Neighbors oppose Vicee Canyon plan

Residents who oppose development in Vicee Canyon are gearing up for a chance to speak Wednesday during the Carson City Planning Commission meeting.

"This meeting is very important," said resident LeAnn Saarem, who opposes the plan because she believes residents' concerns haven't been taken seriously. "People really need to come and make their feelings known."

She helped purchase an advertisement in Monday's Nevada Appeal that beckons residents to the meeting.

Created by "concerned citizens of Carson City," the ad states, "The open space in the Vicee/Ash Canyon area is in danger of being developed. Come support the cause to keep its natural beauty as well as its openness to community use!"

This topic is scheduled to be heard by the commission at 7 p.m. It could recommend the plan to the Board of Supervisors or deny it

The Vicee Canyon plan deals mostly with how to control potential development of 267 acres in west Carson City next to Western Nevada Community College and accessible from Timberline Drive. Up to 160 acres would be suitable for low-density residential development - no more than three units for each acre - according to a master plan. The specific plan for Vicee Canyon, however, seeks a lower density of 1.4 homes per acre.

City and state officials have said no one is seeking to buy the land, at least now.

Vicee is part of the state's school trust fund and managed by the Nevada Division of State Lands. Land owned by a government entity in Nevada can't be sold directly to another government entity; it must be put up for auction.

Assembly Bill 312, signed into law by Gov. Kenny Guinn last year, was created after land adjacent to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas was swapped to a real estate developer, who then sold it for a hefty profit. The law requires government land sales be conducted by public auction, though all bids would be sealed until an auction begins.

Cities can't buy land for more than fair-market value, and a bidding process doesn't guarantee property won't exceed that price, said Juan Guzman, the city's open space manager.

The plan was created so that if the state should decide to sell the land to raise money for schools. It would provide some local control of its use.

Members of the city's Open Space Advisory Committee recommended the proposal to the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors.

"For open space, the plan offers protection for the resources and provides for where development makes sense," Guzman said.

Parks and Recreation commissioners, however, decided not to recommend it, and asked the Board of Supervisors to seek a change in state law. The commissioners would like to see legislators exclude from the new law land sales between government entities because trying to obtain the land at auction would prove highly difficult and potentially costly.

Pedestrians, hikers and bicyclists have used the array of informal trails now in the area, which the city would like to preserve and, where viable, create new trails.

Plans to combine recreational uses with storm-detention drains and open space also are highlighted in the document, which was created in cooperation with the Division of State Lands. Development would be clustered to allow for ample open space.

-- Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.

If you go

What: Planning Commission meeting

When: Meeting begins at 3:30 p.m. Vicee Canyon plan scheduled at 7 p.m.

Where: Sierra Room, Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William St.