Carson City arts master plan nears final draft

Carson City’s Cultural Commission put final touches on language in a draft arts and culture master plan Monday and set a meeting Nov. 23 for final action on it.

In a conference call during a Community Center public meeting, commissioners made some recommendations for consultant Kendall Hardin to alter language in places and discussed with her approaches to take after a final version is recommended by the commission for subsequent discussions with the city’s Board of Supervisors.

Hardin suggested reviewing the master plan with the board and, at the same time, emphasizing national and local data on how the arts can be an important economic driver for the community. She also mentioned the idea of seeing that local business supporters of arts and culture weigh in when the master plan reaches the board, which should be in December for an initial preview.

The cultural master plan also would undergo review by the city’s Planning Commission and then return for a second time later for possible final board consideration.

The plan envisions establishing the Carson City Cultural Commission, comprised of seven members, as a arts and culture board of directors. It says the commission would work through the Board of Supervisors to establish a designated agency or office for arts and culture with funding for start-up operations.

Among other ideas are a central arts district and cultural corridors, an arts incubator, an annual arts congress, grants programs, an artists’ registry, and coordinated interaction with educators.

Hardin said she is working with key players of the Brewery Arts Center, Western Nevada College’s musical performance programming and Jazz & Beyond to help provide data on local economic spinoffs from such events. Elinor Bugli, commission chairperson and a key person behind Jazz & Beyond, already had provided such data. Terri McBride, who headed the subcommittee on the Master Plan, said she would add such data from a Native American Pow-Wow event.

In other commission action, members voted to support a Downtown Business Association (DBA) proposal for a mural project on an exterior wall at a parking lot on the northeast corner of Curry and Ann streets. Kyle Horvath of the DBA told the Nevada Appeal the mural budget was for $2,000 and a mural artist would be selected from a group in the aftermath of portfolio submissions.