Candidate profile. Joe Hardy

Joe Hardy

Born: 1949 in Reno, Nevada

Family: Spouse, Jill Sweningsen Hardy; children: Joseph Paul Jr., Nicole, Emily, Leah, Spencer, Dane, Jack, Ryan; grandchildren: 21

Education: Sparks High School; University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine, Bachelor of Science; Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, School of Medicine, Doctor of Medicine

Occupation: Associate professor, Touro University Nevada, and family physician

Length of Boulder City residency: June 1982 to present

Previous experience serving Boulder City (appointed, elected or volunteer positions): Boulder City councilman and mayor pro tempore, 1999-2002

Previous experience serving other governmental agencies (appointed, elected or volunteer positions): Major, United States Air Force; legislative service: assistant minority leader, 2021; president pro tempore, 2015; Nevada Senate, 2010-present; minority whip, 2013-2014; minority whip, 2007; Nevada Assembly, 2003-2010

Club/organization affiliations: member, regents ad hoc committee for higher education/health, 2003-2004; publicity chairman: Walk for Development, Ayuda, and Meals on Wheels, 1968; French mission, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; member Rapid Valley Water District Board of Directors, South Dakota; vice president, Parent Teacher Association, Rapid Valley Elementary School, South Dakota; charter member, Boulder City Drug Abuse Council; president, Nevada Academy of Family Practice; member, Clark County Health District Board of Directors; vice president, Southern Nevada Regional Planning Coalition; member, executive committee, Boulder City Community Education Advisory Board; One World Ambassador Alliance, Humanitarian Project, El Salvador; member, Nevada League of Cities Legislative Committee; board of directors, LDS Family Services (adoption agency); Debt Management Commission, Clark County; Sunday school teacher

Honors/awards/special qualifications: Foundation for Recovery; Steve Sigman Award, 2017; American Conservative Union Foundation Excellence Award, 2017; Health, Education, Advocacy and Leadership in Southern Nevada Award, 2014; University of Nevada, Reno, Medical School Preceptor; Harold Fickes Award, 2013; Nevada Family Physician of the Year, 1998 and 2010; Nevada Rural Community Star

What is your vision for Boulder City in 10 years, taking into account the ongoing drought and efforts to boost historic preservation?

I see the effects of this 40-year drought since the “overflow” of spillways of Hoover Dam in 1983 to be ongoing. We hope and pray for snow in the mountains and climates to change. We will need decades of wet years to recover from low lake levels.

We are grateful that Boulder City was included in the implementation of the third straw. Southern Nevada Water Authority has been led by prescient people who have prepared us for these times. Return flow credits are critical as are commitments to take less water out of the lake. Boulder City will be an active participant in saving water likewise as we use less and become more efficient at using our wastewater locally on green areas in town.

Boulder City is the history of Southern Nevada and indeed the Southwest. The very architecture and city planning is historic. The Great Depression was abated in part with the building and maintenance of Boulder (now Hoover) Dam. Structures, both residential and commercial, are a critical part of history and need to be protected and incentivized to maintain our appeal to visitors and residents alike.

Ten years from now we should be able to see and tour the water filtration plant just like we did this last week, except we should have improved the safety and restoration.

We anticipate identifying other less prominent structures, even homes, on a walking tour of our rich history. This should be a historic draw for people who are interested in how it was during and after the building of the dam. We will protect our visible authentic historic heritage; it is invaluable.

The city will partner with private entities to assure protection of our charm and small-town attraction. The controlled growth ordinance, now over three decades in existence, has been effective to keep our city small, safe and secure. Our schools will continue to be high performing; our teachers and students will continue to be respected and cooperative.

Our citizens have proven to be engaged in service and activities that continue to bring us all together as families, neighbors and friends. Our police and fire protection officers are positively involved in our community. Businesses have rebounded in the community and have shown a resiliency that is typical of the spirit of this community. We will continue to have exemplary business such as Fisher Space Pen, Characters Unlimited and Fiocchi Sales. We will have enhanced software that will make permitting easier and will foster business growth.

The land that Boulder City annexed decades ago in Eldorado Valley has been a boon economically and strategically. Leased land for solar and energy has contributed to the city’s budget approximately one third. The wildlife preserve has allowed the decades of growth in commercial properties in Clark County. Property taxes and utility costs remain the lowest of most municipal or county entities.

A manageable buffer from overwhelming encroachment has protected the small, quaint appearance that we all love. Clark County School District recognizes that we are unique and more like a rural school atmosphere than an urban.

The controlled growth ordinance of decades ago has worked well. Even though we have slowly increased the number of homes our population has been essentially flat from 15,009 in the 2010 census to 14,885 in the 2020 census. The governor’s gentle nudge of counting got us to slightly over 15,100.

Our high school used to have over 700 and now is about 600 students. Ten years from now we will continue to have an aging population. We anticipate more need for medical services in offices and the hospital.

Land sales and leasing will continue to be options for Boulder City. The process that Tract 350 has used will have to be refined and be more transparent through every step. The original ballot for passage in the 2010 election was looking at 100 homes. This would have paid off the golf course bond. Zoning discussions came later in 2015 using 122 lots. We will insist on being more open to the public processes that will still be in place in 10 years.

We will work together to be sure to protect our parks and recreational areas. We will find ways to overcome challenges. We have a busy airport and will qualify for a tower; renowned golf courses, trails for hiking and biking will be a tourist draw. We have better service by landfill partnership than any other local jurisdiction. Our local hospital is fervently supported by our traditional Art in the Park event yearly.

We will continue to have service-minded people in multiple organizations. Our rodeo grounds are a model of involved people caring for their animals and visitors. We will continue to pay homage to our veterans in the Southern Nevada State Veterans Home and those who paid the ultimate sacrifice in our veterans’ cemetery.

There is a literal spirit of Boulder City. Ten years from now we want it said of Boulder City: “Clean green Boulder City. Come stay (and) play for a day. Best town by a dam site. The controlled growth ordinance has worked. We love our town. Together, we serve.”

City Council passed a resolution to put a question on the ballot asking voters if they would approve the sale of 16.3 acres of land southeast of Boulder City Parkway and Veterans Memorial Drive to develop a grocery store and associated retail shops. What are your thoughts on this proposal?

I think it is premature to put on the ballot. The ballot should be used to propose an action such as sell the land. I am not in favor of the intent to identify specifically “for a grocery store.” It is a slippery slope.