Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 2

T7XTi Pr ODADVC CONTACT CITY EDITOR Michael Martinez 775.788.6302 or mmartinezrgj.com 2 A RENO TUESDAY, MARCH INSIDE YOUR RGJ THE BIG EVENT Who: Reno Philharmonic. What: The orchestra performs MasterClassics 5 with the suite from "On the Waterfront" by Leonard Bernstein and Symphony No. 4 by Gustav Mahler. When: 7:30 p.m. today.

Where: Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts, 100 S.Virginia St. Cost: $25 to $59. Details: 323-6393 or www.renophil.com. Improving quality of life: There's new hope for the millions of Americans suffering from lower back pain. Artificial replacement discs offer an alternative to traditional lumbar fusion surgery and a real chance at improved quality of life.

Health, 1E. Utility rebounds: Sierra Pacific Resources ended 2004 with a second straight profitable quarter and annual earnings in the black for the first time since 2001 The holding company earned $28.6 million or 16 cents a share in fiscal 2004. Business, 10. Returning to Reno: The Professional Bull Riders' Built Ford Tough Series, fresh off its competition last week in Reno, decided it will return to town for the 11th straight year in 2006. Guy Clifton's weekly rodeo column has the details.

Sports, 2B. OBITUARIES Bertwell, Rosalia Tracy Eld, Albert E. Furman, John D. Glaser, George L. Inman, James E.

Jones, Keith E. Masad, Edward McCormick, Robert E. Moody, TeriJ.K. Salado, Audrey D. Schmith, Delia R.

Solimine, Marie J. Souza, John A. Spain, Caley M. Stamper tt -i K.RT emfe-oweirtauil Ml me. Legislation would cut size of board; most members would be appointed will work better for the system in the long run." Gov.

KennyGuinnhasbeenin favor of restructuring the Board of Regents, but he's keeping an open mind as to how that should be done, said Greg Bortolin, the governor's spokesman. "He's not committed to this particular bill," Bortolin said. "He would want to study this more. He hasn't seen enough details on it." In the past, a majority of Nevada's regents have opposed making their offices appointed, including Howard Rosenberg and Doug Hill, Reno's two representatives on the board. Having regents appointed would take away the voters' right tochoose, according to Rosenberg and Hill.

Changing the board's makeup or how members are selected pops up whenever there is BY LENITA POWERS lpowersrgj.com A bill to reduce the size of Nevada's Board of Regents and have the majority of the regents appointed by the governor rather than elected is back before state lawmakers. The Legislature approved the measure in the 2003 session. But because it requires an amendment to the state Constitution, it has to be passed by both houses again and then win voter approval before taking effect. Twice introduced by Assemblywoman Chris Giunchigliani, D-Las Vegas, said she thinks it will become law after this session because the 13-member Board of Early taste of spring warms up Reno area Regents that oversees Nevada's higher education system is too unwieldy and unresponsive. "This is not politically motivated or tied to any one person," she said.

"I think it is timely because the public thinks the regents don't respond to the needs of students and don't respond well because of the size they are." AJR11 would reduce the board to nine members three elected and six appointed by the governor. "We're one of only a few states that even elects regents," Giunchigliani said. "Almost all of them have appointed regents, but Nevada's regents historically have been elected, so this is a good compromise, and I think it before the official start of spring. "We'll get a little dose of snow," Murry said of the near future. "It won't stick long.

We're going to get some nasty weather inMarch." O'Hara, who's paid to know such things, agrees. "We have another month where we could see some snow, especially in the Sierra," he said. "This is a nice change, a nice break from winter." It was good enough to bring 166 players to Washoe Golf Course on Saturday, 185 Sunday and more than 100 by early afternoon Monday. "They are coming out pretty good," said Barney Bell, Washoe's head pro. It was a long winter for Bell.

Due to heavy snow, Bell closed the course Dec. 29 and didn't reopen it until Feb. 25. Bell, who's been the pro at Washoe since the early 1980s, had never done that before. But he'd never had winter storms like the ones that struck Northern Nevada in late December and early January.

The snow came and stayed. "We sat here and watched 4 feet of snow (on the ground) for two months, like everyone else," Bell said. "We had the fog, the snow, the rain and the cold. We had it all." -if LIZMARGERUMRGJ taclk WHAT'S NEXT WORK SESSION: An Assembly committee gathering tentatively is scheduled for 3:45 p.m. March 15 in Room 3142 of the Legislature in Carson City to discuss AJR1 1 a bill to change Nevada's elected Board of Regents to allow the majority to be appointed by the governor.

controversy among board members or between the board and outside agencies, said Joe Crowley, who served 23 years as president of the University of Nevada, Reno. "Itseems to me this board, while it's certainly had its problems in the recent past, is working together well now," Crowley said. "So I think one looks at the question ofhow the makeup of the board should be accomplished differently, depending on how well things are going at the cited by the high temperatures: "They should be planting themselves back in their seats," said Bill Carlos, horticulture program coordinator for the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. "Just kind of hold off." Carlos has seen winter and spring in Northern Nevada. Monday, council members asked a variety of questions.

They ranged from the candidate's opinion on a casino proposed in Spanish Springs to their leadership style, critical analysis of the council and why they should get the job. Those interviewing for the council seat included Maldonado, a special education teacher. He said being a native Sparks resident puts him in a position to fully understand the city's past while determining future needs. "I'd like to-give back what the city has given to me growing up," said Maldonado, a 1965 Sparks High School graduate. On neighborhood gaming, Hinen said more information was required before making a choice.

LOTTERY 1 4 mi table moment." In the past couple of years, Nevada's regentshad a spat of nasty name-calling between two of its members. That was followed by charges that the board violated the state Open Meeting Law and cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars for firing a Southern Nevada campus president and a lobbyist, then agreeing to costly settlements and reassignments for both at interim Chancellor Jim Rogers' recommendation. "So when the board is in some kind of publicly controversial situation, this discussion of should they be elected or appointed arises," Crowley said. Most states have governor-appointed boards to oversee their public higher education systems, said Tom Ingram, president of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges. DAVID B.

PARKERRENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL Whitewater Park in downtown Reno. "You could face some unstable weather conditions," he said. "Living here, you never know what you're going to get. It can warm up, then we can have a snowstorm. "Temperatures can drop to freezing.

We're not out of winter yet." MORE DETAILS SPARKS COUNCIL: For more information on all the candidates, see Friday's edition of Sparks Today or RGJ.com. "Too many people are quick to make judgment," said Hinen, a local businessman and Reed High School graduate. "You really need to study the issue." When asked if it was important to have a woman on the council, Moss said not necessarily but varied representation could have a profound effect on the city. "Any board is stronger with the more diversity you have," said the former school board trustee. JACKPOTS But winter's not likely over yet, experts caution BY DON COX dcoxrgj.com It's warm, you can feel it and you're happy.

Monday's temperature in RenoSparks climbed into the upper 60s, and it's supposed to be the same today, with a forecast high of 67, maybe 68. Wednesday gets even better, with the National Weather Service in Reno calling for 69. But that's nothing compared to Thursday's outlook, which includes more sunshine and temperatures breaking 70. "It's going to be a really nice week," said Brian O'Hara, meteorologist for the weather service. "It happens every so often." O'Hara figures temperatures are about 10 degrees above normal for this time of year.

It's been warm enough for Joe Murry to start work. Murry does yard maintenance and cleanup. He's been doing it for years, long enough not to be fooled by warm weather in early March, 'Denotes update Complete obituaries on page 5C of Nation World section. BRIEFLY Gazette-Journal reporter named Fulbright scholar Reno Gazette-Journal reporter Jason Midalgo has been named a Fulbright scholar and will spend the fall in Japan studying the effects of aging on that country's economy and society. Hidalgo, 30, has covered health and related issues in Reno for about six years.

His interest in aging dates from a fellowship at the New York Times in the 1990s, where he researched and wrote stories on Jason Hidalgo the subject. "Japan has the fastest-aging population in the world," he said, citing a low birth rate and long life expectancy as factors. "I want to see how that's affected the country." Problems facing Japan now are similar to those that will face the United States in the next few decades, he said. Hidalgo was bom in the Philippines and attended college there until transferring to the University of Nevada, Reno in 1992. While at UNR, he said, "I took a Japanese class for fun." That spurred an interest in the country's culture.

The Fulbright Scholar Program the mainstay of the U.S. government's academic exchange effort has been administered for more than 50 years by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars. Awards are made on the basis of proposals submitted by the applicants. Hidalgo's award was one of three presented in journalism this year. 600 fish will be planted today in Truckee River The Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe will stock 600 big Lahontan cutthroat trout into the Truckee River today in Fisherman's Park on Galletti Way.

Almost 1 ,400 spring-spawning Lahontan cutthroat trout will be stocked in the Truckee River over the next few weeks, officials said. The Nevada Department of Wildlife also will stock hundreds of thousands of fish in Western Nevada waters between now and summer. Today's stocking is meant to reestablish a spawning run of Lahontan cutthroat trout in the Truckee. It coincides with the beginning of the spring fish hauling and stocking season in Western Nevada. Anglers wishing to take advantage of the fish being stocked will need to have their new 2005-06 fishing licenses and trout stamps.

To check on future stocking dates, locations of fishing holes and additional information, goto www.ndow.org AARP offers free tax help at Sun Valley area center The AARP is offering assistance for the upcoming tax season at the Sun Valley Neighborhood Center. The tax sessions are free and will run through April 8. The sessions are being held 4 to 7 p.m. Thursdays and 9 a.m. to noon Fridays.

Trained volunteers are available to assist with or complete tax return forms in full. Electronic filing also is available. Assistance is available by appointment only, and may be made in person or by calling 674-8555. The neighborhood center is in Sun Valley Community Park, 1 15 W. 6th Ave.

on the northwest comer of Sun Valley Boulevard. For more information, call 674-8555. Staff reports Sheryl Osborne of Reno enjoys the afternoon sun Monday at the Truckee River Sparks council weighs choice for vacant Ward 3 seat Murry is fixing winter damage "branches that have broken off or bushes that were smashed down," he said. But it's too early for pruning roses or other serious gardening. One expert had this advice for homeowners, especially those new to the area who might be ex 4U CAND1CE TOWELLRENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL Ward 2 Councilman Phil Salerno said.

He said he and other council members were impressed with the breadth of well-qualified candidates. In 15-minute interviews maintain accuracy and fairness in all stories, graphics, photographs and other materials that appear in the newspaper. It is our practice to correct errors in the issue immediately following their discovery. If you see an error, please call the newsroom at (775) 788-6397. Jerry Maldonado interviews for the vacant council seat Monday in Sparks.

Maldonado, Judy Moss, June Palmer-Remschner, Gregory Schlauch, Debra Soderbeck, Wayne Teglia, Robert Ulrich and Gregory Williams. A decision will not be easy, BY ALISON BATH abathrgj.com The Sparks City Council on Monday interviewed 14 applicants including a former Washoe County School board trustee, a planning commissioner and four women for the vacant Ward 3 seat. A decision is expected March 21 by Geno Martini, a councilman who became mayor Feb. 22. He succeeded Tony Armstrong, whodiedjan.

29. Martini'schoice to fill the council seat must be endorsed by the full council. Applicants are Kenneth Farr, David Ginsburg, Frances Harrington, Jim Hinen, Stanley Jorgensen, Fred Lokken, Jerry Y0UWEIGHIN Today: What are your plans for the WAC basketball tournament? Yesterday: What kind of pizza is your favorite? Results: 288 votes as of 9:1 0 p.m. Monday. Frozen: 1 6 votes, 6 percent Do-it-yourself.

56 votes, 19 percent Pizza shop: 21 6 votes, 75 percent To vote: Log on to RGJ.comnews to vote. nKomxisoenttfeoj rcnyportsifw responses ollnltrmtiisu! whodmse towHapttt. ERR0RWATCH Clarification: Carson City's dial-a-ride bus system will be phased out for the public within a year after the new fixed-route system starts. Dial-a-ride will remain available to the elderly and disabled. A story Sunday did not make that clear.

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