There are people in our society that have made contributions to our local communities, and are comfortable working in the background without being recgonized.

These are our unsung heroes.

First on this list in my book is Chris Lund. Chris moved into the small town of Boulder City three years ago, and has put in some serious un-selfish time to the community.

Mr. Lund was/is the webmaster for the City of Boulder City that basically brought the city into the 21st century. His work on the city's website rivals major city websites, and in most cases, is more technilogically advanced than the big city websites. With features like Video on Demand, Live Streaming of the local access channel, BCTV, and the built-in ability for the city's departments to administrate their own areas. With its custom Google-like search engine and the ability for the citizens to receive public notices, city news, press releases, and agenda packets the second they are published, the city's website is definately a hidden gem that is yet to be discovered.

Chris is also a volunteer director for the Chamber of Commerce. Although he doesn't spend as much time as he would like with the organization, his outside-of-the-box style of thinking has helped spawn/improve such events as Pink Day, the Christmas Parade, 4th of July Parade, and Spring Jamboree.

Chris is also the genius behind the E.R.A.M.S. system for the Parks & Recreation Dept. As of this writing, this system has not been released yet. ERAMS stands for Event Registration and Facility Management, and allows parks personnel to computerize just about every aspect of their operations from taking registrations to reserving facilities to automatically processing instructor payroll to allowing families to administrate their own family accounts from home. Keep your eyes open for this gem to appear in the next few months.

Chris also provides sound/video/staging equipment to many Boulder City activities such as the police graduation ceremonies, and produces video presentations for the Boulder City Tourism/LVCA.

Granted, this is all in his spare time. He also owns a web design company, a hosting company, a live concert sound company, and a entertainment booking company. When he's not brokering multi-million dollar deals for Michael Jackson in Mubai, India or some other top artist, he's chilling out with his cat.

Personally speaking, Chris works and lives out of his home office on Industrial Rd. Single, Chris shares his space with his cat, Lizzy. "She's like a daughter to me, and is super-spoiled", he says. "Animals help to clear my head after a 20 hour work day."

Chris Lund is the guy you never see or hear about, but you definately benefit from all that he does, and he has a way of being of service to everyone he comes in contact with.

In June, voters will decide whether to define term limits in the City Charter to allow a person to serve as mayor for 12 years, and as a City Council member for 12 years.

Residents will also decide in this year's municipal election whether to formally add into the city's boundaries the Western Area Power Administration corridor.

However, they won't vote on changes to the charter that would further define relationships between council members and city staff.

The City Council Jan. 13 voted to approve the two ballot questions and table the third, citing time constraints in printing the ballot.

With the vote, six questions will now go to voters when they choose two new council members in June.

The council approved the other questions in November — whether to allow geothermal power generation in the Eldorado Valley, whether advisory questions should be considered only during general elections, whether to make the charter gender neutral and whether meetings to discuss the dismissal of a public official should be public, to comply with state law. The last two questions were approved in November, and need another yes vote to pass.

One charter question approved for the ballot Tuesday, recommended by the Charter Commission, will clarify that the positions of mayor and City Council member are separate offices subject to individual term limits. A 1996 voter initiative instituted 12-year term limits for local elective offices. The term limit explanation, if passed, would specify that a person could serve a total of 24 years on the council between the two offices.

An opinion by Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto issued in August already has interpreted the state law that way, City Attorney Dave Olsen said. The charter change would be "housekeeping," he said.

The council approved the question for the ballot 4-1. Councilwoman Linda Strickland voted no.

Residents will also be asked to change the City Charter to include in Boulder City's borders the WAPA land, which was annexed last year.

The land south of the city is managed by the Los Angeles Water and Power Administration, but needs to be legally declared inside Boulder City in the charter.

A ballot question asking voters to change the portion of the charter that defines council members' responsibility will wait until at least the next election.

The Charter Commission in December voted to recommend to change the title of the section "Council not to interfere in appointments or removals" to "Prohibition against interference by council members or mayor regarding administrative action."

It also recommended a change in the section to require council members to interact only with the city manager, "except for the purpose of inquiry."

Strickland had asked the Charter Commission to consider clarifying the section last fall after a city employee filed a criminal complaint against her saying she violated the charter by giving him an order directly. Strickland said she had not ordered the employee, but made a request to him, and argued that the charter section was irrelevant because the title of the section applied only to the hiring and firing of city staff.

The charges against Strickland were dropped by the Attorney General, who said the section was ambiguous.

Strickland said the changes recommended by the Charter Commission wouldn't resolve the problems. She said she had come up with new wording, which she didn't present to the council, "to cover as many bases as possible to make sure communication between staff and council doesn't come to a halt," and "to make sure this doesn't happen to someone in the future."

City Clerk Pamella Malmstrom said all ballot questions should be approved by Jan. 27 so ballot committees can draft arguments, and the council agreed to table the question until the next election.

source: lasvegassun.com - Cassie Tomlin

Nevada Way at Elm Street will be closed overnight in both directions from Sunday to Wednesday.

From 9 p.m. until 5 a.m., traffic headed into and out of downtown will be diverted using Buchanan Boulevard to Adams Boulevard and up Cottonwood Street to Avenue A, which runs parallel to Nevada Way from Date Street to Wyoming Avenue.

Crews will be installing concrete storm drain pipes at Elm and Nevada Way, city officials said.

All driveways into businesses will remain open during construction, though most of the businesses will be closed during the construction hours, Scott Hansen, director of public works, said.

Construction is expected to finish, and normal traffic resume, Jan. 29 at 5 a.m.

source: lasvegassun - Cassie Tomlin

Money approved for public restrooms

The Redevelopment Agency Tuesday approved up to $200,000 for exterior improvements and to build wheelchair-accessible bathrooms at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power building, 600 Nevada Way.

The City Council was expected to approve a contract for $172,565 for the work on Jan. 27. The council members also make up the RDA board.

The public restrooms for tourists and downtown shoppers will be ADA accessible, a federal regulation.

The board approved the capital and special projects funding 3-2. Members Travis Chandler and Linda Strickland voted no.

Chandler said the project was too expensive, and Strickland was disappointed City Manager Vicki Mayes couldn't provide the future bathrooms' hours of access and cost of maintenance and policing.

Motel gets funds to fill in pool, pave lot

The board approved $9,726 for Desert Inn Motel, 800 Nevada Way, to fill its long-empty swimming pool and to repave the parking lot.

Ishwar Patel, the motel's owner, said the entire project will cost him $32,420, including the RDA money.

Patel said in the future he also plans to stucco the building and install a new roof, but he can't afford it now.

The board approved the funding 4-1. Councilman Travis Chandler voted no.

Mayor Roger Tobler, sitting as the RDA chairman, said he struggled giving money to businesses that let properties fall into disarray, but was glad Patel planned to fix the place up.

source: lasvegassun.com - Cassie Tomlin

Increasing utility bills for residents and more reductions to city services are ahead -- not a rosy projection for the rest of 2009.

But reality will be the subject of Mayor Roger Tobler's second State of the City speech, he said, as officials try to fix the town's financial problems instead of hiding them.

Tobler is scheduled to deliver his address at 6 p.m. Jan. 29 in City Hall, 401 California Avenue. A social hour will be held from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Tobler said the city needs to put major street and sewer projects on hold, charge more for electricity and water and rework expensive labor contracts to keep the city budget from going into the red before 2010.

"We have the time to fix things and prepare," he said.

A bright spot during the economic slump is more than $1 million expected in lease revenue from new solar plants in the Eldorado Valley, Tobler said.

He plans to explain during the speech what he expects NextLight Renewable Power to contribute.

Tobler said he will also reiterate that he thinks the city should reduce its debt by selling land.

Especially with the upcoming $20 million bill to Southern Nevada Water Authority for a share of the third pipeline into Lake Mead, the city should focus on eliminating what it already owes, he said.

source: lasvegassun.com - Cassie Tomlin