Dozens interested in two new LV City Council seats

Without the burden of fund-raising, debates and advertising, the two new appointive council seats have opened wide the sluice gates of Las Vegas City Hall to dozens of potential candidates.

But they are candidates only in the sense that the current council has the final vote on who will join its ranks.

Letters of support are flooding the 10th-floor offices of Mayor Oscar Goodman and his council colleagues pointing out qualities of would-be politicians and assigning accolades to the predominantly male field.

Although the new ward lines have yet to be officially approved, jockeying for the positions began in earnest weeks ago when retired Wisconsin judge Fred Kessler first proposed Ward 5 for West Las Vegas and Ward 6 for the city's northernmost district.

In the proposed Ward 5, estimated at 29.8 percent black, several minorities have expressed interest in the council seat.

Lawrence Weekly, 35, who is employed by the city as Councilman Gary Reese's Ward 3 liaison, said he was encouraged by residents to seek the seat and said his high school friendship with Councilman Michael McDonald had nothing to do with his interest in politics.

"Basically, I've been speaking with, and meeting a lot of people who say, 'We think you'd be great,' " said Weekly, a lifelong West Las Vegas resident who has a degree in communications from Grambling State University and has worked for the city since 1995.

Weekly is the first to admit that his employment actually makes his council bid "more difficult."

"It puts a lot of pressure on me," said Weekly, who is married with two children. "I'm trying to remove it completely from work."

Weekly makes $48,000 a year in his current city position, which he has held for one year. He also worked in the city's Neighborhood Services department and with the Clark County School District prior to his employment with the city.

Mujahid Ramadan, the executive director of job training center Nevada Partners who formerly worked with both former Gov. Bob Miller and U.S. Sen. Harry Reid, said he would be "surprised if my level of experience didn't get me the appointment."

"I myself believe I'm the best candidate," said Ramadan, 47, who has lived in the area since 1961 and currently calls North Las Vegas home. He would have to move into what is considered Ward 5 and live there for 30 days before he would be eligible for a council appointment.

A 12-year member of the Interfaith Council, Ramadan said he has helped bridge gaps between different religious and ethnic groups and said he would do the same as councilman in a 52 percent white ward.

"I've always been of the type to serve people," said Ramadan, who is married with two children. "I would be able to bring together constituencies outside of the African-American community."

Uri Clinton, 27, also a lifelong West Las Vegas resident, said serving people is one of his life's goals.

"I'm looking at this as being a team player," said Clinton, a mediation specialist with Clark County Social Services. "My job is as a mediator, so I don't hit people over the head with my ideas.

"I think I'd be able to work with the council to forge consensus," he added.

Clinton, a former intern in U.S. Sen. Richard Bryan's office, attended Gonzaga University Law School on a scholarship and graduated in 1997. He recently took the bar exam in Nevada and is also enrolled in a master's degree program at UNLV, where he earned his Clinton, who is married, said he is receiving support from West Las Vegas businesses. Bryan has also written a supportive letter on his behalf.

Community activist Al Gallego and recent Ward 3 council candidate Harvey Munford, a community college professor, have also expressed interest in the new Ward 5 seat.

The proposed creation of Ward 6 was initially met with silence from potential council candidates, but has since shown the most activity.

City Planning Commissioner Michael Mack said he planned to move his family from his current Ward 2 residence in order to be eligible for that seat.

About two dozen letters of support have come in on Mack's behalf, from the likes of Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa and District Judge Jack Lehman.

Mack, 36, is chairman of the Citizens Committee for Redevelopment and owns a souvenir shop on the Fremont Street Experience.

Fellow Planning Commissioner Craig Galati, a local architect, is also interested in the position and has met with Goodman to express his ideas. But he, too, lives outside of the proposed Ward 6 boundaries.

Another city employee, Orlando Sanchez, is currently creating the most buzz in City Hall for the Ward 6 seat.

Sanchez, 36, has worked for the city since 1988 and is currently manager of Building Services, overseeing about 100 employees.

"Politics have always excited me," said Sanchez, who is married and has lived within the proposed boundaries of Ward 6 for eight years. "It's an opportunity that arose and I'm just flattered to have been approached."

Although Sanchez would not discuss who encouraged him to run, many believe Councilman Michael McDonald put the bug in his ear.

Sanchez, who has a bachelor's degree from New Mexico State University, previously served as a development analyst and economic development officer for the city. He was former Ward 4 City Councilman Matthew Callister's ward liaison after a 14-month city management internship.

Sanchez, 36, worked as a Neighborhood Response manager for three years before being assigned to his current position, where he makes $78,000.

Fernando Romero, president of Hispanics in Politics and community affairs manager for Mirage Resorts Inc., said he has received support from Hispanic community leaders for a council seat.

Romero served on the Council Review Committee last year, which studied whether the council should expand. That committee recommended adding two wards, but said that idea should be put to the voters.

Voters approved the expansion in June.

Louise Ruskamp, vice president of the Tule Springs Community Association, has been contacting northwest homeowners groups about her interest in the Ward 6 seat.

Ruskamp, 41, has lived in Ward 6 since she moved to Las Vegas in 1991 and frequently attends City Council, Planning Commission and neighborhood meetings.

"The people who live in the rural areas are impacted the most by the development that's occurring," said Ruskamp, who is married with four children. "They just need a little extra protection."

Priscilla Rocha, a teacher at Halle Hewetson Elementary School who serves on the State Board of Education, has met with Goodman about her interest in the Ward 6 seat, but decided to withdraw her name from consideration in favor of Sanchez.

"I need to finish what I started at the state Board of Education," said Rocha, 51, who lives in Ward 3 and said she also didn't want to move to a new ward and be seen as a "carpetbagger."

Steve Stallworth, a former UNLV quarterback and current Thomas and Mack executive, was considered for the Ward 2 seat vacated by Arnie Adamsen, but said he doesn't plan to move to Ward 6 in time for the council appointments to occur.

Others interested in the Ward 6 seat are: state Assemblyman Tom Collins, D-North Las Vegas; former state Sen. Mike Malone, and former Board of Zoning Adjustment member Lillian Jacobson.

archive