Overview:

The city’s vision is guided in seven Guiding Principles: Well-managed growth; access to open lands and recreational opportunities; economic vitality; vibrant downtown and gateway corridors; livable neighborhoods; unique history and culture and; a connected community.

The first draft of the Carson City Master Plan Update for 2024 will be discussed by the Board of Supervisors this Thursday, and is currently available for public review.

A Master Plan is essentially the city’s blueprint for the next 20 years, which includes guidance and goals for growth, housing, economic development, natural resources, aesthetics, and much more.

The first Master Plan was adopted by Carson City in 1958, followed by five additional updates, the last being in 2006.

Over the past year, the city has hosted a number of public workshops bringing together community members to discuss their visions for the future of the city.

One major point highlighted from community feedback was a desire to maintain a compact urban footprint, focusing on developing vacant or underutilized areas within the city’s existing footprint as opposed to continuing to spread outwards, expanding the footprint of the city.

Don’t have the time to digest the whole thing? Don’t worry, it’s a lot to take in; that’s why for the next few days I’ll be breaking off bite-sized pieces of the plan to dig into each day.

The vision

Well-Managed Growth

As of 2022, the city had a population of just over 58,000 residents, making it the 10th largest city in Nevada.

The main goals to achieve well-managed growth include:

Promote the Efficient Use of Land, Water and Infrastructure

Ensuring the land use map represents a level of growth that may be accommodated with available water resources and sewer capacity
Concentrate future development within the Urban Services Boundary and accommodate limited, low-intensity development in locations not currently served by urban services
Provide a range of land use opportunities including residential, mixed-use, commercial, employment, public and open space at a variety of scales and intensity
Continue to encourage the creative use of vacant and underutilized sites through infill, redevelopment, and adaptive reuse
Require private developers to build and pay for capital facilities like local streets, access, new water or sewer lines, etc. that are needed to support their developments

Mitigate risks from natural or human-caused hazards like flood and wildfire

Discourage intensive development within then Wildland Urban Interface to limit impacts of potential disasters
Discourage development within the 100-year floodplain

Protect sensitive natural and visual resources

Protect environmentally sensitive areas by protecting mature trees and limiting hillside development
Protect the city’s dark skies by limiting light pollution
Ensure utility equipment like cell towers or wind farms do not detract from the city’s visual quality

Encourage the use of innovative, low-impact development practice

Using sustainable building materials, energy conservation and water conservation
Incorporate pollinator-friendly landscapes and preserving trees
Support urban agriculture efforts to expand local food production, reduce food insecurity, and support educational opportunities.

Access to Open Lands and Recreational Opportunities

The main goals to achieve access to open lands and recreational opportunities include:

Enhance the City’s Parks, Trails, and Open Space Network

Provide a range of parks and recreational opportunities
Review future development proposals for consistency with open space
Expand the city’s network for pathways consistent with the Unified Pathways Master Plan
Ensure the goals and uses for the Carson River are consistent with the Carson River Master Plan
Promote the Prison Hill Recreation Area as an amenity for both motorized and non-motorized trail use, and continue to support the maintenance and expansion of the area’s trail system

Improve Access to Parks and Recreation at a Neighborhood Level

Ensure parks and recreational facilities are balanced and adequately meet the needs of the community throughout the city as a whole
Improve the quality of existing parks and facilities, and create new facilities in underserved locations
Pursue opportunities to improve the community center and pool
Require new developments provide park facilitates
Pursue cost-effective sharing of facilities and resources with existing and potential recreational partners

Promote Access to State and Federal Lands as a Community Amenity

Discourage disposal of property identified as state and federal lands for private development when located outside the urban services boundary
Monitor state or federal owned lands slated for disposal and identify opportunities for transferring to city ownership
Ensure vehicular and pathway access to surrounding public lands are maintained as development occurs, and require pathways, bicycle facilities and roadway easements through future developments

Economic Vitality

The main goals to achieve economic vitality include:

Promote a Collaborative Approach to Economic Development

Promote collaboration between the city and public and private partners
Maintain understandable, predictable land-use regulations and consider streamlined permitting procedures to encourage desired development objectives
Provide planning flexibility to changes in business cycles
Promote economic development alternatives that protect or enhance existing and future property values
Recognize the importance of adequate infrastructure in economic development and long-run economic stability

Maintain and Enhance Carson City’s Primary Job Base

Retain and support the expansion of major employers in the city such as the state, Carson-Tahoe Hospital, WNC, and other industries.
Use available resources to support existing businesses and recruit new companies
Collaborate with local educational facilities and foster public-private partnerships to cultivate new opportunities for employers
Prioritize initiatives that attract high-tech, manufacturing, healthcare, and creative industries
Promote activities that could upgrade the skill and wage levels of the city’s resident labor force

Recognize and Adapt to the Impact of Technology on Work and Workforce Patterns

Support home-based occupations and remote/hybrid work through the incorporation of live-work units
Ensuring reliable high-speed internet access and establishing public Wi-Fi hotspots in parks, libraries and community centers

Promote Revitalization and Re-investment in Underutilized Areas

Work with local businesses and property owners to assist in redevelopment efforts
Encourage higher intensity and mixed-use development in downtown and along major gateway corridors
Encourage the creation of destination retail developments that include shops, restaurants, entertainment or recreational venues, hotels and more

Promote the city’s assets as Economic Development Tools

Expand visitor revenue by promoting the community’s sports complexes, aquatic facility, community center and theater for regional, state-wide or national sports tournaments
Highlight the city as a gateway to Lake Tahoe to attract tourism
Encourage the development of airport industries such as sightseeing flights, skydiving, extreme skiing tours and more
Promote tourism activities associated with the historic resources of the community like the westside historic district, V&T Railroad, historic Nevada State Prison and more

Vibrant Downtown and Gateway Corridors

The main goals to achieve a vibrant downtown and gateway corridors include:

Enhance the Safety, Functionality and Appearance of Gateway Corridors

Continue to implement Complete Streets improvements along N. Carson Street and E. William St.
Design roadways to improve accessibility for bikes, pedestrians and transit vehicles/riders
Incorporate landscaped medians, street trees public art, wayfinding signage, and other features
Establish direct connections between gateway corridors and adjacent residential neighborhoods to improve non-automobile access

Promote Ongoing Revitalization of Downtown

Promote private investment that complements public improvements
Focus on the expansion of housing options in downtown and pursue the redevelopment or adaptive reuse of the Ormsby House
Promote the downtown as the hub for year-round community and visitor-oriented events
Promote a balanced approach to economic development and historic preservation within downtown

Livable Neighborhoods

The main goals to achieve livable neighborhoods include:

Expand Housing Options to meet the needs of existing and future residents and workers of all ages, abilities and income levels

Maintain the ability for Carson City residents to choose from an array of housing options and lot sizes based on their lifestyle preference, income level, and stage of life
Encourage a mix of housing types, price points, and unit sizes as part of new developments
Support the incorporation of detached single-family homes on smaller lots, higher-density housing types like duplexes, townhomes, multi-family apartments, condos, and live-work options
Provide opportunities for accessory dwelling units (ADUs)

Support the Retention and Expansion of Affordable and Workforce Housing

Collaborate with local non-profits and housing partners to access and employ programs that provide funds devoted to affordable housing
Support organizations to enable the purchase, rehabilitation and long-term management of manufactured home parks, and consider expanding opportunities for site built housing options where appropriate
Collaborate with agencies and organizations to prevent Carson City residents from becoming homeless and facilitate assisted housing options to meet the needs of vulnerable populations
Enforce appropriate standards for safe and decent affordable hosing in Carson City, such as length of stay omits for RV parks, motels and hotels, and encourage the conversion of short-term units to permanent housing
Remove regulatory barriers to the construction of affordable housing

Maintain the Quality, Character and Livability of Established Neighborhoods

Ensure infill and redevelopment fits the surrounding development
Prioritize infrastructure improvements such as traffic calming, sidewalks, pathways, street tree plantings, etc. in established neighborhoods based on documented deficiencies.

Promote Reinvestment in Declining Neighborhoods

Consider legal and regulatory measures that put vacant and/or dilapidated properties back to productive use such as the auction of tax defaulted properties, demolition by neglect vacant needling registration program, and expanded use permission of long vacant or underutilized structures.
Pursue violations related to safety, public health, and quality of life including removal of abandoned vehicles, abatement of blighted properties, and other nuisances.

Unique History and Culture

The main goals to achieve unique history and culture include:

Protect and Preserve Carson City’s Historical and Cultural Resources

Encourage historic preservation initiatives by the city, volunteers, nonprofits, and government agencies to identify and preserve sites with historical significance
Continue to pursue and support opportunities to investigate and document local history
Increase awareness of state and federal grants, tax incentives and other financial incentives available to support the rehabilitation of historic resources
Encourage the adaptive reuse of historic buildings not eligible for designation on the Register of Historic Places but have historical features or cultural significance

Promote Heritage Tourism

Support tourism activities associated with historic resources
Encourage the development of historical opportunities
Establish trail access to the Carson River Canyon
Expand downtown walking tours

Support the Expansion of Artistic and Cultural Programs and Events

Collaborate with Visit Carson City and other local and regional partners on the implementation of the Arts and Culture Strategic Plan
Support nonprofits working to increase the community’s access to art in public buildings
Encourage the use of distinctive features in design and recognize the role community amenities play in the vibrancy of the city

Connected City

The main goals to achieve a connected city include:

Provide and Safe and Efficient Multi-Modal Transportation System for All Users

Promote the development of an integrated multi-modal transportation system
Seek opportunities for coordination of the regional transportation, transit and unified pathways plans.
Encourage ridership of the city’s transit system
Align the goals of the local road safety plan and the safe routes to school master plan
Coordinate ongoing road improvement projects under the purview of other entities with the city’s unified pathways master plan

Establish a city-wide system of Sidewalks, Multi-use Pathways and Bike Lanes

Expand the city’s existing network of pathways to link geographic locations within the community
Provide multi-use paths to cross physical barriers, establish direct connections between neighborhoods, schools and other destinations
Broaden the types of facilities provided within the community
Identify missing-link sites as future development occurs
Require future development to construct on site sidewalks and connections to adjacent pedestrian and bicycle systems

Priorities

The plan also highlights what the city’s priorities are within their action plan matrix.

The immediate priorities for the city are as follows, which means they should be initiated as soon as possible and completed within one to two years after the plan’s adoption.

Recalibrate the water model to reflect updated density and land use assumptions, and ensure the model accounts for planned uses on sites identified as priority for infill, redevelopment or adaptive reuse.

Adopt and enforce residential adjacency standards as part of Title 18 to establish clear expectations for compatibility and connectivity between residential neighborhoods, and between nonresidential or mixed-use development that abuts an existing residential neighborhoods.

Review and update development standards to ensure they align with the Wildland Urban Interface codes, and maintain an interactive map of documented hazards to help residents and property owners make informed decisions about potential risks.

Adopt a disaster response and recovery ordinance to streamline decision-making about rebuilding and permitting in the aftermath of a significant hazard event.

Implement improvements to public buildings and infrastructure to improve the city’s emergency preparedness, communication, response and overall resilience in the event of a hazard event.

Develop standards for wind, solar and geothermal energy facilities with considerations as to facility size, siting and screening criteria, decommissioning requirements, access, and others as applicable.

Conduct a comprehensive update of the 2006 Parks and Recreations Master Plan to include 1) an assessment of existing parks and recreation facility needs and community preferences 2) a fiscally-constrained set of priorities for maintenance and improvements and 3) a list of “as feasible” priorities that may be implemented through grant-funding or collaborative efforts with other agencies, non-profits or volunteer organizations.

Establish an Economic Development Strategy for the city.

Expand and maintain capacity to support economic development initiatives.

Complete a review of Title 18 and Development Standards to ensure they are in alignment with the Master Plan.

Conduct an analysis of the city’s current development and permitting fees, and update as needed to ensure the city’s fees capture actual costs of doing business.

Support ongoing investments in Airport facilities and services to attract additional investment to the airport area.

Pursue options to bring enhanced broadband service to better support the local community and increase economic growth.

Establish baseline retail sales data to understand the diversity of retail sales activity in Carson City and the types of retail leakage that are occurring.

Develop a marketing strategy to designed to attract and retain new retailers.

Host a special events calendar that focuses on events that generate out-of-the-area visitors and coordinate with the Chamber of Commerce on the locals/community calendar of events.

Analyze number of types of events for impacts on city infrastructure and reinvest in aging infrastructure to attract special events and tourism to Carson City.

Explore the creation of a convention center and associated support services.

Review and update access and connectivity requirements in Title 18 to support Complete Street objectives

Collaborate with property owners and the development community on opportunities to consolidate driveway access points.

Develop and adopt streetscape, signing and access management standards as part of Title 18 for private properties with frontages that abut Highway 50. Incorporate requirements for native or drought-tolerant landscaping, pedestrian- and bicycle-connectivity, lighting and site planning straggles that will promote the appearance along gateway corridors.

Consider the need for additional Neighborhood Improvement Districts to help fund ongoing maintenance of streetscape, signage, landscaping, or other public improvements.

Explore the concept of a redevelopment champion to promote redevelopment and revitalization goals and generally serve as a resource for city departments on economic development initiatives.

Review and update commercial, office and mixed-use zone districts in Title 18 to align with master plan goals.

Establish a program to encourage redevelopment along N. Carson Street.

Engage the owners of vacant properties to guide their overall interest in redevelopment or adaptive reuse; potential barriers, and anticipated timing. Develop a short list of possible catalyst sites based on input received and conduct a preliminary feasibility analysis.

Consider establishing a vacant building inventory and explore possible strategies to disincentivize long-term vacancies.

Engage major Downtown property owners to gauge their interest in redevelopment or adaptive use.

Explore property and business owner interest in developing a coordinated branding strategy, area plan and/or Neighborhood Improvement District for the urban mixed-use or neighborhood transition character areas for downtown.

Review and update residential and mixed-use zone districts in Title 18 to align with Master Plan Goals.

Adopt incentives to encourage the construction of homes that meet universal design or visitability principles to facilitate aging-in-place for older residents.

Evaluate ways to partner with affordable housing developers to increase affordable housing units.

Establish and maintain an inventory of public lands that may be suitable for affordable housing development, and make the inventory open to partners.

Review and adopt residential adjacency standards for infill projects that abut existing low density neighborhoods.

Develop strategies and incentives such as low-cost loans and design assistance programs to increase home ownership opportunities and promote regular home maintenance and renovation.

Establish and maintain an inventory of vacant and underutilized properties that may be suitable for infill or targeted redevelopment.

Consider legal and regulatory measures to return vacant and dilapidated properties to productive use.

Review and update the city’s historic district standards to national standards.

The entirety of the Master Plan Update 2024 can be viewed here.