Photos By Kevin Clifford/Nevada Appeal Carson City Coroner Ruth Beseler uses a backhoe Thursday to demolish part of a 40-year-old building to the rear of the Carson City Sheriff's Department on Musser Street. She was guided by Public Works Street Department worker Alan Annette. The demolished building was once used as a parking garage and storage for department records. The demolition will make way for the sheriff's department's new administrative facility.
The mood was festive Thursday as a John Deere excavator, at times manned by sheriff's department employees, destroyed a 40-year-old building to the rear of the Musser Street department.
"That was awesome," said Carson City Coroner Ruth Beseler as she stepped off the excavator's enormous tracks and removed her construction helmet. Beseler was responsible for tearing down the center wall of the brick building and taking with it the canopy that once covered gas pumps.
"Am I the woman or what?"
At 12:30 p.m. Sheriff Kenny Furlong had the honor of the first blow in the demolition of the 1,000-square-foot building. The destruction makes way for the construction of the sheriff's department's new $12 million administrative facility.
Following Furlong, a succession of employees were given the opportunity to see what it felt like to handle the Jurassic-sized piece of heavy machinery.
Deputies Alex Leuthauser and Carl Fry, Heidi Novikoff, detective secretary Donna Sell, Undersheriff Steve Albertsen, communication supervisor Laura Cadot and Victoria Carmack all took their turns as well.
The building was constructed in 1965 as a garage and shop for patrol vehicles. At some point, the garage entrances were bricked up and the gas tanks pulled out.
The department's records were stored there up until last month when the files and staff were moved to the corporate yard on Butti Way.
Demolition on the old jail should happen at the end of the month. Two structures on Musser Street were demolished in November to make way for the new 40,388-square-foot building. It will replace the current 30,000-square-foot facility - 60 percent of which was unusable for office space because it contains the old jail cells - built in 1964.
The new administrative complex will take 18-24 months to build. Once the new building is finished, the current 901 E. Musser St. will be demolished and become parking space for the new building.
Through it all, the detectives, administration, evidence, business and civil functions - will continue where they are.
-- Contact reporter F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.