Campagni proposal put aside until questions answered

A proposal for Carson City to provide more redevelopment money to Dick Campagni has been parked in the garage until the auto dealer is available to answer questions.

"What'll the money be used for?" asked Supervisor Richard Staub, who helped put together the initial agreement between Campagni and the city.

The Board of Supervisors decided to postpone deciding whether to provide the business owner with an additional $500,000 to help construct a new auto dealership until they have more information. Campagni is on vacation.

It's costing $1 million more than expected to build the Carson City Toyota on South Carson Street near Wells Fargo Bank. The city's Redevelopment Authority and Campagni would split the additional cost under this proposal.

Increasing project cost is a recent upgrade of requirements for dealership construction and design by Toyota Motor Corp., said Joe McCarthy, the city's redevelopment manager.

"We need to get (Campagni) to start construction," Staub said. "He's a kingpin to our auto-row project."

In 2005, the city provided Campagni with a $3.6 million incentive to buy land for an expanded Toyota dealership that requires, among other things, his four auto dealerships located in Carson remain here for at least 15 years. The dealer would pay back the city the added $500,000 over seven years through new property taxes the business pays from its expanded operation.

While it would cut into money for other improvements within the south-side redevelopment area, Campagni is the only local auto dealer to have reached this point of commitment to the city, Staub said.

Discussions with other auto dealers in Carson to entice them into an auto row continue, he added.

Auto sales comprise about one-third of the city's annual sales tax revenue.

The other redevelopment item the supervisors were scheduled to hear, the proposed annexation of the site of the old Kmart building and North Town Plaza into the south side redevelopment district, received favor.

Not included in the proposal are the Bully's and McDonald's restaurants visible from North Carson Street, McCarthy said.

The shopping area "is deteriorating," said Julius Ballardini, owner of North Town Plaza. "We need to get something going."

This would be an addition to the redevelopment area on South Carson Street that was established in 2004 to foster better auto sales.

Campagni's new Toyota dealership would be part of this. Last spring, the supervisors added a substantial number of nearby business sites to the original area.

This proposal to add Kmart and other neighboring businesses is expected back in July or August for a final decision.

In other business, the supervisors:

• Approved a more than $5 million contract with Marv McQueary Excavating Inc. to upgrade and realign water and sewer lines along Fifth Street on Nevada State Prison property to prepare for the next phase of the Carson City freeway.

• Agreed to changes in the rules for planned-unit developments. A resident, Bruce Kittess, with questions about the proposal didn't get answers about it before the supervisors voted on it for the last time. Mayor Marv Teixeira asked the man why he hadn't asked questions earlier and said it was too late.

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