Looking good in Carson City

Business in Carson City is looking good.

For the sake of appearances, new facades on three of the city's largest shopping centers have made a world of difference.

At Plaza 50 on Highway 50, at Frontier Plaza on North Carson Street and at Crossroads Center on Winnie Lane, the transformations have not only spruced up the businesses which reside there but given prominent stretches of busy streets much-needed facelifts.

On the north side, a new Albertson's grocery store and gas station fill in a big chunk of empty real estate. And closer to downtown, there's also the attractive new exterior look for the expanded Carson Station.

In fact, aside from the Wal-Mart under construction (which is technically in Douglas County), the much-touted south end of town looks to be the least busy at the moment.

We also took note of the recent city survey that says residents like to go downtown for dinner and shopping, and 87 percent feel safe downtown. It's another reassuring sign that downtown Carson City is slowly progressing to the kind of attractive city core we all want to see.

Interestingly, more people want to see historic buildings downtown preserved than are worried about finding a place to park. This is a sure indication residents recognize the value of Carson City's history as a basis for revitalizing downtown.

It does beg the question of which comes first -- more customers or more parking? But it's good to see people don't think parking is a problem.

Appearances are one thing, but how well is business really doing in Carson City? Well, the figures on taxable sales show Carson continues to lead the state with an increase this year of 9.3 percent through April, led mainly by strong automotive sales.

These are going to be tough numbers to maintain, especially as Douglas County keeps siphoning off retail sales. But for a snapshot at the beginning of summer 2002, it's a picture of health.