Bank will stay in Virginia City

The only bank operating in Virginia City has decided not to pull out of the small rural community, population 900.

Bank of America announced Thursday that it will not pull out of Virginia City, nor Pioche and Beatty.

Earlier this month, U.S. Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., met with senior executives of Bank of America in Las Vegas and urged them to reconsider their planned closing of the three branches.

"I applaud Bank of America's commitment to these communities and to provide quality financial services," the congressman said Thursday.

The bank had announced in June that it planned to close its Virginia City branch in mid-September, sending a ripple of anxiety through the community. As the seat of Storey County, all the government deposits are made at that Bank of America branch, which employs two people.

A spokeswoman had said that the closure was part of a nationwide plan to close 100 low-volume banking centers across the United States.