In Henderson, of course, new digs heighten happiness levels

BEN Stepman would have loved this. That’s what I was thinking when the Raiders broke ground on their practice headquarters behind M Resort Monday.

In Henderson, of course. (Although whoever drew the city boundary must have been the same guy who gerrymandered those voting districts in Pennsylvania.)

Ben Stepman was the valley’s answer to Cal Worthington and his dog,spot.heownedacardeal- ership on Boulder Highway, had a folksy demeanor and starred in ubiquitous TV commercials. He would offer you a screamin’ deal on

a Hyundai for only $495 down.

He would sign off by holding his arms out and his palms up in a variation of the Allstate Insurance commercial while mentioning the location of the dealership.

“In Henderson, of course.” It would have been awesome had the Raiders’ slick video presentation concluded by dusting off Ben Stepman’s old catchphrase. Instead, it closed with a bold voiceover and fanfare that proclaimed: “It’s home. It’s Henderson.”

It still sounded pretty sweet to Henderson Mayor Debra March, who joined Raiders president Marc Badain in putting the first — but nowhere near the last — shovels in the dirt.

Henderson’s big day

Representatives from virtually every branch of government and department at Henderson city hall were called to the podium to put on a chrome silver hard hat and shuffle terra firma. Here were the ones I wrote down before my pen ran out of ink:

Mayor, city council, city commissioners, city managers, city attorneys, city clerks.

Police, fire, community development, human resources, information and utility services, court administration.

Economic development, government and public affairs, performance and innovation, public works, parks and rec, finance,

chamber of commerce, and, finally, someone named Jason Otter.

Judging from the show of shovels, it can be assumed Henderson is delighted to be the practice home of the Las Vegas Raiders starting in 2020.

Same on the other side of the ball. “We’ve moved about 25 people from the Bay Area,” Badain said during the media scrum on a bleak afternoon. “With the exception of one, I think they all live in Henderson.”

Raiders owner Mark Davis, conspicuous by his absence, probably would have said something similar. (Davis reportedly was in the Bay Area comforting former Raiders’ defensive back George Atkinson, whose son, Josh, a former Notre Dame defensive back, recently passed away. )

Likewise for Gov. Steve Sisolak, who has a collection of hard hats and shovels that would rival those of Bob the Builder. Or Derek Carr, had he been made available.

The Raiders’ quarterback left the ceremony as soon as it ended. He signed one autograph and posed for