Story County presentation to Assembly committee highlights infrastructure needs, tri‑center payback and housing plans

Story County officials presented the county’s fiscal condition, capital needs and housing plans to the Assembly Committee on Government Affairs, emphasizing obligations tied to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center (TRI) and several large infrastructure projects the county expects to fund or seek federal assistance for.

Clay Mitchell, Vice Chair of the Story County Commission, and Austin Osborne, Story County Manager, described a county of roughly 4,300 residents split between historic Virginia City and the rapidly industrializing northern corridor that includes TRI. Osborne said the county’s general‑fund expenses run roughly $21 million and that a large portion of the county’s fund balance is reserved to pay back infrastructure investments made in the industrial center. “This year alone we had to make a $5,700,000 payment to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center out of that pie piece,” Osborne said; he added about $26 million remained on that specific payback and an additional $85 million of anticipated infrastructure in the park could create future repayment obligations.

Officials discussed several capital priorities: a lead‑siphon water replacement in the Virginia City/Gold Hill/Silver City area (Osborne described an estimated $20 million rough cost and said the county is seeking federal appropriations and expects to pay roughly half), a $25 million jail replacement in Virginia City because the existing facility is structurally failing, and road and drainage paybacks tied to TRI development. Osborne said Story County had negotiated with private companies—citing Tesla and Redwood Materials—on road rehabs and traffic signals; he said Tesla covered about 67% of a $4 million rehabilitation and agreed to pay 85% of a new traffic signal in one area.

Officials described the county’s role in tax abatements and industrial recruitment: Mitchell said Story County leads the state in tax abatements with roughly $1 billion in abatements and supports narrower changes to abatement law that would increase local participation for the largest abatements and include fire districts earlier in the process. He cited regional projects such as a treated‑effluent pipeline into TRI as examples of cooperation, where treated effluent is reused for industrial processes and freshwater rights are preserved downstream.

Osborne and Mitchell also outlined housing‑planning efforts. The county updated its master plan to allow more housing types, permit tiny houses and reduce regulatory barriers; they identified potential growth areas within 40 minutes’ drive of TRI, including Painted Rock (previously approved for roughly 3,600 homes) and a 2,500‑acre proposal that could accommodate up to 10,000 homes and roughly 26,000 people in the long term. The presenters emphasized the county’s small staff (about 60 employees) and the need to balance in‑house capacity with professional services contracts.

The presentation included a request for federal assistance on several projects and emphasized Story County’s mixed fiscal picture: large new revenues from industrial development (recent years’ assessments and modified business taxes), combined with long‑term repayment obligations for roads and other infrastructure the county agreed to accept to secure TRI development.