36 years ago this month

Weyerhaeuser Mortgage Co., one of the largest home-financing agencies in the nation, has agreed to finance home construction in the Calvada Valley development pending FHA official's approval of the water and septic system.

Calvada's plans ultimately call for conventional community water and sewage systems but with a temporary water system and private septic units being used during the early years of its Pahrump Valley development.

Tim Hafen of Pahrump Valley has been named to the executive board of the Boulder Dam Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. "It was felt Pahrump Valley is a growing area and we wanted a responsible man to help see that needs of boys in the area are met," said R. Allen Bolton, the council's executive director. Hafen, a state assemblyman, is a 20-year resident rancher in Pahrump Valley.

30 years ago this week

The Nye County Sheriff's Office received a report that an O2 Skymaster from Nellis Air Force Base was reported missing Jan. 30. The Southern Nye County Search and Rescue was notified, unaware that what began as a search for a single aircraft, would turn into a weeklong effort involving three downed planes, six missing persons and a helicopter crash injuring five.

Over 727 man hours and 3,368 vehicle miles later, the three planes were located all within a 10 mile radius, five persons were dead, and the sixth is in satisfactory condition at the Nellis Air Force Base Hospital.

New and improved television service for north Pahrump Valley, Beatty and Round Mountain received the go-ahead from the Nye County Commission this week. Bids were approved to provide the same five-channel service to the north end of Pahrump Valley as the rest of the Valley is getting. It will cost the community about $10,000 per year and should be in operation in nine months or a year.

20 years ago this week

Bullfrog County met sudden death when visiting Judge David Zenoff ruled from the bench in Goldfield that the creation of the oddball county was unconstitutional.

Zenoff commented that several elements in the legislation were not bad, but taken as a whole the Bullfrog bill violated the Nevada constitution. "I cannot uphold the constitutionality of this bill with good conscience," said the former Nevada Supreme Court judge.

Initial steps were taken to add a new building to the Pahrump Community Church's growing facilities. A groundbreaking ceremony marked the beginning of an addition being built by Terrasol Homes that will contribute more than 1,000 square feet and four classrooms to the church's existing facilities.

The addition will be located on the west side of the church, which is across from the Pahrump Elementary School on Wilson Road.

Nye County went to court Tuesday to defend its right to apply a use tax on government property used by profit-making businesses at the Nevada Test Site. A major loss in tax revenues would hit Nye County if the case is lost.

U.S. District Judge Howard McKibben is expected to give an opinion in a month on a request for a summary judgement by Nye County. If that is denied, the matter will be set for a formal trial.

10 years ago this week

What seemed so certain after last week's Pahrump Community Hospital District Board meeting, had become anything but by the time board members held a workshop to discuss the future of the Arcon Pahrump Center for Healthcare.

Last week, Arcon officials told the board in no uncertain terms that they would be pulling out March 31.

By Friday, board members had received something of a confirmation in the form of Arcon's termination plan, which details the company's proposed sale of its local assets to the district for $800,000.

Another letter received detailed a plan that would have Arcon operating APCH jointly with Valley Hospital in Las Vegas, and the board shelling out up to $400,000 to offset losses over the next 10 months.

The Pahrump Town Board took substantially more than a symbolic step toward gaining a handle on growth in the valley when they approved drafting an ordinance that would limit residential lot size to no less than 20,000 square feet, or approximately a half acre.

The unanimous vote came as the first item discussed by the board during a formal workshop, following a motion by Bob Little.

The town board made good on its promise to bring a voter district reapportionment lawsuit against the county. Attorney Len Smith brought to the commissioners' meeting a writ of mandamus for Chairman Gary Hollis to sign.

Hollis, who declared affixing his signature to the complaint a historical occasion, deemed it momentous enough to use three black pens to write out his name. "One was for me," he said later, "one is for my mother Jean, and the third is for my grandbaby Harley."

The writ, which is used only after all other extrajudicial measures have been attempted to find a remedy, will be sent to Fifth District Court Judge John Davis in Tonopah.

There is still some give and take between the Pahrump Community Hospital District Board and Arcon, but it has nothing to do with keeping the health care company in the community.

The board voted 5-1 to reject Arcon's offer, with conditions, to stay in the community, and in doing so severed any chance of further negotiations with the company. All future discussions between the board and Arcon will concern the transition by the company out of the community and how the equipment now at Arcon Pahrump Center for Health Care will be handled.