Carson City OKs contract to complete water transmission line

The Board of Supervisors on Thursday approved a contract to complete the transmission line that carries water from Minden to Carson City.

The $5.5 million contract was awarded to Aspen Developers Corp., which will begin construction in July.

The project will take the transmission line up Washington Street, from Phillips Street to Ormsby Boulevard, through Andersen Ranch, Long Ranch Estates, and open space to the Quill Water Treatment Plant.

The completion of the line will allow Minden water to be used throughout the city, said Dan Stucky, city engineer.

Carson City buys water from Minden to dilute the levels of arsenic and uranium in water here rather than treat it.

The project will include road work on Washington Street, too, and last about six months, said Stucky.

Another big contract was pulled from the agenda. A $5.1 million agreement with the Nevada Department of Transportation for Carson City to join the statewide public safety communications system was first heard at the May 16 meeting, when the board sent it back to staff for more work. The item is now expected to come back to the board in August.

Other approved contracts included a $524,381 contract with Stonehouse Drilling and Construction LLC to redrill Carson City well #3, a $222,123 contract with Cannon Cochran Management Services, Inc., for workers’ comp and other insurance administrative services, and a $604,351 agreement with Public Entity Property Insurance Program for property insurance, as well as a three-year agreement with Douglas County for Carson City to provide environmental health services and inspectors.

The board heard wrap-ups of the 2019 legislative session from Mary and Steve Walker, Walker and Associates, the city’s lobbyists, and Wes Henderson, executive director, Nevada League of Cities.

“We ended up a heck of a lot better than we started,” Mary Walker said.

Among the bills passed that could impact the city is Senate Bill 48, which would let the city tax diesel fuel either through a vote of the board or the voters. If enacted, such a tax would raise about $400,000 annually for maintenance of Carson City roads.

Assembly Bill 240 requires representatives from Carson City, and Douglas, Lyon, Storey and Washoe counties to meet at least twice a year to discuss growth management in the region.

And SB 231 changes the requirement to pay prevailing wages on public works projects. Now municipalities have to pay prevailing wage starting on projects costing $100,000 instead of $250,000. The city’s fiscal impact note for the bill said it would cost the city $200,000 more annually.

The board also followed the recommendations of the Planning Commission to change zoning on several pieces of land. Six properties on Dean Court were changed from single family one acre to single family 12,000, commercial properties on Retail Drive, Hot Springs Road, Market Street and College Parkway were rezoned general commercial from light industrial, and two recent open acquisitions were converted from conservation reserve to open space. Each requires a second reading of the ordinances to finalize the changes.

The board held a joint meeting with the Carson City School District Board of Trustees at 6 p.m.