County names new planning director

TONOPAH — County commissioners Tuesday approved the selection of Robert Lewis as the new Nye County planning director.

He replaces Steve Osborne, who was first promoted to acting planning director following the termination of Planning Director Jack Lohman and Dick Johnson, director of building safety and code compliance, in April 2010.

Lewis was County Manager Pam Webster’s choice for the position.

County Commissioner Lorinda Wichman asked Lewis what he had been doing since September 2010, when his resume states he left his job as development services director for the Merced County, Calif. Planning and Community Development Department. Lewis said he has been a sales consultant. He had been working in Merced County since December 2005.

Commissioner Donna Cox asked if he still lived in California. Lewis said he had a condo in Henderson but would be moving to Pahrump.

Commissioner Dan Schinhofen said he hoped Lewis would be proactive in bringing changes to the Board of County Commissioners.

Among his list of accomplishments in Merced County, in the central California Valley, Lewis said he developed and implemented the first stand alone Geographic Information System network, adopted community plans for four communities and managed an enforcement of an array of local ordinances and codes.

From October 2003 to August 2005, Lewis was the vice president of land acquisition and development for Plaster Development Company, aka Signature Homes, in Las Vegas. Before that his resume lists a position as planning director for Orion Engineering and Surveying Inc. of Las Vegas from February 2001 to October 2003, where Lewis states he successfully managed 45 community development projects including master plans, mixed use commercial projects and land entitlement planning of single family residential subdivisions.

From January 1998 to February 2001, Lewis was the president, chief executive officer and owner of Tetra Southwest Inc. of Henderson, where he ran a civil engineering, urban planning and land surveying consulting firm.

Lewis was a planning supervisor for the city of Las Vegas Planning and Development Department from November 1994 to January 1998 where he supervised the development services center, administering the city comprehensive plan, specific plans for urban neighborhoods, the downtown redevelopment plan and zoning code. Prior to that he was a community planner for the city of Henderson from December 1980 to November 1994 where Lewis states he developed the city’s first land use planning data base, created a street addressing policy and was community planner for 25 master plan communities which are looked upon as models in the southwestern U.S.

Lewis received his master of arts in organizational management degree from the University of Phoenix Las Vegas campus, he has a bachelor of science in business administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Lewis will oversee a county planning department with a reduced staff from the days of the housing boom.