'Partnership' county's watchword for 2010

The operative word for Douglas County in 2010 is "partnership."

One need only review the county's economic development goals for 2010 to see the significance:

"The new decade allows Douglas County, and its public and private partners, the opportunity to target and launch important projects on the horizon. These projects could be large or small, but as a whole they can create true and lasting economic, environmental, social and cultural capital for Douglas County."

Economic development is one of the top strategic priorities set by the county commissioners.

With room tax and gaming revenues continuing to decline, county officials have been looking elsewhere to augment the difference.

"The good news is we are managing expenditures extremely well," said County Manager T. Michael Brown.

Last week, he outlined financial policies and the budget calendar for the next fiscal year which begins July 1.

"It's not all doom and gloom," Brown told the board Feb. 4. "We're going to manage it."

He said the county is as prepared as it can be pending action by the state either dropping services or taking county revenue.

"We are in a lot better shape than almost every county in Nevada," said Commissioner Doug Johnson, who also serves as 2010 president-elect of Nevada Association of Counties.

The state's preliminary revenue and expenditure estimates are due Feb. 16.

"We'll have a much better idea of the shape we're in after that," Brown said.

While acknowledging the county's financial situation, Brown doesn't want to overlook the possibilities and the successes of the past decade.

"Sometimes, we don't look back and focus on what we completed," he said in a recent interview.

Assistant to the County Manager Lisa Granahan singled out the Carson Valley Trails Association as a successful partnership.

"Five years ago there was a grant to built the Jobs Peak trail. The Carson Valley Trails Association wanted to do that and more," she said. "The organization has such tremendous capability of fundraising, grant writing and grant applications. They developed the specifics of the trail. They've seen Jobs Peak trail finished and now they're actively seeking funding of the Genoa Foothill trail. They deserve a lot of credit."

The board is planning a strategic plan workshop on Feb. 18 after the commission meeting at the Lake.

"The strategic plan is our road map for staff," Brown said. "It lists the top projects for the board.

Residents can view the strategic plan on the county's Web site.

Two objectives - the airport use ordinance and the transient occupancy tax ballot measure - came up for discussion Feb. 4.

Assistant County Manager Steve Mokrohisky has been shepherding the airport use ordinance since he was hired by the county last year.

Along with the Airport Advisory Committee, Mokrohisky oversaw 40 public meetings in nine months.

"There was a lot of cooperation," he said. "It was fairly collaborative. We wanted to engage the public, there was a lot of education. I think we have an ordinance that is enforceable on real limitations. We believe the ordinance will maintain compliance which was always our goal."

The $21 million north county pipeline project agreements were signed after two years of negotiations by Douglas County, Minden Town Board, Indian Hills General Improvement District, Carson City and the Carson Water Subconservancy District.

"In my experience, it's the most comprehensive project this county has worked on," Brown said. "You have five different jurisdictions working with a common good in mind. To have that happen takes a whole lot of work with a whole lot of benefit. It puts water rights to beneficial use and instead of spending $40 million-$50 million, we have saved more than half of that."