Taylor Street, a road making up a main intersection in Virginia City is getting the worst of the damage created by recent storms. However, it can be tricky to repair roads in Virginia City because most are historic and very old in age, leaving difficulties fixing the damage because historical preservation is top of mind. Austin Osborne, the Storey County Manager explains "We're in a historic district there's a lot of issues with the ground we're on and it likes to move." He also mentions because of the weather, a lot of roads in Virginia City have been washed out, substantially damaged or like Taylor Street the bank is unstable, and the road is slipping into a historic basement "It's destabilized with the soaking and the moisture and it's starting to collapse." Osborne adds.
Across Storey County whether it be the industrial center, Virginia City or the residential communities there is substantial road damage all over. Osborne tells us “Besides being paved… that’s about it. They don't have a proper base; they don't have proper drainage and gutters, so this is an ongoing problem.” Osborne says their next steps will be getting engineers to come look at the damage and give recommendations on stability, plus a little more help from outside resources "We do have anticipated revenues from the Tahoe Reno industrial center and even from Telsa that are going to actually help us bring ourselves into the 21st century with roads and infrastructure." Mentions Osborne. He also says they’re hoping the roads won’t be closed for more than a few weeks.
