Carson City Board of Supervisors explore parks and recreation projects

The Carson City Board of Supervisors authorized the Parks, Recreation and Open Space department to make three separate applications for a grant to fund local projects.

The grant money, if awarded, could help finance the disc golf course complex, a purchase of 20 acres near the Clear Creek interchange for open space, and a new playground for Ross Gold Park.

Much of the discussion concerned the playground due to the project’s cost.

The department is looking to multiple sources to raise $545,795 to replace the more than 20 year-old playground equipment, which can’t be adequately maintained and poses a potential safety hazard, said Vern Krahn, senior park planner.

Parks and Rec is making the $146,045 grant application approved by the board, which requires a 50 percent match, and a request for $148,699 to the Community Development Block Grant program, which is competitive and not guaranteed.

“I’d like some assurance that acceptance of the grant is contingent on getting the other money so we don’t get backed into a corner,” said Supervisor Brad Bonkowski.

Jennifer Budge, Parks and Rec director, said the design of the park could be scaled back to match the money raised, if necessary, but the goal is to overhaul the park and provide universal accessibility.

“This playground is on its last legs,” said Budge. “It’s a maintenance nightmare and investing in a new playground will reduce maintenance costs.”

As part of that, the board also approved the allocation of $86,643 in Residential Construction Tax for the playground.

The applications for the three projects are being made to the Land and Water Conservation Fund, a federal grant managed the National Park Service and administered here by Nevada State Parks.

The other two applications, for the disc golf course and the 20 acre land acquisition, are for $100,000 each.

Parks and Rec also took on the tasks of the Shade Tree Council, which the board disbanded.

The council, established in 1993, oversaw the city’s urban forest and helped the city obtain designation as a Tree City USA from the Arbor Day Foundation, which no longer requires a citizens’ panel like the council.

The board also approved a five-year contract for $174,598.56 annually to upgrade the city’s 911 system.

The system is operated by AT&T, which is moving it from a local data center to an AT&T central office to provide 24-hour backup in case of a power outage, part of an upgrade mandated by the Federal Communications Commission.

The supervisors passed three ordinances on second reading.

One ordinance institutes a 180-day moratorium on applications for construction of new marijuana establishments in order to wait for the state’s regulations on recreational marijuana now being written.

Another will allow Western Nevada College to install an off-site, digital sign at the intersection of College Parkway and Carson Street.

Another ordinance changed the zoning on property on Snyder Avenue and East Roland Street from single-family to multi-family.

The board also adopted a resolution to augment the Carson City fiscal year 2016-2017 budget by $45,186,242, mostly due to carryovers from program costs from prior year’s budget. Some of the money included transfers such as $289,019 saved building the animal shelter, which has been moved to the corridors project.