Easter 2016: The Butchery of Carson Street

I should not have done it, but old habits, and common sense, die hard. Carson Street is the main drag through town, always was, always will be, for going between the north and south sides of town. Just look on the map. There are no through-street alternatives that run the length of town, from College Parkway to Clearview Drive; only fragments, most of which are residential.

So yesterday I drove home the same old way, and was treated to weaving between the traffic cones and barrels as they redefine the lanes to take you through the construction zone from one side of the street to the other and back.

Of course, "construction zone" is a rather loosely appropriate term. It's a zone of heartless butchery, emotionally on par with an ISIS snuff video.

They "took out" all the beautiful vegetation in the center isle -- trees and shrubs in full bloom; radiant pinks and whites; foolishly, helplessly celebrating an early Spring.

And they accomplished this dastardly deed just in time for Good Friday…

The symbolism of this "coincidence" -- if indeed it was a coincidence in the planning -- could not possibly be more sacrilegious, especially in this town when every invocation even at purely secular events is always delivered in the name of Jesus. Today, Christians are celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Carson Street, whatever the promises of the perpetrators of this "reconstruction" have made about its future appearance, will not resurrect tomorrow or anytime soon.

I grieve for the town that looked so attractive when I decided to relocate my family here.

What makes this butchery of one of the most attractive features of our downtown even more infuriating is that the PEOPLE did NOT vote to approve any of this. Quite the opposite. In 2012 we voted 2 to 1 against CC#1, the "downtown / library project," which proposed reducing Carson Street from two lanes to one lane each way. Nevertheless, the Board of Supervisors ignored the express wishes of the people and revived the project in a slightly different form, and even raised taxes to pay for it.

In this election season of rebellion against the establishment, here in Carson City we have a blatant and highly offensive illustration of the reasons for this rebellion. The people be damned. We the connected elite do whatever we want -- and we do it to the people with their money, not ours.

My kids tell me that the trees were extracted from Carson Street and replanted in Centennial Park (4+ miles away). Small comfort. Does not change the fact that the aesthetics of Carson Street were permanently altered for the worse. Even if plans call for adding vegetation along the sides, the center of the street will be mercilessly sun-baked in summer, seriously distracting from the enjoyment of whatever outdoor furniture may be placed, Parisian style, on the expanded sidewalk.

And THAT brings up the question that nobody has answered. We spend millions on making downtown pedestrian-friendly. What pedestrians? The only time there is foot traffic downtown is when the Legislature is in session -- for four months every two years. The inescapable but totally disregarded fact is that we do not have a downtown, we have a civic center where downtown should be, and is, in normal cities and towns. All the street-front spaces that should be filled with attractions -- "tourist traps," shops and entertainment for locals and visitors alike -- are occupied by government buildings and lobbyist / lawyer offices. There isn't one souvenir shop, ice cream parlor, Starbuck's, theater or even a park for kids to play and people to stroll in. THAT is supposed to attract tourists and residents? We do have all that, way out of walking range from downtown. We have a few struggling restaurants downtown; but Sassafras moved away, the Lake Tahoe Brewing Co. just closed, and other places have been vacant for years. Carson Mall, our almost-downtown mall, has been struggling, and dying, and decades.

There is not much we can do about the government buildings (convert them to museums when the politicians from Las Vegas finally get their way and move the Capital out of here?), but we could and should do something about all that unused retail space right on Carson street. Relocate the lobbyists, lawyers, real estate agents, etc. to Curry or Nevada streets. Open up Carson Street to businesses that actually cater to customers. Reduce the sales tax to bring back the shoppers, reduce business taxes and regulations and offer incentives to bring back businesses. Convert the wooded lots of the State buildings into a public park and add the usual attractions; build a duck pond for the summer and a skating rink for winter under those towering trees. Give people reason to enjoy downtown. But none of that is in the plans upon which the Board of Supervisors acted with their usual imperious majesty.