Minden officials are set to vote tonight on the 4,500-acre Park Cattle Co. development with a recommendation from the advisory board's engineer that the project be denied.
Engineer Bruce Scott prepared a memo for the five-member board that said approval would be premature for the plan to add 4,900 new homes in Minden and Gardnerville.
"This is a very large project at an unfortunate time in Douglas County," Scott said. "There are a significant number of undeveloped lots within the existing town boundary and several thousand approved undeveloped lots in the county as a whole. On this basis alone, the need for the project now is difficult to justify.
"While we greatly appreciate the opportunity to see a master plan amendment and specific plan for a large area and the well-conceived amenities and detailed improvements this would bring, it remains in my opinion, premature."
Scott recommended the board turn down the master plan and specific plan proposal.
He called for a "much more in-depth, deliberate, and interactive approach with the towns and the county."
"This would include such critical long-term elements as the fiscal impacts and analysis, traffic, drainage and infrastructure and maintenance. The size of the proposed project creates the need for integration with or the complete revision of existing master plans at the town and county levels," Scott said.
Gardnerville Town Board members unanimously rejected the proposal Tuesday. The plan is to be heard Aug. 12-13 by the Douglas County Planning Commission before it is forwarded to the Douglas County Commission.
The town board meets tonight at 6 p.m. at the Douglas County Commission chambers in the old courthouse, 1616 Eighth St., Minden.
The meeting place was changed to accommodate early voting in the CVIC Hall.
