Talk on proposed city diversity policy pushed to December

Newly elected Ward 3 North Las Vegas Councilwoman Anita Wood asked City Manager Gregory Rose during the Nov. 4 City Council meeting that he instruct staffers to conduct a critical needs assessment study, detailing how various departments and programs might be able to save money.

"I would honestly like to know where we stand and where we go from here," she said. "Where can we make cuts ... what do we absolutely need."

This mandate comes at a time when Rose and city human resources director Joyce Lira have been meeting and requesting that individual departments and employees submit ideas about cost-saving measures.

"Once we are done with the meetings we have scheduled in the next few weeks, all of the ideas will be categorized and posted," Lira said during the meeting.

Rose said the city has been working to address ways to circumvent what will end up being a $13 million shortfall in the city's budget for the next fiscal year and has so far identified $4 million in cost-saving measures.

"I am confident that we can develop a strategy that will get us through these tough times, but hard decisions will need to be made, and without a doubt, some programs we offer will need to be cut," Rose said.

Councilman Richard Cherchio said he felt that these efforts were coming about a year too late.

"I know that now we're talking about suggested cutbacks, but the reality is I think we're moving on this a bit too late," he said. "Talks about how to make these adjustments should have begun a year ago. We are acting in a very untimely manner on these items."

Rose said the city had anticipated consolidated tax revenues falling, but there had been no way to anticipate the rate at which that would occur.

"Those figures have fallen 29 percent," he said. "There is no way that we could have known to prepare for something of that severity, and we aren't alone. Others are suffering in the same way."

During a special City Council meeting held earlier that day, council members voted to move discussion on a proposed city diversity and inclusion policy to December.

"We feel like the scope of information was not as in depth as we would like it to be before any kind of decision is made," Cherchio said.

The proposed policy would implement a citywide plan to promote awareness and "appreciation of employee differences in the workplace," according to a presentation handout.

Contact North Las Vegas and Downtown View reporter Amanda Llewellyn at allewellyn@viewnews.com or 380-4535.