Town of Minden Board Meeting

Purchase of Ironwood 8 Cinemas – Public Comment Requested. See Letter to Douglas County and Carson Valley Residents.

To our valued Douglas County and Carson Valley residents,

Our Valley is home to approximately 50,000 residents, making our area the sixth most populated county in Nevada. The development of the impressive Tahoe Blue Events Center Stateline provided an impressive venue for large scale events, professional hockey, sports events, and a concert venue for renowned artists on tour. This venue fills a need for these types of enhanced tourism offerings. Our Valley now has a wonderful opportunity to develop support for a variety of arts programs, to at the community level, to foster a value in the arts for generations to come.

A performing arts venue, located in the Gardnerville/Minden area, has long been a desire for many arts groups, and it was identified as the “#1 Top Need” during recent the Douglas County Parks and Recreation Capital Project Planning. The operator of the Ironwood 8 Cinemas has decided to not renew their lease of the facility. This facility includes 8 movie theaters, a concession stand and approximately 23,000 sq. ft. of space. The owner of the building has approached Douglas County officials with a proposal for the County to purchase this facility for $2.9 million. This coming week, the Town of Minden and the Douglas County Board of Commissioners will have this item on their Agendas to discuss and possibly vote upon.

Together, Carson Valley Arts Council and the Cultural Arts Foundation of Douglas County are asking for your support in the County purchase of this building. We need to work together to create a Performing Arts Venue for the Carson Valley that will support and greatly enhance the multitude of arts programs and cultural offerings for our children and
adults.

Here are some facts about this project:

• No General Fund Dollars are being used for the purchase of this facility – funds have restricted use as they are from Transit Occupancy Tax Dollars from 2020.
• Carson Valley Arts Council is prepared to commit to a partnership agreement providing $250,000 toward this effort and are willing and able to become the lead County Partner in future facility operations and oversight of needs identification (from arts organization involvement and participation), architectural design and construction.
• A multitude of non-profit, private arts organizations and artisans (even before this opportunity presented itself) initiated an effort for a Valley-wide Arts Alliance. This group will work together, as a unified group, to enhance the arts community in the Valley and promote the value of all types of arts. Together, we know, we can achieve so much more.

Much is unknown at this early stage about what will be a multi-year process to determine the use and specifics of this facility. What we do know, is the opportunity to secure it for
the future of arts in our region is now!

Please join us at one, or all, of the meetings below. We need your support to bring to life a quality arts venue that could be home to professional/amateur events such as: youth visual and photography arts displays, community theatre and dance productions, concerts, classes for arts as well as tech/crew, audio-visual apprenticeships and learning opportunities.

Town of Minden Board Meeting: Wednesday, February 5, 5:30pm, CVIC Hall
Douglas County Board of Commissioners Meeting: Thursday, February 6, 10:00am, Historic Courthouse

You can also submit your support to the Douglas County Board of Commissioners regarding Agenda Item 12 via their on-line Public Comment form: Public Comment – Douglas County, Nevada

We thank you for your consideration and desire to be part of a community groundswell of support for this important community enhancement.