Carson on a path to avoid Utica's economic disaster

I've just returned from visiting family in Utica, N.Y. Whenever I do, many thoughts come to mind. Thoughts regarding family aside, I think about the benefits of New York State outlawing the use of cellular phones by drivers of moving vehicles (which I will cover soon in a future column as it could relate to Nevada). I also think about how good it feels to go to a restaurant or bar and not have second-hand smoke as my entrée. And I think about what Utica's leaders should have done 40 years ago to prevent the city from nose-diving from its heights of industrial fortitude and consumerism to its serpentine crawls in crime, depression, and an Old Testament exodus of industry, retailing, and residents.

Utica is a city whose population fell unceremoniously from a peak of 101,518 in 1940 to slightly over 59,000. Companies like General Electric, which in the 1960s employed 10,000 people - a respectable number of them in high-paying jobs - and other textile and light electronics industries have all left that city like a panicked escape from radiation. No one at the pinnacle of that city's success could have imagined the quadriplegic immobility that would become the city's handicap in recent years leading to the present.

For some time after my arrival to Carson City four years ago, I was saddled with the concern of the city's long-term direction to maintain and improve its retail and manufacturing foundation over the next 20 years and more, my concern being infected by the ugly demise of my hometown. And, in one of my columns earlier this year, I even criticized our civic leaders for an apparent surrender to the Wal-Marts and Sam's Clubs that infest our planet. But my criticism was isolated to only that one point. I still hold that opinion, but to a different degree of Fahrenheit - the difference being my respect for what our city managers do, which far exceeds the few criticisms I may have. And that respect was always alive, even in the most fervent heartbeat of my aforementioned criticisms.

A few months ago, Joe McCarthy, Carson City's economic development manager, proved once again that city leaders have positioned us far ahead of so many other cities in America. Proactive progressive thinking, fastened to an unwavering vision, community input, and involvement are all nutrients for success in the continued development and growth of a city. Actually, you can say that those are the active protein drink ingredients for any successful business.

While visiting family back East, I was having a watch band replaced at a prominent and long-standing local jeweler in the Utica area, and mentioned to one of the owners Carson City's ambitious downtown redevelopment plan that Joe McCarthy has navigated so competently. I told him, "That's what Utica should have done years ago." He quickly nodded his head and said, "You're right. You're so right. Good way to get people involved. Too late for us (Utica) though."

Sad to say, but I sometimes wonder if the only thing that could bring a city like Utica back is a natural disaster that warrants federal support to rebuild its devastation.

That's what happens when city government falls asleep on the railroad tracks. Carson City, in contrast, is in a near-perfect position to set a statewide example of what a city can do when a smart plan is carried through by a team of seriously determined professionals.

Our downtown is clean. It has few vacancies. It could use some diversity in shops and more locally owned restaurants, but at least we have some quaint shops and a couple of fine restaurants to provide a starting point. The master plan for "Downtown Carson City: Your Vision Revealed" is a triumph of creative and mindful futuristic strategy. A pedestrian-friendly dreamscape of fountains, park benches, courtyards, boutiques, restaurants, bars, galleries - all reasons to draw and keep people downtown.

The projected investment of $75 million to create this Shangri-La of small city downtowns is just that - an investment. Not an expenditure. Investing money in Carson City's downtown is a box car dice roll. A gamble worth taking. An investment worth making.

• is publisher of the Nevada Appeal. Write to him at jdimambro@nevadaappeal.com.