Holecheck has concerns over biker rally

Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, The Pahrump Town Board will meet just once this month.

Part of next Tuesday’s town board meeting will have the board discussing whether to enter into an agreement with Roadshows Inc. for a motorcycle rally in Pahrump.

The entertainment company is best known for the “Street Vibrations” motorcycle rally regularly held in Reno, Sparks, and Virginia City.

Town board Chair Harley Kulkin approached promoter Randy Burke who oversees the popular event and inquired about bringing the rally to Pahrump.

He said Burke is held in very high regard by both vendors and participants of Roadshows events.

“When he came down to Pahrump the first time, he was real impressed and he actually said that we could have the event the same week that Vegas has theirs or the same week as the one in Laughlin. Right now he is proposing to have a stand-alone event for Pahrump which of course will be the first annual and it will be a great event,” Kulkin said.

On Thursday Town Manager Susan Holecheck seemed a bit apprehensive about bringing the event to town.

Her reasoning being costs associated with sponsoring the rally.

“I have had quite a few conversations with Randy Burke and the contract that I was presented with was very problematic with lots of grey areas. It’s a huge expenditure and we’re not going to get a lot of ‘heads in beds unfortunately.’ This is a different group of people,” she said.

According to the Roadshows contract proposal, the town shall provide the sum of $18,700 for exclusive rights as the presenting sponsor for what’s being tentatively called the “2014 Base Camp to Adventure Rally.”

Among the expenses the town will be responsible for include advertising, entertainment, labor and equipment rental to name a few.

Holecheck also cautioned that the costs could easily exceed the amount stipulated within the contract and the board will eventually have to make a final decision whether to direct town staff to move forward with the event.

“It’s not just $18,000. By the time I got Randy to answer more questions, we are probably looking at $38,000. The board is not moving to approve this contract because it’s a non-action agenda item. They are only going to move to direct staff to either tell us to proceed with this or tell staff to hold off on it for a while,” she said.

Board member Dr. Tom Waters said he initially embraced the idea of having the event in Pahrump but he is still weighing the benefits against the potential liabilities.

“I would think anytime we could bring something like that into Pahrump that will bring a lot of tourists in to spend money, it’s always a good idea but right now I’m not sure exactly where it stands. Any event that draws tourists in is an economic boost for Pahrump. Roadshows is a very organized company and has a lot of legitimacy behind them. As long as the town benefits from it, so much the better,” he said.

In other town developments, board members want to make sure that local residents and tourists alike know that the Pahrump Fairgrounds has not fallen off the radar.

The board is in the process of determining whether to place signs along Highway 160 that will direct motorists to the location of the property on the far south end of town.

Placement of the signs, however, may be easier said than done.

Both board and staff are still trying to determine exactly when to put the signage up as it may interfere with a Nevada Department of Transportation’s proposed four lane widening project.

Board member Amy Riches noted this week that placing signs may not be a good idea due to the fact that there is really nothing to see on the property located along East Gamebird.

Another issue regarding signage is cost.

At present, the board has received at least three options which range anywhere between $500 to more than $4,600.

Riches said that what is actually put on the signs will also determine the associated costs.

Waters, meanwhile, said the board opted for ordering signs that can be visible especially at night.

Town board members and staff will be holding a retreat in Death Valley today.

The board will meet in Furnace Creek where they will address a wide variety of issues pertaining to a possible change in town office hours, a review of open meeting laws and the rescheduling of town board meetings.

Today’s retreat will run from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm.