On June 17, 2025, Mason Valley resident Brice Boland announced that Travel Nevada had awarded the tourism destination grant to the Walker River Corridor for a total of $504,389!
Last year, as the Community Engagement Manager for the Walker Basin Conservancy and member of the Yerington NV Main Street Committee, Brice applied for the Travel Nevada Destination Development Grant for $1million in grant funds to be shared with the Sutro Tunnel Project.
In December of 2024, Brice reached out to community members and organizations all along the Walker River Corridor from Topaz, Smith Valley, Mason Valley, Schurz, Walker and Hawthorne, requesting support of individuals to join a steering committee for the grant development, with in-depth guidance from Cortney Bloomer, the Destination Development Manager for Travel Nevada.
The Walker Basin Corridor Steering Committee included Brice Boland, coordinator; Andrea Martinez, Walker River Paiute Tribe; Darren Hamrey, Destination Nevada; Kyle Isom, Mineral County Commissioner; Leah Wilkinson, Pizen Switch Times; Micah Triplett, Yerington Chamber; Nick Beaton & Travis Crowder, Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley; Omar Rodriguez Lopez, Yerington City Council; Tony Ruse, Walker’s Big Horn Crossing; Aaron Cook & Shawn Horton, Nevada State Parks; Amy Guinan, Walker Basin Conservancy; Nicole Orsua, Destination Nevada; and Cortney Bloomer, Destination Nevada.
Community meetings were held in both Hawthorne and Yerington in February and March so that attendees would have the opportunity to have their voices heard, provide comments, and ask questions about the Walker River Corridor Travel Nevada grant development.
Brice Boland, who in June became the Marketing & Resource Development Manager for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Mason Valley reported:
“…Good news, our work paid off and we were funded by Travel Nevada for our project for a total of $504,389! Huge thank you to all of you for supporting the application process, attending steering committee meetings as well as the community meetings, and for your overall efforts and communication to get this off the ground!
“Going forward, since I’m not with the Conservancy anymore, I’ve included the super awesome and very capable Amy Guinan, Development Director, to this group as the Walker Basin Conservancy’s representative. The Conservancy will staff a position that will oversee this project which includes 50% of their time dedicated to ensuring the success of the project. While not posted yet, if you or anyone you know may be interested, please let Amy or I know. We’d be happy to provide more info on the position and working at WBC.
“I envision, and as written in the final grant, that the new Project Manager will continue to communicate with the steering committee once they are on board and ideally form a standing group who’d like to oversee the project and provide local guidance on individual projects. But for the here and now, below is a list of what was funded and for what amount.”
How will the grant funding be spent?!
Approved items over the 2-year grant allocation:
Kayak Rental Self-Service at Walker Lake: $35,000
Walker Lake Lookout/Night Sky View Deck: $24,000
Recreation Shade Structure at Walker Lake: $35,500
2 Tribal History Monuments: $60,000 total
Recreation Shade Structure at Weber: $25,999
Mural on Yerington Main Street: $20,000
3 Panel Historic Signing and Kiosk at Sutter Farm in Smith: $5,337.50
4 Sutter Farm Public Hiking Trails Signage: $2,400 total
10 Large, Site Specific Historical/Info/Wayfinder Signs in WB Corridor: $8,950 total
4 Entering WB Gateway Signs (Topaz, Yerington, Schurz, Hawthorne) $99,068 total
Yerington Main Street Committee Contract for Signage Install and Yerington Main Street Planning: $3,750
Project Management Salaries (Includes 2 years for Project Manager, Development Director to help identify new and supporting project funding sources, Stewardship Director to assist with permits, coding, installations) and Marketing Consultant Contracts $188,134.
December 2024 Article- It all began with an idea to showcase the Walker Basin Corridor:
January 2025 Article – How the idea progressed into a plan:
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