Virginia City High gets new parking lot

Virginia City High School will get its first paved parking lot this week.

The new parking lot will be paved by the Storey County Public Works and Road Department at no cost to the school district.

Also, Granite Construction has donated the necessary supplies and trucks, which may have cost the school as much as $25,000, said Principal Todd Hess.

"This is the first in many steps in using community partnerships to beautify the school," Hess said.

The Public Works and Road Department will be paving the 100- by 70-foot parking lot on Wednesday. Hess said it would only take one or two days to finish the paving.

Over the summer, the project will be finished by building some steps and doing some landscaping around the school.

"The area should be dramatically improved by August," Hess said.

Richard Bacus, head of the public works department, said the cost would have been about $10,000 if the Storey County School District had to pay for it.

"The school has a short budget," Bacus said. "It's a generosity from the Public Works Department to help them out. If they had to pay for it it would have cost them a fortune."

The money for paving the parking lot at the school was taken out of the road department budget for Storey County.

Hess said he hopes other things will be done to improve the school as well.

"Our next goal is to try to get some outdoor facility here, including a football and softball field," Hess said.

There are no outdoor facilities of any kind at the high school.

Hess said he is very grateful the parking lot could be repaved. He thinks it will be great for the school.

"It will enhance the pride of the school," he said.

Both Bacus and Granite Construction will be honored by a plaque in Virginia City High School.

"They have always served the community well in their efforts to improve the area," Hess said.