The Virginia City Highlands Property Owners Association’s primary responsibility is to care for the 13+ miles of roads we own. In the winter months we remove snow and in the spring and summer months we focus our efforts on drainage and repairs where needed. 98% of roads in the Virginia City Highlands are dirt and various road conditions exist throughout the year. 4wd or AWD vehicles with appropriate tires are a necessity in order to safely travel the roads year round. It’s also advised to carry tire chains in your vehicle during winter months. Roads can and do get icy in the winter months and vehicles without studded tires or tire chains can have difficulty traveling certain roads during these times.

There are two main roads in the Highlands which are paved. The paved roads are maintained by Storey County during the winter time and are plowed and sanded as needed.

Winter Months

Snow Removal:

Our primary objective is to remove as much snow as possible from the roadway to reduce or minimize moisture on the roads. If there is enough snow on the ground to be removed, we are out there plowing. The more moisture on the road, the easier the roads get damaged from traffic. When the roads are wet, traffic can create ruts. During extremely heavy or consistent snowfall, the roads become narrow because the snow plows can only push the snow so far. During those times, it may become necessary to employ the services of a front loader to remove the snow from the sides of the road. This allows the plows to again push the snow off to the sides of the roads while maintaining a safe width for cars to pass.

Spring Season

Potholes:

If the road still has moisture present...
We manually fill potholes with 3/4” road base. Wheel roll when complete

If roads are dry...
We First add water to the dry pothole
Second, fill pothole with Class 2 road base
Third, water the newly added material
Final, wheel roll

Ditches:

We utilize grader to cut/clear ditches on the sides of the roadway. Include turnouts* to aid in drainage and avoiding overloading the existing culverts.

  *Turnouts create exit points for the water throughout the length of drainage ditch.

Culverts:

The Association owned culverts are cleaned at the entry point, yearly. We clear any debris and/or silt buildup using a backhoe or pick and shovel. If at any point the culvert fills partially or completely with silt and/or debris, high pressure water will be required to flush the culvert clean.

The Road Surface:

We avoid damaging the hard packed surface of the roadway and do not grade the road unless absolutely necessary. When we grade the road surface, that breaks up the hard pack. When the hard pack is broken it creates the opportunity for washboarding and dust. The only time we grade the road surface is to repair ruts and other damage from the winter months.

Muddy Roads:

Dirt roads naturally become muddy after a rain or when the snow begins to melt. In the case of roads which become extremely muddy during these times, we attempt to alleviate the mud by applying various sizes or rock to the areas that need it. The treatment is as follows...

Lay down 2-4” track out rock followed by 1.5” rock followed by 3/4” rock and in some cases we top it with Class 2 road base to create a smoother surface.

This treatment has proven to be the most effective solution for those roads which seem to get extremely muddy.