Carson City Board of Supervisors to discuss challenges at annual retreat

The Board of Supervisors plan to discuss in depth several key challenges facing Carson City at its annual strategic planning workshop on Thursday.

Lee Plemel, director, Community Development, will outline options for dealing with the ongoing problem of conditions at extended stay motels.

In 2016 the city created a task force consisting of inspectors from several departments to work together and conduct extensive inspections of some of the city’s most dilapidated properties.

Since then, half a dozen or so motels have been inspected and several properties have changed hands, such as Back on Track, now The Nolan Inn, and improved.

But, the process is slow and supervisors want to discuss additional measures the city might take to address the issue.

Nicki Aaker, director, and Mary Jane Ostrander, division manager, Carson City Health and Human Services, will give a presentation on housing shortages in Carson City.

The city’s vacancy rate for rental property is extremely low, rents are high, and CCHHS, which helps place people in housing, has trouble finding space.

Darren Schulz, director, Public Works, will talk about taking ownership of new roads.

The city has only enough money to maintain its most traveled streets so the supervisors want to consider not accepting some new roads built by developers, especially roads interior to a subdivision that only connect to one public street and are only used by residents of the development.

Jennifer Budge, director, and Lyndsey Boyer, senior natural resources specialist, Parks, Recreation and Open Space, will give a presentation on hemp.

The city is placing a temporary moratorium on hemp growth in Carson City while it drafts a policy.

At the same time, it’s involved in a lawsuit, brought by Tahoe Hemp LLC, which the city denied permission to grow hemp on open space land.

Finally, the supervisors will discuss strategic goals and objectives.

The special workshop, which is open to the public, is on Feb. 27 at 8:30 a.m. in the Silver Oak Golf Course, Executive Conference Center.