North Las Vegas mayor says city endures in address

North Las Vegas may be battered, but its mayor is far from beaten.

Shari Buck, in her annual State of the City address Thursday, described a resilient city full of renewed hope after some of the most difficult years "endured by our city since it was chartered in 1946."

The annual addresses are typically optimistic affairs, and Buck's 25-minute speech to an audience of about 600 people at Texas Station was no exception.

But the mayor couldn't ignore the many challenges North Las Vegas faced in 2011, including budget problems so severe they led to talk about potential state takeover of the municipality.

"Layoffs, a contested election, budget deficits, employees fearful of what would come next, and unfortunately, an attitude of crisis management instead of stabilization left us all feeling worn out, stressed out and under-appreciated," she said.

"But we made the tough decisions, balanced the budget and took time to take a breath."

Buck said the hiring of new City Manager Tim Hacker, who began work at the city in September, was a turning point.

He brought "fresh ideas and a calm yet decisive personality," she said.

"We are moving forward and planning our economic recovery."

It wasn't long ago that North Las Vegas was listed among the country's fastest-growing cities and flush with cash. But plummeting property tax and other revenues during the recession forced officials to trim more than $60 million from the city's general fund and cut or freeze nearly 1,000 positions. The city now employs about 1,300 people.

State officials last year were alarmed at the city's financial disintegration and failure to balance its fiscal 2012 budget.

The city finally balanced the budget in August thanks to a combination of cuts, layoffs and union contract concessions that included giving up raises. The 2012 fiscal year began July 1 and ends June 30.

The city's June municipal election for the City Council's Ward 4 seat -- between incumbent Councilman Richard Cherchio and challenger Wade Wagner -- was especially ugly, and other council members publicly supported their favored candidate. Wagner went on to win the election by a single vote. Cherchio challenged those results in court, lost, and now plans to appeal the case to the Nevada Supreme Court.

And North Las Vegas last year engaged in contentious contract talks with its employee unions, some of which landed in court.

The city also found itself in court over the operation of its new wastewater treatment plant, which began discharging treated wastewater into a county-owned flood control channel in June. The county argued the city couldn't legally discharge there. The case is ongoing.

The city last year "overcame what some perceived as insurmountable challenges," Buck said. "But we have forged ahead and come out on top."

She praised the city's "monumental new and modern City Hall," which is the city's first building to achieve certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, LEED, a certification system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.

The new building, which some have derisively dubbed the "Taj Mahal," was meant to house nearly 600 city staffers. Officials estimated that 350 employees from various city departments would move in upon completion, and they believed the building would fill up in future years as the city's remarkable growth continued.

As it turned out, about 200 employees moved in. There were plenty of empty offices, and the city was trying to rent out up to an entire floor to an outside agency.

"It is no secret Southern Nevada was at the forefront of a sour economy and budget woes, and North Las Vegas was the epicenter," Buck said.

The mayor ended her speech by listing new businesses that either came to the city last year or plan to locate there soon. Among them: Beyond the Rack, an e-commerce company; Amonix, a solar array manufacturing plant; and Blue Oasis Pure Shrimp.

"I also would like to announce today that the Las Vegas Athletic Club has finalized a deal to move into our great city," Buck said. "The fitness center will employ 200 beefy, brawny and beautiful people, who I wish I could look like."

Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@review journal.com or 702-383-0285.