By The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Amateur and professional elk callers from across the United States will converge on Reno for the RMEF/Leupold World Elk Calling Championships, March 4-5, 2011.


Preliminary rounds begin March 4 at 9:00 a.m., and championship rounds begin March 5 at 9:00 a.m., at the Reno/Sparks Convention Center.
The championships are a centerpiece of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s annual Elk Camp & Hunting, Fishing and Outdoor Expo.

By Nevada News Bureau staff
Democratic Rep. Shelley Berkley declined again today to commit to a race for the U.S. Senate in 2012 after poll results show Rep. Dean Heller with a commanding lead over incumbent John Ensign in a GOP primary.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – A coffee shop across the street from the Legislature announces “let the games begin.”
With the Legislature in session for less than two weeks, Democratic legislators seem to be playing the game well.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – A bill that would impose fines of $1,000 to $10,000 on businesses that failed to obtain a state business license after being notified by the secretary of state’s office has been pulled from a scheduled committee hearing.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Business leaders from several large technology companies said today that Nevada lacks the skilled workforce necessary for them to locate in Nevada over the long-term.

The Carson City and Sierra regions remain under a high wind warning and a winter storm watch tonight as a strong Pacific storm is expected to move into the area. The storm may bring up to 4 inches of snow in the valleys, 1 to 2 feet at the shores of Lake Tahoe and up to 5 feet above 7,000 feet.

A woman who had a contempt of court warrant for her arrest faces a felony charge of providing false identification to Carson City authorities.

Nelletta Darlene Harris, 47, was arrested Friday in the 2500 block of Lorraine Street. She is being held on $25,000 bail. The arrest came after officers responded to a home where a fight had happened between two men.

A number of Silver City residents will go before lawmakers today to show their support of a proposed amendment to Nevada's eminent domain law that would remove the ability of a private person or business to exercise the law for the purposes of mining.

The current law on eminent domain (Chapter 37 of the Nevada Revised Statues) allows private individuals to take private land from property owners without their consent, for the purposes of mining. Testimony on this bill will be heard by the Judiciary Committee of the Nevada State Legislature today at 9 a.m. in room 2149.

I’ve been reading the BurnCards site for a while. It’s one of a thriving community of blogs that have sprung up around Reno. I don’t write about Reno much on this site, because there’s plenty of people doing that, but this article by Ken Manz really caught my eye.

Camels in Nevada will be the subject of the lecture presented by Nevada State Museum Curator of History, Robert A. Nylen. In 1855 Congress authorized $30,000 for camels as frontier military beasts of burden because of their adaptablility to desert heat, drought and food. Join us to find out all about the Dromedaries in Nevada. The program begins at 10:30 a.m. at Sierra Place, 1111 West College Pkwy, Carson City. (775) 841-4111

Economic development will be the topic of the Nevada Business Connections’ monthly networking breakfast on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at Gold Dust West Casino, 2171 Highway 50 in Carson City.

Here is the Carson City area road construction report for Monday through Feb. 20.

Utility work will occur on Russell Way between Northridge Drive and Long Street Monday and Tuesday. Two-way traffic will be maintained with flaggers.

Musser Street will be closed between Carson Street and Curry Street from 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 17 to 6 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 18 because of utility work.

Shoulder work will occur at Stanton Drive and Monte Rosa Drive as part of a sidewalk improvement project.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Turn on the TV these days and it seems as if every politician is talking about jobs and the economy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOTDn2A7hcY

For more than a year, the lack of firm details about the Nugget Project has been a major source of frustration to those trying to get their heads around this undertaking.

Without real numbers or plans, those arguing for or against struggled with hitting the moving target that is this project.

But that target just got a whole lot more stationary, as Carson City Manager Larry Werner released a 100+ page feasibility report (attached below) for the Board of Supervisors to use this week when a decision is made on whether to move forward with the project.

CARSON CITY – Freshman GOP Assemblyman Mark Sherwood is taking Secretary of State Ross Miller to task for proposing legislation that he says will hurt Nevada’s business climate.
Sherwood, R-Henderson, said Assembly Bill 78, set for a hearing Thursday in the Judiciary Committee, “would kill jobs and destroy businesses.”

A Nevada program designed to help parents with early childhood development is under threat of having much of its funding yanked, the Las Vegas Sun reports.
Scores of young mothers in Las Vegas and Carson City accompanied by noisy children pleaded today for the state to save the Family To Family program that has helped them deal with problems of early childhood. Click here to read the story.

A Carson City woman was arrested Thursday and faces felony theft and burglary charges after a warrant had been issued.

Jeira Polanco, 23, was placed into custody at around 12:30 p.m. at a home in the 700 block of Hot Springs Road. Her bail was set at $25,000.
According to the arrest warrant, Polanco faces felony charges of property theft valued at more than $2,500, use of false pretenses to obtain money goods and services of more than $250; fraudulent use of a credit card, and burglary. She also faces a misdemeanor charge of failure to appear.

Carson City leaders will learn next week whether the proposed Carson City Center, also known as the Nugget Project, is financially viable and may vote on whether to move forward with development agreements.

Thursday's meeting of the Board of Supervisors is a culmination of many months of studies, public meetings, workshops and a citizen's advisory committee. Supervisors will hear the results and recommendations of the project at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 17 in the Sierra Room of the Carson City Community Center, 851 East William Street.

N.S.P.V. Awareness Group on Face Book. Look them up and stay up dated on this on-going event!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/NSPV-Awareness-Group/164626820255156

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Secretary of State Ross Miller says the time is ripe to get a substantial campaign finance reform package through the Legislature, and with Gov. Brian Sandoval and lawmakers of both parties in agreement on the need for change, he may be right.

A Carson City man faces misdemeanor larceny and resisting arrest charges and had to be Tasered because he refused to leave his vehicle when ordered by police.

According to the arrest report, the 55-year-old man was being held in a parking lot on Fairview Drive at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday after it was reported he had taken $62.81 worth of fish supply items from PetsMart without paying.

An art exhibit that takes a contemplative look at some of life’s simplest elements: a door, a cup, etc. is featured through March 25 at Western Nevada College. The public is invited to meet the artist at a free reception, Wednesday, Feb. 16, 5-6:30 p.m. The art gallery is open from 8 a.m.-9 p.m.

Statewide gaming revenue decreased nearly 2.4 percent in December, with Carson City and Carson Valley down 3.5 percent, according to Nevada Gaming Control Board figures released today.

For the fiscal year, however, gaming win has increased 1.5 percent statwide and 1.09 percent for the Carson City area, the state's gaming board shows.

On the plus side, Reno casinos saw a gaming win of 1.74 percent; as did Elko County. See attached PDF.

Organizers of the the 2011 Amgen Tour of California, the largest cycling event in North America, announced today the Stage 1 and Stage 2 race routes for Lake Tahoe.

Lake Tahoe’s first-ever involvement in the race as the official Overall Start is Sunday, May 15 and begins at South Lake Tahoe at 6,300 feet, the highest start elevation in the six-year history of the competition. Stage 1 wraps up in North Lake Tahoe at Northstar-at-Tahoe Resort, with the Stage 2 Start taking place nearby at Squaw Valley USA on Monday, May 16.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noZSi7ccd08