VIRGINIA CITY - Storey County commissioners have turned down a plea by Rainbow Bend resident Floyd Krebs to dissolve the Bend's Canyon General Improvement District.
Krebs cited numerous inconsistencies, from lack of an alternate water supply to unfixed potholes, but these complaints are nothing new for commissioners.
Major questions have arisen over the years concerning the district's governing board. Created in 1992, the commission-approved panel manages water, sewer and cable TV for the private residential area in the northern part of Storey County.
Calling for cooperation between residents, the county and the district, Commission Chairman Greg "Bum" Hess said dissolving the district is not the answer.
"I know there are lots of problems, but the best thing is trying to work with Canyon General Improvement District," he said. "If the county takes over, it won't solve the problem."
"Dissolving the improvement district is not the answer," said Commissioner Bob Kershaw. "The county doesn't have the resources. If the improvement district works with the county, we can get things resolved."
Most recently, the area's only well developed problems and the district imposed watering restrictions until a second source could be found.
The district is required to find a second source of water per an order from the Nevada State Department of Health. To that end, it has acquired $1.7 million in state and federal grants for the project.
To date, five wells have been dug. All came up dry, but officials found an alternative, a 250 gallon-per-minute well in the Mustang area. Shannon said Rainbow Bend will share the water with Mustang.
Canyon General Improvement District Chairman Patrick Shannon expressed frustration with the pace of bureaucracy, but said everything is in place to start an extra 200 gallons per minute flowing into Rainbow Bend.
Water will come from a well dug by Truckee Canyon Properties Limited, developers of a small parcel just east of Rainbow Bend. According to a mandate from Washoe County, the company must develop gravity-fed fire protection. Building that system would cost $2 million, according to Shannon. He said Rainbow Bend can provide the infrastructure for that system, exchanging it for the water.
Truckee Canyon Properties Limited will use about 50 gallons per minute at the maximum build-out for its project, according to Shannon, leaving the balance of the well's output for Rainbow Bend.
"We will get the rest of the water while they get their gravity-fed fire protection," Shannon said. "We will get our state-mandated second water source. It's a good, reliable supply."
In other business:
-- Virginia City resident and business owner Herschel Scott was appointed to replace Marianne Clark on the planning commission.
Scott moved from Chama in Northern New Mexico, where he ran a gift shop specializing in trains. He runs "The Train Store" on Virginia City's C Street and owns two similar shops, one in Silverton, Colo., and the other in Leavenworth, Wash., 120 miles east of Seattle.
"I'm very concerned with the community," Scott said. "I'm interested in making sure Storey County can maintain its rural texture yet become more aggressive in pursuing tourist business."