It's been almost two years since I first heard about the Nugget Project.

Back then, the plan was very vague, a public-private partnership that could add up to $90 million. The city's part of this project would be a 1/8th cent sales tax increase and money from the redevelopment fund equaling approximately $25 million.

From the start, the complex nature of this project caused confusion and controversy. The Carson City Chamber of Commerce withheld its endorsement until there was more information about project, and in particular, about the ownership of the land to be "donated" by the foundation set up by the late Mae Adams whose family built and operated the Carson Nugget.

The nature of this public-private partnership also created questions. Nugget President Steve Neighbors was vague about what money, if any, was going to come from the private side, and from who.

One piece of the early version of the project had a private developer building office buildings where three state agencies would lease space. But seeing as how the state was facing huge budget problems, this part of the plan was DOA, even though project planners would keep beating this dead horse for many months more.

They also pursued the idea of mixing residential units in the project, seemingly unaware that the housing market had crashed, and there was no appetite for urban living in this decidedly suburban town.

The question of land ownership evolved from lease-in-perpetuity to lease-to-own after 30 years. It was an improvement to be sure, but still caused opponents to question the "donation" that was being made.

It was as string of miscalculations and missteps that fed opposition to the project.

Eventually, the Carson City Board of Supervisors was presented with a $31 million project with no private money involved. This would have required a $1.2 million annual extraction out of the city's general fund, in addition to the sales tax and redevelopment funds.

The plans for how the project would look once it was built were underwhelming. The library was a simple rectangular box, sitting next to a rather boring public plaza. The parking garage was to be situated at the back door of the Nugget casino, which was great news for the Nugget, but created more doubts about just who this project was meant to benefit.

While the board voted to continue the process, a majority of the board turned against the project as it stood. It looked like it was dead in the water.

But then a miracle. A new architect was brought in, completely revamping the design to create a stunning facility.

Then the original developer bowed out, and forced Nugget President Steve Neighbors and other proponents to rethink everything. For the first time, Neighbors committed substantial dollars to building the project. He also agreed to a straight-up donation of the land. A non-profit organization would be formed to take on ownership, and a commitment was made to seek $18 million in private donations. Neighbors agreed that the Hop and Mae Adams Foundation would pitch in to make up for shortfalls in the fundraising.

The total cost of the project went up to almost $50 million, but city's share dropped to less than $24 million.

The final point of resistance was the 1/8th cent sales tax. Some argued this was the wrong time to raise taxes, even by this small amount. But that issue may have been resolved earlier this month with a small hike in landfill fees that may make it possible to fund the project without raising taxes.

The Nugget Project has come a long way. The new plan answers many of the previous concerns, and has won over many (but not all) of its former critics. The project looks like it could be a wonderful addition to this community. It has the potential to bring in tens of millions of dollars in addition to the city funds that would be spent, giving the city a short-term economic boost from the construction, and possible long-term benefits from a state-of-the-art library/knowledge and discovery center.

It's been a rough road, but all those bumps helped create a far, far better plan than when it was first proposed.

There are still details on the financing and other items to be worked out, but it seems likely the board will vote Thursday to move ahead.