Editor’s Note: The past year has been another active year for news events in Moapa Valley. What follows is a brief recap of the local news highlights for the year 2013.
January
Echo Bay Marina Closes
In January, the National Park Service announced it had been unable to find a concessioner for the marina at Echo Bay. This was after it had released a prospectus for the operation of the marina at the end of October 2012 and had received no proposals on the prospectus.
Without an operator the marina and all other water-based services were closed. The owners of nearly 100 boats that were still docked at the marina were given 30 days notice and asked to remove their personal property from the marina by that deadline.
The Park Service was able to maintain land-based services by amending an existing agreement with concessioner Forever Resorts. These included trailer village, campgrounds, dry storage and fuel services.
February
Community Hosts Cycling Stage Race
Nearly 300 bicycle riders and their support teams came from all around the western United States to Moapa Valley for a major stage race event.
The first stage was a time trial held on Hidden Valley Road in Moapa. The second stage was a timed race where cyclists raced in a pack in the loop around the Moapa Valley High School. The final stage was a long distance race from downtown Overton through the Valley of Fire to the Paiute Plaza and back again; about 70 miles.
The race is planned to be held again early this year in the Moapa Valley.
March
USPS Discusses Reduced Hours At Moapa Post Office
U.S. Postal Service employees held a public meeting in Moapa to discuss the reduction of services at the Moapa Post Office. Because of financial problems at the USPS, the Services had implemented a plan which would affect rural Post Offices nationwide. Moapa residents were told that their Post Office would be one that was affected by that plan.
The Post Office would not be closed, they said, but the facility’s staff was downsized and its operating hours were sharply reduced.
April
NV Energy Proposes Early Retirement For Reid Gardner
NV Energy proposed a plan at the Nevada State Legislature that would accelerate the shut-down of Reid Gardner Power Station in Moapa. The plan called for retirement of Units 1, 2 and 3 by this year (2014), six years ahead of schedule. The plant’s Unit 4 would be taken offline by 2017.
The plan was part of a sweeping proposal to move the large utility, and the state of Nevada, away from coal-fired power and replace those old resources with new renewable energy facilities and cleaner-burning natural gas plants.
Later in the legislative session, the landmark energy bill was passed into law.
Fair Weather Brings Fair Crowds
Blue skies and sunny weather for the four days of the Clark County Fair brought large crowds to the 2013 event. In fact, the Saturday crowd was the largest Saturday attendance that the Fair had ever had.
This came as a welcome relief to Fair organizers after having experienced bad weather and poor attendance in the two years previous to this one.
May
New MVHS Gym Groundbreaking
The Clark County School District held a groundbreaking ceremony on May 13 to mark the beginning of construction on the new Moapa Valley High School Gym.
Local school administrators and education advocates, having been promised a new gym as part of the CCSD bond in 1998, had fought for nearly two decades to see the project come to fruition.
The gym is currently under construction and is on schedule. It is expected to be completed this summer.
June
Gold Butte NCA Legislation Introduced
Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) introduced a bill to the House of Representatives to create a 348,515 acre national conservation area (NCA) in the region of Gold Butte. The bill was similar to one that Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) submitted in the U.S. Senate in the month previous. It would recognize 129,000 acres to be designated as federally protected wilderness.
The bill also brought in the city of Mesquite promising a new visitor’s center to be built in the city for the new Gold Butte NCA and promising a new boat ramp access on the east side of the Overton Arm of Lake Mead.
But community leaders in Moapa Valley and Bunkerville were outraged that no one in their communities had been consulted about the bill.
Horsford claimed that the bill was just a starting point for discussions. Later in the month, he held a community meeting in Overton to discuss the issue.
The bill was never voted on and ended up dying in committee.
July
Mt. Charleston Wildfire Causes Smoky Skies In Region
A wildfire, started by a lightening strike, began on July 1 in faraway Carpenter Canyon near Mt. Charleston. By the end, the fire had burned over 28,000 acres. It caused smoke-hazed skies throughout the region including in the Moapa Valley.
Four volunteer firefighters from Logandale Station 73 went to help fight the fire on Mt. Charleston.
August
Lost City Museum Voted Among State’s Top Treasures
The Lost City Museum in Overton received the most votes in an online contest naming it the highest state “Treasure” for Indian Country in Nevada for 2013.
The annual Discover Your Nevada contest is put on by the Nevada Commission on Tourism (NCOT) at their Facebook site. Over a period of four weeks, visitors to the site are encouraged to vote for their favorite destinations in six different categories.
The Lost City Museum was nominated and voted the best treasure in Indian Territory with 79 votes.
September
Overton Power District Considers Presentation For Large Solar Power Plant
The OPD Board heard a presentation from representatives of Nevada Renewable Systems, LLC, a company proposing to build a 40 megawatt solar power plant on a large tract of land it owns atop Flat-top Mesa, just north of Mesquite.
The solar energy company was looking to form a partnership with OPD to provide power for the district at a relatively low cost in return for federal subsidies and low cost financing which was then available to the district.
In the end, the OPD Board decided that the proposed project was too large to fit the needs of the small rural power purveyor. With a current OPD peak load demand of around 95 megawatts, the solar facility would provide more power than the district could use, Board members determined.
Instead the Board instructed staff to explore the development of smaller solar installations built by the district near OPD substations which would provide renewable diversity to the district’s portfolio.
October
Pain of Federal Shutdown Felt By Moapa Valley Businesses
An ongoing budget stand-off in Congress caused a federal government shutdown in October. Included in that shutdown was the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. For a little over two weeks, all facilities; including visitor center, campgrounds, marinas, trails, roads and launch ramps were closed to the public. Closure signs and barricades were installed at entry points to the Park including Northshore Road just south of Overton.
Residents of nearby Stewarts Point were told they had to leave their property and evacuate the area until the shutdown ended and the Park reopened.
The closure restricted an average of 14,500 visitors that normally come through the Park every day during the prime weather month of October. It was estimated that $500,000 in visitor spending per day was eliminated for the outlying towns around the Park.
The closure was good for the nearby Valley of Fire State Park which saw record visitation during the two weeks of the shutdown.
November
Pirate Football Drive To State Ended Early In Semi-finals
After an undefeated season, the Moapa Valley High School football team’s expectation of a State Championship were quashed in a semi-final game against Fallon with a final score of 34-24.
It was the first season since 2006 that the Pirate Football team did not play in the state championship game. Instead the Fallon team faced Faith Lutheran in the final game. Faith ended up winning that game in a 17-0 victory over Fallon.
Historic Theatre Closes Its Doors
The Pioneer Theatre closed its doors in November after showing films in downtown Overton for over 70 years. Theatre owners cited a decline in local audiences and the high cost of upgrading to digital technology as the reason for the closure.
December
Community Efforts Lend A Hand
A number of initiatives made the holidays easier for less-fortunate Moapa Valley residents. The Overton Power District along with local elementary schools held a successful food drive. Mack Lyon Middle School Student Council also held a record-breaking food drive as did the annual Scouting For Food project. Each of these food drives benefitted the Food Pantry at Cappalappa Family Resource Center.
In addition, Metro police, in coordination with other local law enforcement agencies, sponsored the Shop With A Cop program which helped a number of local kids and their families at Christmas time.
