Twenty chances to help shape the Capital City

Twenty public hearings may seem like a daunting schedule. But that's OK - you only have to attend one.

It'll be Carson City's Planning Commission and other boards that will sit through an extensive set of public meetings with the goal of hearing as many comments from as many residents as possible in formulating the city's new master plan.

Mayor Marv Teixeira has given the Planning Commission the charge of making sure the public gets involved in completing "the community vision of the future."

But the responsibility lies with residents themselves. They must care how this city is going to be shaped in the next 20 years, and they must pass along their thoughts to the people who will make it happen.

Master plans sometimes have the effect of a giant sleeping pill - particularly in their attempt to cover every potential, opportunity and issue that may crop up in coming decades. It's a big, big picture.

But break it down, and every resident of Carson will find something they care deeply about. Try it by going to www.carson-city.nv.us/ and clicking on the "Envision Carson City" symbol. Zoning, recreation, transportation, downtown, growth, health care - it's all there.

A great deal of work already has gone into the plan, which has been in the works for more than a year.

But that doesn't mean it's been decided. A framework has been set and the details fleshed out so that people will have substance to which they can respond positively or negatively.

In other words, the upcoming public hearings are the opportunity to shape the plan before it goes to city supervisors, probably in December. Nobody expects you to go to 20 public hearings, but we do expect you - as a taxpayer, voter and resident - to attend at least one.