36 years ago this month

The location for the Pahrump Valley High School will be selected by the Nye County School Board, and appointment of the architecture firm of Selden Nespor and Associates of Reno is expected to follow.

Whether the school opens in the fall of 1973 or 1974 will hinge largely on the decisions and actions of the school board and its planners.

The school is expected to serve grades seven through 12 in order to help alleviate crowded conditions in the grade school.

High above the windswept floor of the Pahrump Valley sits the forbidding hulk of Mount Potosi, yielding buried treasures to a chosen and determined few.

The mountain reaches an elevation of more than 8,500 feet above sea level.

Mount Potosi has limestone deposits more than 550 million years old that were penetrated by minerals tempting miners and prospectors to try their luck in lead, silver, copper and zinc.

30 years ago this week

A new, expanded post office for Pahrump Valley has been recommended for "immediate approval" by Southern Nevada postal officials in a letter to regional post office authorities in Phoenix.

Las Vegas officials are confident the recommendation will be accepted and a new 3,000-square-foot facility -- about four times the size of the present post office -- will be ready to move into in 15 to 18 months.

The first application to the Pahrump Valley Development Corp. is in the process of being submitted by two men from San Diego.

They are experienced in the supermarket field and have expressed a desire to establish an independent market here with the help of the PVDC. The local development board will have to evaluate the merits of the application and then decide whether or not to back the applicants.

20 years ago this week

The sale of Saddle West to a Southern California businessman has fallen through but the casino's attorney, Barry Shinehouse, and others have announced an agreement to buy the resort.

Shinehouse and Steve Duesing, both Las Vegas lawyers, released a statement yesterday saying they had "reached an agreement" to buy Saddle West and have submitted their "proposal to the Nevada Gaming Control Board for their review and approval."

A map showing the boundaries of three possible splits of Nye County was approved by the Pahrump Town Board and sent to the Nye County Commission.

The commission will decide whether to hold a special countywide election in which voters can give their opinions on the issue.

One split is 10 miles north of Beatty, another is five miles south of Beatty and the third is about 17.5 miles north of the Highway 160-372 junction in Pahrump.

The last option would create one of the smallest counties in the state, about 675 square miles.

Sheriff Harold "Stick" Davis is scheduled to be arraigned in Tonopah Justice Court on charges of wrongly claiming travel expenses for trips from his home in Beatty to Tonopah.

Davis was charged by District Attorney Phil Dunleavy for claiming the charges. Davis countered, saying the travel vouchers were openly submitted and done with the knowledge of the district attorney then in office.

Davis has sued Dunleavy for attempted extortion and Dunleavy has filed for dismissal of those charges. The attorney general's office is reviewing the dismissal request.

10 years ago this week

The state Department of Transportation is once again soliciting bids for a 17-mile expansion of Highway 160 between Pahrump and Las Vegas.

Four construction companies submitted bids the first time the project was advertised. However, those were thrown out after the third lowest bidder, Reno-based Granite Construction Co., protested the bids submitted by numbers one and two, Frehner Construction and Las Vegas Paving, respectively.

A rift between members of the Nye County School District board of trustees appeared to widen during two heated discussions sparked by the recent rehiring of former Special Education Director Marshall Forstot to another administrative position.

Board President Richard Scanlan said there were several "heated outbursts" during the meeting in Tonopah, as issues peripheral to Forstot's employment were discussed.

Scanlan said one of the discussions came as the direct result of a letter board members Ron Trummell and Debbie Westcoatt sent to newspapers in Pahrump protesting Forstot's return.

Officials from the Nye County School District are betting on the desert to live up to its parched reputation, at least until the Community College of Southern Nevada's high-tech center can be built. And what they're betting on is the new gym floor at Pahrump Valley High School.

When the old floor was damaged by flood waters last year, the district planned not only to replace the warped playing surface but complete more than $100,000 worth of drainage improvements at PVHS to make sure the water would not return, regardless of how much rain fell.

IN BRIEF

Mt. Charleston Elementary registration

Mt. Charleston Elementary School will hold registration for new students 8-3 p.m. beginning the week of Monday, Aug. 18.

Bring a copy of the student's original birth certificate, up-to-date immunization records (new requirements Hepatitis A and B are state requirements), verification of address (utility bill), parent or guardian photo ID, student Social Security card and last report card or transcript if possible.

In order for your child to start kindergarten, the child(ren) must turn five-years-old by Sept. 30.

Class lists with teacher name and room number will be posted outside the school office after 6 p.m. Friday, Aug. 22.

Early Childhood and grades 1-5 begins Monday, Aug. 25, and Kindergarten begins Thursday, Aug. 28.

Supply lists for all grades K-5 will be available at the local businesses.

Call 727-7892 for more information.

Normal hours resume

The Nye County School District volunteer coordinator's office has resumed normal hours, 8 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday.

Caregiver training

Nathan Adelson Hospice will provide a two-day training workshop to teach individuals how to become a caregiver in a health care or nursing home environment.

The workshop is scheduled for 8-4 p.m. Aug. 18 and 19. Reservations must be made no later than Aug. 15.

The workshop is free and open to the public.

Call Tonya Brum, 751-5601, for more information.

School district needs tutors

Nye County School District is looking for volunteer one-on-one tutors for adult education to be available 4-7 p.m., Monday through Thursday.

Tutors in all subjects are needed.

Call the volunteer office, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.-noon, 727-7743, ext. 259. If there is no answer, leave a message.