Candidate profile: Tanya Vece

Tanya Vece is one of 13 candidates seeking a seat on City Council.

To help residents make an informed decision when casting their ballots, the Boulder City Review asked each candidate to answer three questions and invited them to record a video interview in lieu of a candidates’ forum, which could not be held due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Vece’s response is below in her own words. They have been edited only for grammar, spelling and style.

Tanya Vece

Age: 40

Marital status: Single

Family: No kids unless you count my Border Collie, Dotty

Occupation: Community relations liaison for Charter Hospice

Length of Boulder City residency: Moved here in March 2012

Previous experience serving Boulder City (appointed, elected or volunteer positions): Volunteer turned paid publicist for the Dam Short Film Festival 2017 and 2018. Hosted the city’s annual Easter egg hunt twice with my prior position for The Homestead at Boulder City. Hosted Senior Prom for the Senior Center of Boulder City. Hosted a pet adoption with the local animal shelter at The Homestead. Sat on the Think Tank marketing committee for Boulder City Chamber of Commerce. Volunteered at several Wine Walks and Trunk or Treat with the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce. Served on the board of the Boulder City Museum and Historical Association. Contributed special Throwback Thursday column for Boulder City Review highlighting Hollywood ties to our city’s history. Former host for Monster Museum News for Tom Devlin’s Monster Museum.

Previous experience serving other governmental agencies (appointed, elected or volunteer positions): N/A

Club/organization affiliations: None

Honors/awards/special qualifications: In 2008 I received a light bulb in my honor on the famed Welcome to Las Vegas sign for my work generating business as the most profitable event planner in Las Vegas. Winner of the 2017 Goldie Begley Award from the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce.

▶ What do you feel are the most pressing issues for Boulder City in the near future?

Addressing specific steps to employ true preservation of Boulder City’s history with measurable results. Further, we need to focus on developing a stronger tourism draw without impacting our city’s culture.

I’d also like to look at why we have profitable solar leases without cheaper utility bills for our residents. I believe more can be done to pass along the solar benefits in utility savings for our residents, which is crucial right now for seniors on a budget and for so many unemployed and underemployed.

Also, with the pandemic causing so many people to lose work, I’d like to strengthen our Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act resources for displaced workers specific to the needs of our community. I’ve worked as a liaison for WIAO and while it’s a great program, more can be done to make sure it is a benefit for our community employers and the program’s participants.

▶ What is your position on development in Boulder City? What type of developments do you think are appropriate and where should they be allowed? What types of developments do you think are inappropriate? Does the city have the necessary infrastructure to support any type of development?

First, I am for enforcing the city’s slow-growth charter. I also believe we need to have a requirement for developers who do come in to create homes, or even businesses, that pay aesthetic tribute to our history. This goes not only for the aesthetics but also for the street names; they should honor people significant to the development of our town.

My concern as someone who is also going to be voting for another candidate is the direction of real estate development, both residential and commercial. I also believe we need to enact a year’s moratorium waiting time on any demolition permit issued within the historic district. We don’t have enough preventive measures in place to offset any threats of our history being altered or destroyed if under private ownership.

As far as what developments I think are inappropriate, it’s a complicated question that I would work closely with the community on. As an example, the Harvard Business Review published a great piece on legacy versus new cities and developed versus emerging economies. We have to agree on our identity, and what the citizens want, as far as legacy. The why is just as important as the how or the what when it comes to development and supporting infrastructure.

I will say that I have heard a lot of ideas on setting up a tiny home community. I don’t feel that would be good for our city’s legacy. I also don’t feel the Gateway project coming to life would be a benefit to our small-town culture.

▶ Traffic and parking appear to be problematic in the downtown area. Do you have any suggestions to improve the situation? Would allowing off-road vehicles on city streets help or hinder this issue?

I’d absolutely vote for allowing off-road vehicles on city streets. It is a benefit to the families here but also an opportunity to bring in tourism dollars. Parking in our city, especially downtown, can be a challenge during any event or busy weekend. I don’t see how the addition of adding off-road vehicles into the mix would be a further hindrance. We are able to mitigate the parking for large events now.

We can consider minimum parking requirements. There are other options to consider, like an on-street provision or subsidizing off-site street parking, but right now I feel our focus has to be on taking preventive action to protect our historic buildings and help keep our local businesses afloat not only for the ones that depend on tourism dollars but also for the ones in town that employ locals, like your neighborhood mechanic or hairdresser.