The future home of Star Trek: The Experience is facing more problems. According to a report by the Las Vegas Review-Journal the mall and it's owner are in a current dispute with Neonopolis' A/C provider.

In addition to a magnifying glass and telephone, John Del Prado keeps a roll of paper towels at the front desk in his jewelry store.

He uses them to mop up puddles of sweat from the desktop.

Del Prado is one of the few remaining tenants in Neonopolis, a troubled downtown mall that recently added the loss of air conditioning to its list of problems.

"Well, it's hot," says the animated, straight-talking Del Prado. "When I opened the store in the morning, it was 103 degrees in here."

But Del Prado isn't lashing out at Rohit Joshi, the embattled developer at Neonopolis whose dispute with the air conditioning provider created the sweltering conditions.

Like other businesspeople sticking it out at the mall, Del Prado just wants the problem solved so Joshi can get back to filling empty storefronts.

"I'm really standing on the side of Joshi," says Del Prado, adding, "My business has suffered."

Joshi is locked in a battle with Ameresco, a Massachusetts-based company that owns a plant that uses chilled water to cool several buildings, including Neonopolis.

The company says it shut off service to the mall after it fell $300,000 behind in payments. Joshi says he would be happy to pay for air conditioning he's used, but is unwilling to pay a portion of the bill he refers to as "capacity charges." (source Las Vegas Review-Journal)

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