News Briefs, March 21

New signs to be installed along I-11

The Nevada Department of Transportation is installing 75 new overhead and side shoulder freeway signs through April 26 along Interstate 515/Interstate 11 between Sunset Road and U.S. Highway 93 in Henderson and Boulder City as well as on the 215 Beltway between Stephanie Street and Eastgate Road in Henderson.

Work will occur from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. Sunday through Friday. Motorists can expect lane restrictions and possible travel delays through the work zone and should use caution while traveling, heed construction signage and take alternate detour routes if possible.

The $160,000 contract calls for removal and replacement of freeway signs over a 22-mile area because of age, damage and new language with the Interstate 11 designation. The largest signs, measuring 28 feet wide by 10 feet tall, weigh over 1,000 pounds.

North Las Vegas-based Highway Striping & Signs LLC is the general contractor.

Candidate’s trial continued to April

City Council candidate Brent Foutz’s trial on charges of unlawful trespassing and resisting a public officer has not been negotiated, and another pretrial conference has been scheduled for 8 a.m. April 11.

The Boulder City Municipal Court charges stem from an incident in December 2018 in which he allegedly refused to leave the Nevada State Veterans Home, 100 Veterans Memorial Drive, after being told he was trespassed and must leave.

The criminal complaint states that Foutz lunged toward one of the officers in a “violent manner” and became more aggressive when they were trying to restrain him. Additionally, he refused to comply with orders, and it took both officers to drag him into the patrol vehicle.

The complaint was filed by the city attorney’s office Dec. 10.

Foutz is one of eight candidates vying for a seat on the council in the 2019 municipal election.

Renovations completed at Hoover Dam

Renovations to the visitor center theater level and elevator at Hoover Dam have been completed, and normal tour operations have resumed.

Full power plant and dam tours are offered daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Power plant tours can be purchased online, but dam tour tickets can be purchased only in person on a first-come, first-served basis.

High school rodeo events postponed

All Nevada horse events for this weekend, including high school rodeo competition, have been canceled or postponed based on a recommendation from the Nevada Department of Agriculture after a positive case of equine herpes virus type 1 was reported in Clark County.

“Our recommendation is based on the likelihood of statewide exposure at an event March 8-10 in Fernley, and we are coordinating with event managers to take every precaution to mitigate continued spread,” said state veterinarian Dr. JJ Goicoechea.

According to Goicoechea, equine herpes virus-1 can cause respiratory disease in young horses, miscarriages in pregnant mares and neurological disease in older horses.

Horses at the Nevada State Junior/High School Rodeo, which took place Feb. 22-24 in Pahrump, may have been exposed and should be monitored for signs of disease, such as fever, cough or runny nose.