RTC reexamines priority list

Traffic in Carson City is a topic bound to generate conversation.

Carson City's regional transportation commissioners will have plenty of discussion Saturday when they review their priority list for 2000.

A yearly review of transportation priorities is a requirement of the 1998 transportation master plan. Commissioners will have a chance Saturday to see which projects will vie for funding during the coming year.

With the completion of the $6.3 million Graves Lane project, the commission has a limited amount of funds.

The RTC is funded by a 9-cent gas tax. Five cents is funneled directly to the Nevada Department of Transportation for the city's portion of the northern leg of the freeway. About $60,000 a month is generated for the commission by the other four cents after salaries, supplies and a roughly $278,000 debt payment for Graves Lane are subtracted.

The meeting is an opportunity to review funding and to decide what projects are necessary for Carson over the next few years.

"The purpose is to review the overall regional transportation commission program," Deputy City Manager Dan St. John said. "Other projects have popped up since the last time we prioritized projects that need to be discussed.

"This is our attempt to create a single priority list for all potential RTC projects and to start working towards the creation of a five-year projection showing which projects will be done at what point. We will also begin discussing potential financing mechanisms to fund the projects."

New projects that have cropped up recently include expansion of Old Clear Creek Road for the development of a Costco in south Carson. There is a roughly $11.5 million list of other projects to pull from, but the project that comes up in most people's minds as a priority is extension of Curry Street.

Transportation Commission Chairman Jon Plank said Curry Street could be the next big project because of the amount of people it would serve.

"Curry Street does two things for us," St. John added. "First, it provides traffic relief on South Carson Street that our master plan says we need. The second thing is it opens up a significant commercial corridor."

The Curry extension will cost over $1.7 million and several projects connecting the road to South Carson Street are in the future funding line up.

No action will be taken establishing the year's priorities until the February meeting. Plank said he wanted everyone to think about the priorities between the workshop and the regular to make sure the decisions would be the right ones.

"There are so many changes that happen to Carson City in a year, it's necessary that the RTC review its priorities once a year," Commissioner Steve Reynolds said. "Each project will have to be weighed on its own merits. I think we need to invest in projects that will have value during and after the freeway is constructed."

Commissioners will also discuss bicycle and pedestrian plans. Sound walls on the list for South Graves Lane and College Parkway will compete with other items for a spot on the priority funding list.

If you go:

What: Carson City Regional Transportation Commission workshop

When: Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Where: Cooperative Extension, 2621 Northgate Lane, Suite 12, Carson City

The highest priorities on Carson's transportation list include:

Project Estimated Cost

Arrowhead connector road to Graves Lane $1.1 million

Curry Street extension from Lake Glen to Koontz $1.7 million

Curry Street extension from Koontz to Clearview undetermined

Edmonds Drive widening from Butti Way to Fairview Drive $1.3 million

Ormsby Boulevard extension $745,000

Signal at Roop Street and Winnie Lane $150,000

Stewart Street extension $326,160