Construction of the Sutro Tunnel in Dayton began Oct. 19, 1869, by Adolph Sutro. It was designed to drain up to 4 million gallons of water from the Comstock mines every day. The Friends of Sutro Tunnel nonprofit has been awarded a Travel Nevada Destination Development Design 3D Program Cohort 3 grant to advance its tourism efforts as well as Dayton and Lyon County.
Photo by Jessica Garcia.
The Friends of Sutro Tunnel nonprofit has been awarded a Travel Nevada Destination Development Design 3D Program Cohort 3 grant to advance its tourism efforts as well as Dayton and Lyon County.
The 3D Program assists communities’ rural programs in raising their profiles and economic growth by forming partnerships with stakeholders. Consultants with Travel Nevada provide recommendations and awardees can apply for a portion of $1 million to launch their programs. Projects require awardees to create steering committees for their destination, create onsite visits, have the Travel Nevada team look for opportunities in sustainability, economic development, hospitality, funding and other areas.
Friends board member Rob McFadden told the Appeal on Nov. 22 the grant will provide the Sutro Tunnel greater exposure, which is helpful to have the support of local and state officials, including Lt. Stavros Anthony who chairs Travel Nevada.
“I think it’s going to be huge for Sutro and Dayton because it’s going to drive tourism, so as Dayton continues to develop and build … having interest like that will be extremely beneficial in Lyon County,” he said.
The Friends of Sutro Tunnel partnered with the Nevada Builders Alliance in September to host a “Meat and Drink” soiree at which more than 400 visited the opening of Sutro, viewed its pond on site and met with representatives from the local companies who are in the process of further construction.
McFadden credited lead volunteer Pam Abercrombie for completing the grant.
Asked about the grant’s specific benefit to the tunnel, McFadden said planning is in its beginning stages, but he looked forward to working with Sutro’s team.
“The volunteers and the board of directors will have to look at this plan and what to do with the site and the tunnel and all the different resources and how we show those to people when they come on site,” he said.