Greenhouse Garden Center in Carson City to get grant from Facade Improvement program

CARSON CITY —The Greenhouse Garden Center & Gift Shop is getting a makeover.

The Redevelopment Authority Citizens Committee (RACC) on Monday approved an application from the Curry Street nursery for matching funds from the city’s Facade Improvement program.

The project includes replacing the building’s siding facing Curry and Rhodes streets, painting, new doors, replacement of a shade structure, and parking lot paving, not all of which is eligible for reimbursement from the program.

The total project, according to the nursery’s application, is $71,922. RACC approved a match of $20,329.

RACC also granted a waiver of the program requirement for three bids, which has posed a problem for most of the applicants.

“It was exceedingly difficult to get three bids,” for the various types of work, said David Ruf, owner. “We had a total of 15 contractors respond, eight showed up and four gave us bids.”

Ruf said some of the work being done is to repair damage from last year’s snowstorms, which caused flooding throughout the property.

RACC also approved $5,000 for rental of a large tent for the upcoming Carson City Fair at Fuji Park. The tent will be used to house livestock.

Initially, at its February meeting, RACC approved funding to buy a new tent to be owned and maintained by the city. The city has owned tents before, including tents used at the now defunct ice rink, which are both too small for the fair and past their useful life.

But then the city decided it did not want to take on the management, including labor, and liability of a large tent.

“We’ve done it in the past, but not sure it’s something the city wants to do,” said Lee Plemel, director of Community Development.

The money was allocated from RACC’s special event funding, which had $16,000 remaining in the current fiscal year budget.