by Kelsey Penrose
On Thursday, Lyon County issued a statement regarding the agenda item that would possibly rename Old Dayton Valley Road ‘Pres. Trump Way,’ which was voted on 4-1 during the July 1 meeting.
According to Jeff Page, Lyon County Manager, the county has received numerous messages from constituents stating that the Board of Commissioners may be in violation of the open meeting law as the agenda language was not specific as to what street would be affected, or what the proposed name would be.
Open meeting laws are outlined in NRS 241.020 and specifically state that all agendas must have a clear and complete statement of the topics scheduled to be considered during the meeting.
The agenda item submitted by Commissioner Ken Gray, however, only stated there would be possible action regarding the approval of “starting the process to rename a street in the Dayton Area.” It did not indicate what road would be changed nor the proposed name, which could be considered a violation of NRS 241.020 since the public was not informed of the nature of the vote prior to the vote taking place.
In fact, it appeared during the meeting that staff members as well as other commissioners had not been made privy to the contents of the vote, as Commissioner Robert Jacobson stated that this was the first time he had heard anything about the proposal, and believed the public should have been involved in the process. Jacobson was the only commissioner to vote no on the item.
Commissioner Gray chose Old Dayton Valley Road because he wanted to dedicate a road to former President Trump and the road fronts mostly county-owned buildings. However, the road also contains Dayton schools, which drew criticisms from those in attendance.
The process would have a fiscal impact to Lyon County — and Lyon County tax payers — of approximately $8,000, including new letterhead for county buildings, business cards, street and building signs, among other costs.
“Street signs are also estimated to need to be replaced on a frequent basis,” the statement noted.
Commissioner Gray did not return comment regarding his decision to propose this agenda item.
In the statement released by the county, Page stated the agenda item is being brought back to address any open meeting law concerns, and to notify the citizens of Lyon County of the proposed name change.
If directed by a majority of the Board of Commissioners, then the Planning Department will file a county-initiated street name change application.
The following outlines the street name change application review process:
1) County staff would complete and process the street name application (refer to attached street name change application form);
a. For street name change applications, the reviewing agencies are sent a copy of the street name request application and requested to provide comments as to the potential impact to their operations/regulations/requirements/requirements.
b. For street name change applications, the typical concern is similarities/conflicts with existing street names that may be lead to confusion for emergency service providers, road department staff and utility department staff.
2) The street name change application is forwarded to the Dayton Regional Advisory Board chairperson;
3) The Dayton Regional Advisory Board determines whether to add the street name change application to their next regularly scheduled meeting to review and provide comments to forward to the Planning Commission/Board of Commissioners;
4) The street name change application is scheduled for the next regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting date;
5) The current property owners of parcels fronting on the street proposed for the change in street name change application will receive public notice of the Planning Commission agenda item (the public notice has to clearly state the intent of public hearing applications);
6) The street name change application is heard by the Planning Commission in a public meeting and a decision is made regarding the street name change application request.
If the Planning Commission approves the application then the County will then implement the change. A denial of the application will be appealed to the Board of County Commissioners for a final decision.
Go here for the Lyon County statement.
