After breaking ground in June 2025, construction is now finished on the $23.5 million Marlette Lake Dam Rehabilitation Project with Nevada State Parks recreation access reopened on the west side of Spooner Lake backcountry.
The 153-year-old water system was constructed in the mid-1870’s to provide water to Virginia City. After draining the reservoir, the project removed the existing earthen dam and replaced it with a new one.
The project also included upgrades to help the dam better withstand earthquakes, improvements to the spillway, and replacement of the discharge piping and outlet valves.
The project started June 12, 2025 and was completed on schedule this month. Granite Construction was the primary construction contractor and Lumos & Associates was contracted for architectural and engineering services.
The Marlette Lake Dam is a critical component of the Marlette Lake Water System, which supplies water to Storey County and Carson City. The Marlette Lake Water System, encompassing Marlette Lake, Hobart Reservoir and several catchments on the east slope of the Sierra Nevada mountains above Washoe Valley.
Seepage within the dam was first identified during an inspection in 2017 by the Nevada Division of Water Resources, and it was determined that this seepage could eventually lead to a catastrophic failure.
The Marlette Lake Dam Rehabilitation was funded by the FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation Fund and improves the overall safety of the 153-year-old earthen embankment dam, ensuring the longevity of the water resource.
Environmental and cultural resource surveys were completed in the four-year planning span of the project in coordination with FEMA. Nevada State Public Works contracted Lumos & Associates and Granite Construction to engineer and construct the new dam.
Marlette Lake was drawn down approximately 20 feet, and approximately 20 feet of water remained in the lake during construction. The natural recharge process is ongoing and highly dependent on the snowpack received over the winter months.
High-level modeling conservatively estimates it will take four to six seasons for the lake’s water level to return to normal. When conditions allow, the Nevada Department of Wildlife will stock Marlette Lake with Rainbow and Lahontan Cuttthroat Trout. Go here for real-time updates on fish stocking.
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