An open letter to the Board of Nye County Commissioners

The request by Focus Group to change the existing requirements for single-family homes from the Minimum lot size of 8,000 square feet to 4,000 square feet and the density from four single-story homes to eight two-story homes per acre is in complete violation of our master plan.

Focus group has known our master plan requirements and ordinances from day one, so what's their problem? They come here to enrich themselves at the expense of the wider interests of the Pahrump community.

What they are asking for would be a tragedy on a massive scale and would destroy the very Pahrump we know and love and what we came here for. It is a shameless disgrace that they can ask this board to approve the exploitation and rape of the rural nature of this community. That would allow all other developers to do the same thing.

Our master plan was adopted representing the wishes and interests of the people and its integrity needs to be maintained.

You the board have no right to allow the violation of our master plan. If you cannot reject the Focus Group request, then in fairness to the people of Pahrump and to uphold ethical standards and avoid an investigation for possible conflicts of interest you should resign.

The other option is to put the Focus Group request to a referendum. It is only fair to let the people of Pahrump decide their own future and not to have it decided for them.

Squeezing eight two-story Single-family homes into one-acre will be a recipe for disaster. It will put the homes and people of the proposed community in harms way. You are looking at a serious safety issue, which is the loss of life and property due to Fire.

With the proposed density, of two-story tract homes in such extreme, close proximity to each other, if one house catches fire they all will. We are talking about whole sections of a development being engulfed in an inferno, especially with the kind of winds that we get in this valley.

A fire is bad enough without the additional hazards of having to escape from a second floor. Especially when it involves the elderly and small children.

Other jurisdictions have encountered monumental legal fees for approving conditions of much less severity. This county will be setting itself up for untold liability and adverse legal consequences.

The proposed Focus Group plan is devastating, in that it would dramatically change the parameters of the master plan to a point where it would have a detrimental affect on everyone living in Pahrump.

The county has to act in a responsible manner and keep to the master plan as it has been adopted.

John Brent

Will Nye follow Clark?

Once again, another school year begins. As per the news, Henderson has 27 portable rooms for kids. Over 300,000 enrolled in Clark County because of the population boom. Same ol', same ol', every year.

That county has become a broken record for everything and let's hope what happens there, stays there. What do I blame it on? Greed.

All entities but Boulder City evaded a moratorium. Some say it's illegal. These problems would never have escalated if city fathers controlled building density and restrictions on the amount of building permits given.

The buck's supposed to stop at the building department. Will it happen here? Commissioners better control local and out-of-town building permits before this side of Charley goes to hell.

Builders who want to build only subdivisions have one thing in mind: filling their pockets with entities looking at the tax dollars.

House building in Vegas progressed from building one home per acre to six per acre, then finally reduced to one two-story home on a 60 by 75 foot lot. Growth is eminent, but must be controlled.

Too fast a growth means playing catch-up, and once that happens, entities never catch up. After 40 years, I moved from Vegas because of the disregard of intelligent thinking by city fathers.

Our commissioners control Pahrump and Nye County's destiny, and time will tell. We all know how Clark County went, folks. The question is, will Nye County follow?

Charles Hagen

Intolerance is so-o-o yesterday

Maybe it is just because I am officially an "old fogey" now that I've passed my 60th birthday, but it is starting to seem like deja vu all over again.

I thought that hate and intolerance were things of the past. I thought the whole issue of civil rights and equal opportunity for all were settled. But I guess there is no such thing as once and for all.

There are some things that you can't change about yourself. You can't change your age, even though many people lie about it. You can't easily change your gender, though extremely expensive and time-consuming processes to make a change do exist. You can't change your race and/or ethnic background.

It is the race and ethnic background issue that has me steamed right now. We are living in a world, nation, region, and state that are becoming more diverse all the time. People come here for the same reasons that most Americans stay here. There is opportunity opportunity for success, wealth and growth. In short, the American dream.

How is it possible for anyone who holds the American dream precious to deliver hate and intolerance to another person? In the schoolyard, we call children who use threats and intimidation to keep other people down bullies. In families, we call them abusers. In the wider world, we call them tyrants. America has always been against them.

Even in our sheltered and rural community, hate and intolerance exist. I am aware of at least one hate crime against a minority teacher and another against a minority family building a home in Pahrump.

In my opinion, even one hate crime is too many. Hate and intolerance are a waste of energy. The world will change, with or without us. I think it is far better to be a positive part of the change than to be 40 years behind the times and to become a social problem.

Whoever it was that left hate mail on a teacher's care, get over yourself. Whoever it was who spray-painted a home under construction, find a better use for your time. Hate and intolerance are so-o-o yesterday.

Judith LIster