It’s time to embrace the vision of ‘One Nevada’

Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015 | 2 a.m.

We are standing by with great anticipation for a special session of the Nevada Legislature so the state can pursue its next big prize in our quest for diversified economic development.

What we’re waiting for is legislation authorizing inducements to bring Faraday Future, an electric-vehicle manufacturer with offices in California and roots in China, to North Las Vegas. Offering financial incentives to land a company is common practice, based on the simple truth that it’s good business — and a good investment — to offer financial help at the front end because it will pay off later.

State officials vetted Faraday Future and shared their enthusiasm for the project. Indeed, the start-up seems to have passed muster, otherwise the company already would have moved to one of the other three states that would love to host it.

In fact, we hope the state doesn’t test Faraday Future’s patience and wait too much longer, because the car company has options, which is more than Nevada has.

With projections from top-drawer UNLV researchers that the factory would create more than 13,000 direct, support and ripple-effect jobs that will earn workers nearly $700 million a year in wages and generate $85.6 billion for the economy over the next 20 years, what’s not to get excited about?

Some people refer to this opportunity as Tesla II. The difference is that Tesla is building within a giant office and industrial park outside Reno, while Faraday Future would be constructed in a sprawling and mostly undeveloped heavy-industrial zone on the edge of North Las Vegas, alongside Interstate 15. Tesla’s biggest infrastructure need was the construction of USA Parkway to connect Elon Musk’s battery factory with Highway 50. For Faraday Future, it’s a pipeline to deliver water to the industrial zone known as Apex — a pipeline that also will entice other companies to move there.

A lot feels right about the state working with Faraday Future, not the least being that Southern Nevada deserves this, especially after North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee and other Southern Nevada officials publicly supported the state’s deal with Tesla, up north, a year ago.

Striking a deal with Faraday Future would help bring balance and parity in a state where the north lands the big sweetheart deals, even though nearly three-fourths of Nevadans live in Clark County and our bedrock economy, tourism, remains the state’s economic engine. When Nevada subsidizes business growth by reaching into its own pockets, it’s primarily money from Southern Nevada in those pockets. We’d love to see our money invested in our region.

Nevada’s team of business recruiters, led by Steve Hill, director of the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, can be proud of how it is sharpening its game. Just recently, the group won a trade magazine’s “Golden Shovel Award” for success in landing big businesses in Nevada. In campaigning for the prize, the state cited 10 major projects that were launched in 2014 — five in the south, five in the north. The cumulative private investments of those 10 companies totaled $5.6 billion — of which 95 percent reflected Northern Nevada development.

The gorilla in the north: Tesla.

That’s why we remain hopeful the Legislature — one that embraces Gov. Brian Sandoval’s vision for “One Nevada” — will do the right thing and step up on behalf of the south by doing all it can to add Faraday Future to our growing portfolio. “One Nevada” shouldn’t mean Southern Nevadans have to drive to Northern Nevada for a job. To not stand with North Las Vegas and Southern Nevada would suggest there are two Nevadas.

This time, let us expect our state leaders will do the right thing and build the right kind of legacy.