Vegas Mayor calls on California to step up, thirsty golf courses, and new restaurants

Good morning, Las Vegas. It's Wednesday, January 4. 🌅

🚧 Mayor Carolyn Goodman is calling on the state of California to complete improvements after an 18-mile backup on Monday for travelers returning to Southern California following the New Year's holiday. In a tweet sent Tuesday morning, Las Vegas Mayor Goodman said that “once again” travelers spent “hours and hours” on the Interstate 15 as they tried to return home.

Goodman then called on California, “must step up and complete widening of I-15 between statelineand Barstow.”

📬On Tuesday, actor and Washoe County, NV resident Jeremy Renner spoke out for the first time since he suffered blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries in a snow plow accident in Nevada over the weekend. Taking to Instagram, the 51-year-old "Avengers" star wrote, "Thank you all for your kind words. Im too messed up now to type. But I send love to you all.”

He also shared a selfie from his hospital bed that showed injuries and bruising to the left side of his face. A representative for Renner said the actor was in critical but stable condition in an intensive care unit on Monday after undergoing surgery at a Reno, Nevada hospital. Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve told the Reno Gazette-Journal that Renner had been helping a stranded vehicle outside his home on the side of a snowy mountain. Renner was then run over by his own vehicle.

⛳️ A vote by the Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD) Board of Directors on Tuesday slashed water for golf courses by more than a third. Courses within the city will be affected by the change. It is up to Henderson and North Las Vegas to make their own decisions. Early in 2023, councils will likely discuss the issue at meetings. The vote reduces “golf course water budgets from 6.3 acre-feet of water per acre annually to 4 acre-feet by 2024,” according to a Tuesday tweet from LVVWD. There will be big changes to some courses, but others have already begun making adjustments.

🌧 More storms are coming! 

Another storm is moving in off the Pacific Ocean, bringing increasing rainfall and more snow in the mountains. Cloud cover will increase on Wednesday ahead of Thursday's storm system. There is a slight chance of a few isolated showers on Wednesday, but it will be mostly dry with temps in the mid-50s to 60s, and will turn breezy later in the week. 

🍩 More good eats open to satisfy our tummies

Proper Eats Food Hall has opened at Aria and is serving up its curated collection of global eats daily from 7 a.m. until 11 p.m.

The second location of Fullerton, California favorite Mr. BBQ has opened at 4240 Spring Mountain Road in Las Vegas Chinatown. Open daily from 11 a.m. until 1 a.m. with space to seat 200, Mr. BBQ offers premium all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue, including only USDA-graded beef. 

A four-course wine dinner will be held on January 25 at 5 p.m. at the newly opened Spiedini Fiamma Italian Bistro at the JW Marriott. Among the dishes are Sicilian-style orange and fennel salad, shrimp and crab risotto and braised beef short rib with goat cheese polenta. 

🚨LVMPD officers responded to a report of an unconscious man with a possible gunshot wound at a residence near the 3500 block of San Francisco Avenue at approximately 5:49 a.m. on January 2, 2023. Officers found a man suffering from an apparent gunshot wound inside the residence. At the scene, medical personnel pronounced the victim dead.

According to the LVMPD Homicide Section investigation, the victim had verbally argued with his roommate, Jesus Mendoza-Zarate, 24. The argument escalated to a physical altercation, during which Mendoza-Zarate took out a handgun and shot the victim.

Mendoza-Zarate was transported to the Clark County Detention Center where he was booked for Open Murder. The identification of the victim, as well as the cause and manner of death, will be released by the Clark County Coroner’s Office.

🚔Police received a call from a citizen reporting a man with a gun near the intersection of Nellis Boulevard and Bonanza Road on December 30, 2022, at approximately 11:01 a.m.

The victim advised the suspect, later identified as 60-year-old William Konkol, had pointed a handgun at him. Arriving officers were able to locate Konkol and attempted to conduct a vehicle stop near the intersection of Prince Lane and Charleston Boulevard. Konkol refused to stop, and a vehicle pursuit was initiated.

Konkol’s vehicle was forcefully stopped near Colusa Circle and Sacramento Drive. As officers Fernando Sotelo, Alberto Guzman, and Justin Terranova exited their vehicles, Konkol produced a handgun and discharged it one time. The officers fired their duty weapons at Konkol who was still inside of his vehicle. Konkol then drove toward the officers, and they once again fired their weapons toward him. Konkol then crashed into a brick wall in front of a house.

Medical personnel responded and pronounced Konkol deceased at the scene, video of the briefing can be viewed here. Investigation and escalation training to follow the incident. 

🤣 “I once gambled away my car in Las Vegas. The people at Hertz were absolutely furious.”

😎 Etcetera

🎰 Several table game players will have plenty of time to report their winnings to the IRS in early 2023. According to a Caesars Entertainment spokesperson, a player at The Cromwell won $255,148 on Tuesday with a royal flush. On Sunday at The Orleans, a guest from Wisconsin hit a $118,553 progressive jackpot on Pai Gow Poker, according to a Boyd Gaming spokesperson. An additional $5,000 was won on a side bet by the lucky player.

Explore a Canadian ghost town stuck in the 1980s (read more).

Is this a bear or a fluffy puppy? (read more) 

That's all for this Wednesday. Do something good for your neighbours today. 👋🏽