City Manager goes against staff, asks Supervisors to approve state development request in downtown Carson City

Following last week’s Planning Commission meeting in which commissioners voted to deny the state’s request to be removed from Downtown Carson City Aesthetics requirements relating to their ongoing state complex plans, Supervisors are being tasked with either agreeing with commissioners, or overturning their decision.

Less than a week ago, the planning department recommended commissioners deny the request based on the lack of evidence to support the necessary findings required to begin a Master Plan amendment (especially since the Master Plan was approved in May, and the state had no issues with it at that time).

Now however, the City Manager’s office is asking supervisors to overturn the decision by the commission, against the recommendation of its own city staff, to allow the state to remove itself from city requirements.

During the commission meeting, the denial hinged on the inability to make finding three:

3. The proposed amendment identifies or addresses changes in conditions that have occurred since the master plan was adopted by the Board of Supervisors and the amendment will represent a more desirable use of land;

The City Manager’s office said that the state project does represent a desirable use of land because it will connect to the “proposed city center” project — a project which has not been approved and was last heard about a year ago, and contained no specifics on design or implementation:

During the commission meeting, the city hall project was even mentioned — specifically in that if commissioners allowed the state complex project to be removed from requirements, it could set a precedent for the controversial city hall project to ask to be removed from requirements as well.

“Cutting out a large section of [the Downtown] is the wrong thing because, the next thing that happens is a project that we don’t know about called City Hall is going to come in and say ‘well cut me out too because I’m going to be a government entity’ and then all of a sudden our downtown area is only a half a block and that’s not what the citizens of Carson City wanted,” Commissioner Charles Borders said.

“You alluded to the Carson City’s City Hall plan — we have yet to see it,” Commissioner Teri Preston said. “It’s a barrel of air. It has not been presented here. We’re glad you know about it more than we do.”

The Board will vote on a resolution to augment the Fiscal Year 2025-26 budget by over $190 million. While this sounds like new spending, this is largely an administrative accounting procedure to recognize “carryover” funds (money budgeted last year but not spent) and unanticipated revenue such as grants.

The Board is set to approve a $1.245 million contract with DLR Group Inc. to design a remodel for the Juvenile Detention and Probation Center. The city opted for a remodel rather than a full new build to save costs, and this contract covers the architectural and engineering planning necessary to get the project ready for construction.

The Board will consider a cooperative agreement with the State and Storey County to facilitate upgrades to the Marlette Lake Water System, which provides critical water to the city. The water source is essential for buffering against drought conditions and conserving local groundwater. The agreement allows the State to proceed with necessary infrastructure repairs (like dams and catchments) without the city assuming ownership liability.

The Board will vote to write off approximately $478,000 in uncollectible ambulance fees. This action cleans up the city’s financial records by removing debts deemed uncollectible—often due to patients being deceased or having no assets—though the debts remain on the individuals’ credit records.

Street closure requests will be discussed for the proposed “Engines for Angels” event on June 13, 2026. The approval would close West Curry Street (from 4th to West King) and West 2nd Street (from South Carson to South Nevada).