Ross Gold Park playground and picnic area to start renovations March 25

The project to rehabilitate Ross Gold Park is finally moving forward.

“We are super excited to be here, it’s been a long time coming,” Jennifer Budge, director, Parks, Recreation and Open Space told the Board of Supervisors on Thursday.

The board approved a contract not to exceed $429,098.45 with Garden Shop Nursery Landscaping Division, Inc., to renovate the 25-year-old park between Appion Way and Overland Street with new, universally-accessible playground equipment. Both the playground and picnic area will be off limits starting March 25 when demolition begins, and the project is expected to take about three months to complete.

The Parks and Rec department has spent the last few years cobbling together the funds to pay for the project. An initial request for proposal for a contractor didn’t pan out when all the bids came back higher than the engineer’s estimate.

The city received three bids on this latest RFP. The project is being paid for through several grants, including a $261,657 Land and Water Conservation Fund grant, and $86,643 in Residential Construction Tax funds.

The board, meeting as the Redevelopment Authority, approved most of the 2020 project spending recommended by the Redevelopment Authority Citizens Committee with a few changes.

The authority killed a project to build an enclosure for trash downtown, which had been allotted $25,000, mainly because the enclosure was on private property to be used by businesses, and removed $26,000 allocated for downtown snow removal.

“I have a problem creating a trash enclosure on public property unless it is publicly available,” said Supervisor Stacey Giomi.

The authority moved $100,000 for a new sound system at Fuji Park from 2020 to 2019 and took $20,000 from a utility extension program to update the park’s master plan.

“I want a master plan on how we should plan for the park,” said Supervisor Brad Bonkowski. “Proposals keep coming before us piecemeal, without an overall picture of where this is getting us or why.”

The public will be able to weigh in on the master plan update, which will start this spring.

The tentative budget passed 4-1. Supervisor John Barrette voted no, he said, to voice his concerns that something be done about the trash situation downtown.

The supervisors also voted to change policy concerning Carson City boards and committees. City employees will now be allowed to serve on a committee only if a qualified applicant from the public isn’t available and only on committees unrelated to the employee’s department. The employee will also serve as an unpaid volunteer like other committee members.

“That we prefer non-city over city (employees) should be clear so people know we are not stacking committees,” said Mayor Bob Crowell.

The board heard a presentation on a water analysis report Public Works delivered last month to the Planning Commission.

The study analyzes 20,000 parcels in Carson City and looks at peak and average water usage for 19 land uses, including industrial, commercial and residential. The goal is to aid in land use planning.

“This is invaluable,” said Supervisor Brad Bonkowski, who said it will be used when recruiting businesses and handling development. “If a developer comes to us and wants to increase density, then we can say we need you to bring more resources. If their water use is going to exceed that I think they should bring those additional resources and bank them.”

The supervisors heard about several more bills before the 80th Session of the Nevada Legislature. They voted to remain neutral on Assembly Bill 70 on open meeting law; to monitor AB 136 and Senate Bill 231 on prevailing wage; and to oppose AB 133 on indigent youths, and AB 190 which would raise the threshold on construction jobs requiring a prevailing wage.