Las Vegas street sweeper honored as Employee of the Year

Ryan Roskens stands over a fire hydrant in northwest Las Vegas wrenching a hose to its yellow, metal limb. He is refilling the tank of his street sweeper, an hourly chore.

The tall South Dakota native laughs as he describes the time an inebriated woman on the north end of Las Vegas Boulevard kicked off her flip-flop and attempted to exfoliate her foot on the rotating steel brush of Roskens’ parked street sweeper.

“It was on one of the moments when you panic and freeze,” he said, contorting his face into a demonstrative look of shock. “Luckily, I was on the phone with my boss. He could tell something was wrong. When I told him what was going on, he reminded me to turn the brush off.”

Roskens has worked for the city of Las Vegas for 14 years, seven as a street sweeper.

“I really love this job,” he said. “It all depends on your attitude, just like any other job.”

A city street sweeper works four days a week, sweeping around 60 miles a day. On Mondays, Roskens sweeps in The Lakes neighborhood; Tuesdays, he sweeps between Buffalo Drive, Rainbow Boulevard, Alta Drive and U.S. Highway 95; Wednesdays are marked by the streets from Maryland Parkway to Boulder Highway and Sahara to St. Louis avenues; Thursdays he is responsible for the streets between Cheyenne Avenue, Gowan Road and Rainbow and Jones boulevards.

During a routine day, Roskens noticed a senior citizen walking down the street, looking confused. Roskens went about his job, but when he passed by again later, the man was still there. Roskens stopped and approached the man, who turned out to be lost and asked for his address. Roskens, a member of a nightly Bible study class, gave the man a ride home in his street sweeper.

The man’s worried son was grateful.

“I wasn’t surprised ,” said foreman Sean Mahan, Roskens’ boss . “It’s what I’ve come to expect out of Ryan . He went a step beyond his duties. It’s nice to know there are city employees out there willing to lend a hand.”

During a January Las Vegas City Council meeting, members named Roskens Las Vegas’ Employee of the Year for 2012.

“Ryan Roskens went above and beyond the call of duty to help a resident in need, something I understand is his habit,” Mayor Carolyn Goodman said in an email. “He has spent 14 years as an outstanding public servant, and the city of Las Vegas is so privileged to have a dedicated employee like Ryan. It was our pleasure to honor him as the 2012 Employee of the Year. ”

Roskens said he feels a sense of accomplishment from turning a dirty street into a pristine boulevard and said he felt humbled by the award.

“It’s kinda nice,” he said with a smile. “I wasn’t expecting it.”

Before the ceremony, Mahan wanted to surprise his employee and told him he had to meet with the City Council because something was wrong with his license.

“I was pretty worried,” Roskens said. “I was thinking about where I was going to look for jobs. But how often does a person get a surprise like that ? I’m glad they didn’t spill the beans.”

His name didn’t appear in lights on a marquee over City Hall and he didn’t receive a personalized parking space, but aside from the occasional misplaced shopping cart or discarded piece of lumber, Roskens said he would not have it any other way. He said the street sweeper position is one of the most appreciated city jobs, and that’s enough for him.

“Most people are friendly to sweepers,” Roskens said. “People like having their street cleaned. I’ve never been more popular.”

Swooping around a quiet neighborhood street, Roskens reflected on his time as a street sweeper.

“I’ve learned a lot about people in my years as a sweeper,” he said . “At 7 miles per hour, all you’re seeing is human nature.”

Contact Paradise/Downtown View reporter Nolan Lister at nlister@viewnews.com or 702-383-0492.