Winter finally paid a visit to Carson City. After six weeks of Spring time throughout January and February, Mother nature finally decided to wake up and dump some snow on us. And it was a good size dumping too, at least 6 inches, more in some parts of town. We went to Lake Tahoe and I sunk in fresh powder up to my thigh! But it’s good to finally get some snow, even though we were getting a taste of Spring and got used to it. We’re having a few sunny days now, so all the ice can melt off the roads, but by Thursday we’re supposed to be back under the grip of another storm system. I wonder how long winter will last this year? For more photos go to aroundcarson.com.

Sen. Harry Reid spoke at a joint session of the Nevada Legislature this morning, asking legislators not to cut education, and to have "an adult conversation" about outlawing prostitution.

The call for ending legal brothels was met by a a cool reception from the legislators who gave it only a smattering of applause followed by an uneasy silence. In the gallery was BunnyRanch owner Dennis Hof and some of his working girls.

By Andrew Doughman / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – Ted McAleer says he’s got a silver bullet for creating jobs in the Silver State.

Here's a news coverage roundup of Monday's labor union rally in Carson City, which brought out a few hundred supporters and a few dozen Tea Party demonstrators.

During March and April, groups and individuals are invited to partner with the Dayton Food Pantry for The Feinstein $1 Million Challenge to fight hunger.

Mary Piper, organizer for the local Challenge, explained, “If groups donate non-perishable food items or money to Dayton Food Pantry in March and April, the Feinstein Foundation will add funds. The more donations we receive, the larger our slice of the pie will be.”

The last time I wrote about pogonip, I got a correction that these ice crystals should more properly be considered a hoar frost, or rime frost. It is the fog itself that is pogonip, from the Shoshone phrase for “freezing death”, the idea being that if you breathe it in the crystals will form in your lungs and bad things will happen. I think the etymology is probably correct, but we have built a regional identity around the word “pogonip”, taking this cool frost that forms in a lot of places around the world, and in some small way making it our own.

The Carson City Symphony, directed by David Bugli, will present a concert, "French Passion," on Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Carson City Community Center.
The concert features guest violinist Andrew Sords in a performance of Eduoard Lalo's "Symphonie espagnole." This all-French program, suitable for people of all ages, also includes Georges Bizet's "L'Arlesienne Suite No. 1" and Gabriel Faure's "Dolly Suite."
Pre-concert entertainment begins at 3 p.m. in the lobby and a Meet-the-Soloist preview begins at 3:15 p.m. in the Sierra Room.

For pre-school and early elementary children Tuesday is Books and Brags at the Children's Museum of Northern Nevada. Miss Penny reads a story and the children make a craft related to the story. Craft is free with general admission. 9:30am - 10:30am. Children's Museum of Northern Nevada, 813 N. Carson Street. Call (775) 884-2226.

Carson City attorney Wally Earhart will portray President Lincoln and deliver the Comstock Historical Lecture at the revival of Virginia City's Bonanza Days on March 5.

He will be joined by the Comstock Civil War Re-enactors who will assist in hosting the dinner in character. The Marshall Mint will premiere the first strike of its new Big Bonanza commemorative silver coin at the event.

With labor momentum building to a showdown in Wisconsin, a rally in support of Nevada workers will be held in Carson City at noon Monday on the front steps of the Legislature Building.

"It has never been more important than now to stand in solidarity with Wisconsin workers and workers around the country, including Nevada workers, who are under attack from politicians bent on destroying the labor movement," said Danny L. Thompson, executive secretary treasurer of the Nevada AFL-CIO.

Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011. U.S. 50 West between Meyers and Kyburz.

Checking in with Sierra-at-Tahoe, bottomless is the word of the day. The resort reports a mountain of new snow, as La Niña has lived up to her name graciously delivering the biggest storm of 2011.

The resort reports up to 8 feet of snow and counting, so make sure you wear you pole straps or you might not find them till the spring.

You'll feel confident when you huck those tricks you weren't brave enough to throw on hard pack. Today is the day with the resort filled with pillow soft landings.

With around 5 feet of fresh snow falling around Lake Tahoe this week, the Mt. Rose ski area has begun a couple of Monday options worth considering.

If you buy a teen lift ticket online through www.skirose.com, you can save $12 off the regular rate at the window.

In separate offer, present your previous Saturday or Sunday lift ticket to receive a Monday ticket for only $29. No weekend ticket?  Mt. Rose will still sell you a ticket on Monday for only $39.

These offers are valid Feb. 21 and every Monday during the rest of the season. 

Bobby the Boxer Benefit Breakfast/Silent Auction

The traffic signal at the intersection of N. Saliman Road and E. William Street will be modified on February 22. A signal will be added for vehicles traveling northbound on N. Saliman Road and turning left onto westbound E. William Street. No interruptions to traffic are expected, but please use caution in this area.

Utility work will occur on Russell Way between Northridge Drive and Long Street on February 22-23. Two-way traffic will be maintained with flaggers.

Shoulder work will occur at Stanton Drive and Monte Rosa Drive due to sidewalk improvements.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uLECuGK07U

Several people at yesterday's Board of Supervisors meeting mentioned the generosity of Mae Adams for donating land to Carson City for the proposed Knowledge and Discovery Center and public plaza, the centerpiece of the City Center/Nugget Project.

I've heard some critics complain about this donation, which does little to bolster their case. Despite the unorthodox lease deal, it really is a donation we should be thankful to have the option of using for a new library.

But this donation does come with one very large and expensive string attached.

After a marathon meeting today, the Carson City Board of Supervisors voted 4-1 to allow staff to begin negotiations on agreements to develop the City Center/Nugget Project.

But the project may face hurdles getting final approval, as two of those voting yes expressed concerns about the project.

By Sean Whaley / Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – A state Senate resolution telling Congress to respect Nevada’s right to govern itself under the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is expected to get a hearing, the chief sponsor said today.

By Andrew Doughman/ Nevada News Bureau
CARSON CITY – In certain circles, nothing raises the collective blood pressure like talk of ARRA and the federal stimulus bill.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that President Barack Obama signed into law two years ago has channeled $800 billion to the states in an attempt to jolt the economy to life.

It happened almost too fast. Mayor Bob Crowell made a quick motion, and asked if anyone on the board had any appetite for raising property taxes. No one did.

The finance director spoke up to suggest a small adjustment for one area. Supervisor Karen Abowd made a different motion to keep taxes the same except for this small adjustment. That motion passed unanimously.

This may be the biggest agenda for a Carson City Board of Supervisors meeting in a very long time. The three big items will be a proposed 14 percent property tax rate increase, the $4.5 million first phase of the Multi-Purpose Athletic Complex (MAC), then followed up by the Carson City Center/Nugget Project after lunch. (The full agenda is here)

If you don't have the free time to spend the entire day in the Sierra Room at the Community Center (and limited seating may be an issue), you can keep track of the fun with our live video feed right here. We'll also be liveblogging the meeting via Twitter, as there is sure to be a lot to comment on, so we invite people to join in.

As a warm-up for the Nugget Project discussion, here is a story from the Appeal about that issue, that lists a lot of commentary from locals about the project.

Update: The meeting is in recess until 2, when they take up the Nugget Project.

I received a call from the Builders Association of Western Nevada this afternoon about a big property tax increase the Carson City Board of Supervisors is going to vote on tomorrow.

The funny thing is, I read through the agenda last week and didn't see it. But it was easy to miss. It is number 15 on the agenda, and the language used gives very little clue as to what it is (the document is attached below).

CARSON CITY – State Sen. Joe Hardy, R-Boulder City, told a Senate panel today the Legislature should move forward with repealing the state’s minimum wage law.

With the snow clearing up, the Carson City Chamber of Commerce says it is even more of a reason to join them at their weekly mixer, today at Lodge Assisted Living & Memory Care, 2200 E. Long Street.