DAYTON - Lyon County plans to eventually install and maintain Old West-style boardwalks in Old Town Dayton, but county engineer Dick Faber said it will be up to the property owners to truly preserve the nature of the area.
"Businesses and homeowners will have to be the ones to maintain the character of the town," Faber said.
The project, called the Historic Dayton Streetscape Enhancement Project, would install boardwalks and gas lights on Main Street from the intersection of Highway 50 about 620 feet to the Bluestone Building, which houses the Dayton court and sheriff's station.
The county plans to apply for grants from the Nevada Department of Transportation for the project, of which the Main Street area will be the first of three phases.
Phase II will be to install boardwalks along Pike Street to the Dayton Community Center and phase III would be to restore Gold Canyon Creek, Faber said.
Faber attended the monthly meeting Wednesday of the Historical Society of Dayton Valley, looking for advice on whether to use concrete or wood boardwalks, or perhaps build them from some other material.
But Laura Tennant was concerned about authenticity. "I don't want to see phony boardwalks. We should go for real boardwalks like they have in Virginia City."
"Once we come up with the concept we want, we'll make a proposal," Faber said.
The $200,000 and $250,000 for the project would come from NDOT's Transportation Enhancement Act grant program, which will disburse about $10 million, Faber said.
In addition to the boardwalks, curbs and gutters will be installed to handle storm drainage leading to Highway 50.
Faber said the property owners he contacted along Main Street are supportive, but there are still some right-of-way issues and the work has to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The grant application is due by Dec. 15. Approval will take 12-18 months.
Stony Tennant offered to share old photos with the county so that they would be able to include the "emotion" of the town.
"Every town has its feel," he said. "Try to get the feel of the town and the way it was. You can destroy the emotion of a town in a hurry with this kind of thing."
He also rejected the idea of gas lights, saying Dayton never had them and they would be out of place. He said if the street needs lighting, lights should be placed on buildings.
"The key word is 'charm,'" Faber said. "We have to maintain the charm."
• Contact reporter Karen Woodmansee at kwoodmansee@nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111 ext. 351.