Lyon could receive land for new jail

Lyon County could get land for a new public safety building in Dayton Valley if county commissioners accept an offer Thursday.

The Borda family says it will give about 20 acres in east Dayton Valley north of Highway 50 for a complex for a new jail, court and police services.

The county jail in Yerington is not in compliance with federal code, according to the county. Remodeling the jail or building a new one is a top county priority, County Manager Dennis Stark has said.

The county has estimated that a public safety building will cost about $37.5 million and Yerington jail expansion will cost about $570,000. It has asked for about $20 million from the federal stimulus package for a new jail.

The county also has looked at a jail site in Silver Springs. This would put it between two of the county's largest population centers, Fernley and Dayton.

The county commission could approve the Dayton Valley land donation at its meeting Thursday. The county should wait six months to make a final decision and evaluate the donation, however, Stark said in a letter.

Ted Borda of Borda Land & Sheep said the family wants to donate the land to give back to an area that has treated them well for nearly a century.

"It's home," he said. "It's our place."

The family believes that neighbors don't need government to take care of each other, he said.

An attorney for the family, John Gavin, said in a letter to the county that the project should not have a "detrimental impact" caused by construction or trash storage.

The county also cannot sell or use the land for something other than for its intended purpose, Gavin said.

Commissioner Chuck Roberts said the county has to decide what it wants to build before it can decide where it wants to build it.

No one has come forward with a clear proposal of what kind of jail or public safety building the county should have, he said.

"To me, it's simple," he said. "You pick what you're going to do and that will tell you where it's going to be."

- Contact reporter Dave Frank at dfrank@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.

WHAT: Lyon County Board of Commissioners meeting

WHERE: 27 S. Main St., Yerington

WHEN: 9 a.m. Thursday