MARK WAITE / PVT Rick Flores stands next to a fence he erected in front of his property on Irene Street across from the Pahrump Dairy. Advertisement

Rick Flores, of 561 W. Irene St., managed to put off the Nye County code compliance officer for over a year, maintaining his bad back restricted him from cleaning up his messy lot.

The jig was up a couple of weeks ago, however, as Nye County commissioners saw a photo of Flores holding up his wife Lillian while doing "the windmill dance" at Our Bar, published in a local newspaper.

"When we go out and do that, that's a very rare occasion when I'm feeling better," Flores explained. "I'm lucky to be alive with the car wreck I recently had."

Lillian Flores said the photo shows her husband guiding her as she does a rear cartwheel.

Flores said he was involved in a bad accident on Dandelion Road two years ago and was initially in a wheelchair. Flores said he has receipts of U.S. Treasury checks as proof of his disability.

Flores said he was first told by the code compliance officer to move the items to the rear of his property, then the officer flip-flopped and said that wasn't sufficient. A visit to Flores' property Thursday showed the front yard was cleaned up.

But Nye County Commissioners were tired of hearing excuses in all three nuisance cases before them, which have been receiving 90-day postponements for over a year. Tuesday they adopted a recommendation by Nye County Commissioner Joni Eastley to direct Code Compliance Officer Dick Johnson to take an inventory of what junk needs to be removed from the properties and get at least three quotes on removing it.

When the commission accepts a bid to clean up the messy lots, it will assess the cost of abatement as a lien against the property.

Flores' nuisance complaint was first heard by commissioners Sept. 20, 2005. He was originally given 30 days to abate the problem. Flores lives in a double-wide trailer and there's another double-wide filled with tools. Besides that are mobile homes filled with materials, junk and debris, but commissioners decided to convene a committee of classic car enthusiasts to see if any of Flores' old cars qualified.

Commissioners heard Flores had a restraining order against his backyard neighbor Michael Giannascoli, with trash overflowing on his lot.

"I've been hesitant to take care of the back because of his dogs, and he carries a pistol," Flores said. He added that former Nye County Code Compliance Officer Barbara Taylor was afraid to come on the property because of his dogs, but he agreed to cooperate when Johnson visits next Tuesday for the inventory.

Flores was warned he'd have two years to pay off the lien or there could be a foreclosure of his property.

"Within two years I won't be able to pay it and I'll be homeless in the park," he said.

Robert Smith, 1660 W. Jornada St., who filed a lawsuit against Nye County after sheriff's deputies used Tasers on him, was given the same ultimatum. The Smiths' case also dates back to an initial appearance before county commissioners Sept. 20, 2005. The Smiths received a directive to relocate the items in the front yard to the rear of the property and construct a six-foot privacy fence.

Johnson will also consider whether the Smiths have any classic cars.

Smith said he wanted a five-minute break to call his attorney in Chicago, who is representing him in the lawsuit against the county. But commissioners voted anyway.

John Whitney, 3260 S. Winchester Ave., complained about inaction by commissioners on the Smiths' nuisance.

"I feel like an unwilling participant in the movie 'Ground Hog Day.' It seems like every time I wake up when commissioners have made a decision concerning abatement, we're back to square one," Whitney said.

"The public perception is that because the owners have made various threats, including an unrelated lawsuit, that the county is afraid to attack because of repercussions. This is not the type of commissioner the people of Pahrump deserve," he said.

Andrew "Butch" Borasky, a Pahrump Regional Planning Commissioner member and candidate for Nye County District IV commissioner, told commissioners Two Brothers Towing offered to assist in hauling off scrap metal for free.

Johnnie resident Harley Kulkin protested there was a messy lot near his home which looked worse than the Smiths' residence, but the code compliance officer didn't think it was a nuisance.

William and Venita Elliott, 2420 W. McMurray Drive, face similar action. Johnson said the 14 mobile homes on their property have been reduced to 10. He estimated the cost to abate the nuisance at roughly $32,000 to $42,000.