By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
Gov. Brian Sandoval has appointed a veteran administrator to keep up the fight against placing nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain in Southern Nevada.
Joseph C. Strolin, formerly a planning division administrator for the Agency for Nuclear Projects, has agreed to be acting director of the agency until the governor can find a permanent director.

A 27-year-old Douglas County man faces multiple misdemeanor charges after being stopped in Carson City for reckless driving and then using the opportunity to confront an officer with a stream of obscenities.

According to the arrest report, the man was stopped at around 10 p.m. Monday after driving his 1999 Buick Century erratically, weaving in and out of traffic and following too close to another vehicle. He was paced doing around 40 mph in a 25 mph zone.

The Tahoe side of Douglas County not only lacks a full-time lake resident to serve on the Board of County Commissioners, but now it no longer has a planning commissioner either.

On Jan. 3 the Douglas County Board of Commissioners yanked three members from its planning commission including Lawrence Howell of Stateline.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval has proposed spending an estimated $60 million to repay interest on hundreds of millions of dollars in federal loans.
That $60 million would come out of the general fund, said Dale Erquiaga, the governor’s senior adviser. This would leave less money for health care, education and other vital state functions in the general fund.

A 19-year-old Stateline woman driving a Jeep Cherokee crossed the center line early Wednesday and crashed into a vehicle driven by a Carson City man, the Nevada Highway Patrol reports.

The accident was reported at 8:49 a.m. near Juniper Lane about a third of a mile from Highway 50 on Kingsbury Grade. The woman was flown by Care Flight to Renown Medical Center in Reno, said NHP Trooper Dan Lopez.

Carson City Manager Larry Werner sat down for an interview on OurTown yesterday, and we hope to have that video up soon. But in the meantime, I do want to share a couple of newsworthy items from that interview.

The biggest item was that Werner said there has been a change — or at least a clarification — in the question of who would own the land under the public portion of the Carson City Center/Nugget Project.

Join in on the fun and experience great food, wine and local arts during the March Wine Walk. Stroll around Downtown Carson City and enjoy wine tasting with a commerative wine glass and map. Visit the art galleries, gift shops, casinos and restaurants. Purchase your glasses at the Carson Nugget, Cactus Jacks, HorseShoe Club, Carson Jewelry & Loan or Bella Fiore. Turn in your map at the Carson Nugget at 5 p.m. for prizes.

Diamond Peak Ski Resort at Lake Tahoe's Incline Village will host its second annual Ullr Fest beginning Friday and lasting through the entire weekend.

Rock to your favorite oldies at Good Vibrations. Western Nevada Musical Theater Company offers an exuberant night of rock & roll and comedy. The fun begins at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William Street. Call (775) 445-4249.

Steve Robinson, a deputy chief of staff and legislative director for former Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons and previously the state's top forestry and fire official, has been appointed to the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency governing board.

“As a former at-large board member myself, I know Steve Robinson’s experience as a natural resource consultant will be invaluable to the TRPA,” said Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval. “Lake Tahoe is one of our most precious state and national treasures, so it is important to me that Nevada has a strong voice on the TRPA.”

Heavenly Mountain Resort at Lake Tahoe is on top of safety on the slopes under the management headed by Pete Sonntag. An the new lodge up at the top of the Gondola is doing fine. We'll have complete report on the new million-dollar refuge this week. Here's the latest from Heavenly:

Heavenly Mountain Resort and the National Ski Areas Association are reminding skiers and snowboarders that they play a critical role in slope safety during National Safety Awareness Week, January 15 – 23, 2011.

Next time you try the Chutes at Mt. Rose you can feel a little safer if you take a tumble. Here's what Mt. Rose says about medical care there:

Through a cooperative agreement between Mt. Rose - Ski Tahoe, the Regional Emergency Medical Service Authority (REMSA) and North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, the Mt. Rose Ski Patrol is now able to provide Paramedic level Advanced Life Support for sick and injured guests.

The Bill Raggio State Senate seat sweepstakes is over, and former Assemblyman and U.S. Attorney Greg Brower has been selected by the Washoe County Commissioners take his place.

Brower was a member of the Assembly until he lost in the 2002 Republican Primary to Sharron Angle.

Newly elected Nevada Assemblyman Pete Livermore talks about the upcoming legislative session.

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

KOLO-TV Channel 8 Reporter Terri Russell speaks with Jasmine Perez, 21, the victim of the horrific 2006 child abuse case that involved she and her younger brother who were confined to their Como Street apartment, starved and beaten for years. The children were discovered Jan. 19, 2006. Click here to read the story and view the video.

Looks like Spring is trying to make an early appearance this year. Of course I’m not fooled. We’ll get cold and snowy again, probably before the month is out. But the weather this weekend has kind of been a taste of what we’ll be in store for in a few months. It sure did the job of cleaning up the last of the remaining snow quickly. We’ve had huge snow patches all over town that have been in place since our last big snowstorm, weeks ago. Now they’re all gone, in a matter of just a couple of days.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
Retired state Sen. Bill Raggio said in an interview aired today that he does not favor granting local governments complete home rule because of the potential for tax disparities between more affluent communities and those with fewer resources.

Meta Tags out, SEO in from Jonathan Denwood on Vimeo.

Here is the road construction and maintenance report for the Carson City area, beginning Monday and lasting through Jan. 23.

Clearview Drive will be closed between Edmonds Drive and Line Drive in Carson City for construction on the next phase of the Nevada Department of Transportation freeway project. Detours are marked. The road is expected to reopen by November of 2011.

The Reno Gazette-Journal reports that a 3.2 magnitude earthquake rattled the southern part of Douglas County at about 8:35 this morning. No damage was reported. Click here for an update on this and other quakes, including the aftershocks from the U.S. Geological Survey.

Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong announced law enforcement statistics for the year, including a 4 percent drop in most felony crimes.

A Carson City man was arrested after he allegedly failed to complete domestic violence counseling, a felony violation of his probation.

Officers arrested John Adam Henry, 29, after running his registration through the DMV that generated a hit at around 1 p.m. on Thursday. He was stopped at the corner of Northridge Drive near Southridge Road, according to the arrest report.

According to New River Justice Court records, a no-bail felony warrant for Henry's arrest was issued after he failed to complete court-ordered domestic violence counseling. He was booked without incident.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Gov. Brian Sandoval will seek a constitutional amendment in the upcoming session of the Nevada Legislature to allow for public tax dollars to be used in a school voucher program that would include religious schools, a staff member said this week.