Three seek to succeed NLV mayor

As term-limited North Las Vegas Mayor Michael Montandon prepares to pursue his dream of becoming Nevada's next governor, City Council members Shari Buck, William Robinson and Stephanie Smith have announced plans to run for mayor.

All three said dealing with a dismal economy will be their No. 1 campaign issue. The city has a $15.6 million budget shortfall this fiscal year and plans to trim nearly $23 million from its 2009-10 budget.

A 48-year-old Republican who represents Ward 4, Buck said she would "stay the course, keep city services at the level they are."

"We've done a good job spending money wisely in the city and being frugal," said Buck, who is in the middle of her third term.

But if the economy doesn't rebound soon, she said, the city will be forced to talk to employees about ways to cut costs. Layoffs would be the last resort, she said.

"It would be such things as helping with health care and retirement costs, taking a day off without pay, ending overtime pay. But let me emphasize the discussions would be in partnership with our team of employees."

Mayor Pro Tem Robinson, the 69-year-old Ward 2 representative and Democrat, said he is flat-out against renegotiating any contracts with employee unions, something the city of Las Vegas has done.

Instead, the seven-term councilman will continue opposing any expenditure he doesn't deem necessary, including paying for consultants and other services he believes the city should perform.

"You have to be frugal," Robinson said. "Foreclosures are running rampant. People are losing their jobs, their homes. You have to understand their plight."

Smith, 51, said she will continue the city's "wise decision-making" that has left it in a better position than many other municipalities.

"You do what you do in your own home budget," the Democrat said. "You prioritize, look at critical services and cut back on other things. That's why the city is in such a good position; we didn't spend every penny."

Smith said it's too early to discuss amending employee contracts or potential layoffs, and she's hoping neither ends up being necessary.

But "we would certainly be naive not to prepare, not to consider all plans and ideas. I can't say 'never,' but I can certainly say 'not now.'"

Smith has been a resident of North Las Vegas since 1991. She decided to run for mayor "to continue the positive momentum in North Las Vegas."

Her third term representing Ward 3 expires this year, and she is prohibited from running again because of term limits.

Robinson is sometimes called the "grandfather" or "grand old man" of the council, having served on it since 1983.

He announced his intention to run for mayor on June 5, 2007, moments after winning by a landslide a seventh and final term on the council.

"Hell, I'm going to run for mayor," Robinson said at the time. "You never know."

Robinson is prohibited from running for an eighth council term because of the term limits adopted by the city in the late 1990s.

Buck, a native North Las Vegan, has criticized both Smith and Robinson for serving on the board of the troubled North Las Vegas Housing Authority, saying it is a conflict of interest and that the agency has been poorly managed. Smith and Robinson have said they didn't know the depth of the problems at the agency, which included substandard conditions at a housing complex, and blamed shrinking federal funding for many of the problems.

Buck said she is an accessible public servant who knows "the problems and the solutions" in North Las Vegas.

According to their campaign contribution and expense reports, Buck raised $150,000 in 2008. Robinson raised more than $127,000 in the same period, and Smith raised $71,000.

The municipal election filing period begins Tuesday and runs through Feb. 6. The primary will be April 7, with the general election June 2.

Other seats up for election in North Las Vegas are Council Member Ward 1, held by Robert Eliason, and Municipal Court Judge Department 2, held by Sean Hoeffgen. Both are seeking re-election.

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