🪩 Who’s that guy on top of the Sphere?!

🍿 Gone But Not Gone

After last night’s contentious School Board meeting, Superintendent Jesus Jara remains in place this morning — but for how long? After failing to approve his original resignation, which would’ve involved a payout totaling around $500,000, the board directed its legal team to negotiate new terms for Jara’s departure. Some board members and public commenters argued against Jara’s desire for a golden parachute, while others said he’s a “scapegoat” for bigger issues afflicting the district. [Nevada Independent]

• The board also tabled discussion of an agenda item to hire Jara’s deputy to succeed him.
• For more, dial up tomorrow’s Friday news roundup on the podcast. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

🏈 A Blitz of Fakery!

It’s not just the Super Bowl of football, it’s also the championship of fake-merch grifting. According to this report, “agents have confiscated nearly $1 million in bogus products, including jerseys” in Las Vegas. [KSNV]

• More football: Newly signed Raider Janarius Robinson is carrying on the team’s tradition of problematic off-field behavior: He was arrested this week for DUI. [KTNV]

🖐️ Trouble on Water Street?

Time to interrupt the narrative of Water Street’s muscular revival with this bit of yikes: Construction on the seven-story Watermark Tower, a residential/retail project in the heart of Hendo’s downtown, has stopped, as there appear to be more than $14 million in liens against the project. [KLAS]

🪩 ‘He’s Not With Us,’ Say Avengers

A local man who calls himself “Pro Life Spiderman” was arrested Wednesday for climbing the Sphere, allegedly to raise funds to help a financially desperate woman avoid having an abortion. (He scaled Aria in 2021 to protest COVID measures.) A friend says he’s been planning the stunt for a month. [Review-Journal]

• Related: Not a climber? Here are the best places to view the Sphere. [City Cast Las Vegas 🎧]

Choco Talk!

A Valentine’s Day audio treat: Mark Mackey, chief chocolatier of the Ethel M candy factory in Henderson, takes podcast co-host Sarah Lohman into the delightful world of sweets-making, and tells her Ethel M’s surprising origin story. (Supply your own Willy Wonka quips.)