and the Chair he was proud to work with the other Commissioners. As a Commissioner before he had good times, but this was different.

Commissioner Blundo

thanked everyone for the sentiments.

Commissioner Blundo

adjourned the meeting. APPROVED this ATTEST: Of , 2023. Commission Cox, I always amazed by the grasp you have on the agenda’s, you see things that other do not see. You also take good care of you constituents. My only complaint is that you arrive 5-7 minutes late to the mtgs. To me that says you don’t think we are important enough to be on time.

Commissioner Blundo

I think you cooked your goose when you attacked and tried to humiliate Tim Sutton, Samantha Kramer and Savanna Rucker. Tim is truly a Nye County \ administator, by that I mean he is available to every town in Nye County, I know from personal experience that he can be called on for help or advice. Samantha Kramer was a wonderful grant administrator, she fielded Covid grants of many business that allowed them to stay in business, I believe yours too. Savanna Rucker is a super star, she was always available to help and advise, such as “how can we move funds from one account to another.” There were many years to she came to Amargosa’s rescue for our budget, we would have been lost without her help. ATTACHMENT I

Commissioner Carbone

, I think you make a great chairman and hope that you continue in that roll. You keep the mtg. Moving (usually or at least try to). You’ve been a friend to Amargosa over the years when you stepped in to help our board.

Commissioner Strickland

, you serve your constituents and are always very informed on the agenda items, you ask hard questions.

Commissioner Jabbour

, I think you were a great addition to the team. You came out to Amargosa’s TB meetings many times and tried to help, unfortunately the TB ignored your help and we really struggled the last two years. Looking forward to a great 2023 And thank you to Michelle & Maria for keeping you legal and Janey for always welcoming us with a smile. I want my comments reflected in the minutes.