Horse-drawn carriage owners work out last-minute buggies

Now that cooler temperatures are arriving, the proprietors of a new horse-drawn carriage business in downtown Las Vegas are ready to saddle up and hit the trail, so to speak.

But first they must wrap up some business with the Las Vegas City Council that they thought already was complete.

"I don't think it'll be a big issue," said the Rev. Stephen Smith, who is teaming with Robert Humpherys in a plan to offer carriage rides through the historic portions of downtown and the Arts District. Humpherys currently operates the carriage rides at Floyd Lamb State Park.

As part of the permitting process, the business requested waivers to allow the carriages to be seat belt-free and to bypass a requirement that the horses be certified as "acclimated to street noises."

"They were addressed in May" when the matter last came before the council, Smith said. "Everyone talked about it in May. Everybody was on the same page. But apparently they didn't say the right words."

The business license application of Las Vegas Carriage is on the City Council's agenda Wednesday.

"Those two items have to be part of the motion, but they weren't part of the motion when it came up in May," city spokesman Jace Radke said. "It's just a housecleaning thing."

In May, Humpherys said insurance companies won't insure a carriage that has seat belts because if a horse bolts, it causes more problems if passengers aren't able to jump off.

Las Vegas Carriage's permit will allow six horse-and-buggy teams, but Humpherys said they'll probably only have two at first.

"It's a new business. We'll have to start out small," he said.

Smith, who owns the Downtown Community Church, said they hope to start operations within 30 days or so. Temperatures are a consideration because the horses can't work when the thermometer hits 90 degrees.

The horses also must have a 10-minute break after 50 minutes of work, can't work more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week, and have shade and water readily available.

There was plenty of shade Monday morning outside the Downtown Community Church, where Smith and Humpherys had two horses hitched to a carriage to show off to a meeting of wedding industry professionals taking place inside the church.

The horses stood quietly next to the curb, never twitching as cars drove past or as they were investigated by large barking dogs, at least one of which never before had seen a horse, according to its owner.

They did get a little excited, though, when passers-by were allowed to feed them carrots.

"It's hard to spook these horses," Humpherys said.