Push to reopen historic library in home stretch

Friday, Sept. 19, 1997 | 10:22 a.m.

The job should be done in about a year - not soon enough for state Commission on Tourism staffers who will move into the four-story, brick building that served as a courthouse, post office and library.

Central Nevada Construction of Gardnerville has the $2.2 million interior renovation contract, and 330 days in which to get the work done.

"This is a very exciting time. Work is finally moving along and everyone is looking forward to getting into the building and having a strong presence in the middle of town," said Tom Tait, the Tourism Commission's executive director.

"It's an opportunity to showcase the state's lifeblood industry and to tie in with the major historic preservation efforts being undertaken in Carson City," Tait added.

The commission's decision to earmark room-tax funds for the extensive interior remodeling cleared the way for the building to reopen as the home of the state agency and its Nevada Magazine publication.

Besides the room tax money, state lawmakers authorized nearly $1.3 million, used mainly for structural stabilization and repairs.

The classic Romanesque building was one of 14 such federal structures built nationwide near the turn of the century. The Carson City building is believed to be the only one still standing west of the Mississippi.

The building, completed in 1891 at a cost of $134,605, features Carson City's only clock tower, which stands about 100 feet above Carson Street.

The structure served as a federal courthouse until 1965, as the local post office for several years after that, and then as the state library for 20 years.

Deeded to the state in 1971, the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.