The approximate route of the long-awaited Muller Lane Parkway on Friday afternoon.
While members of the Gardnerville Town Board approved a land plan that would clear the way for development on the southern section of Muller Lane Parkway, the conflict between the owner of the land for the northern section and the county escalated.
On Thursday, Park Ranch Holdings filed a motion for a temporary restraining order to stop the county from beginning work on Muller Parkway.
According to the motion, the county’s plans to build the line north of Minden and Gardnerville are “completely flawed and will cause irreparable harm to Park Ranch” and encroach on Park Ranch’s property.
The motion was filed as part of the litigation between Ashland Park and the county over the construction of a small section of park road north of Toler, with Park Ranch Holdings listed as the actual interested party.
The latest step follows the county’s award of the construction contract for the section of the parkway north of Buckeye Road on August 2.
“The county has been obligated to build the Muller Parkway since we first made an agreement in 2005, and they haven’t built the road,” David Park said in April. “They know they’re obligated to build the road by 2025. They know it’s coming, and they’ve sat idly by. And at the last minute, they think they have everything under control.”
The county awarded the section between Buckeye Road in the south and the northern end of Ashland Park after soliciting bids in March.
Qualcon Construction received the highest bid of $11.58 million.
County officials said the project has stalled due to the pending injunction.
“The county has already addressed many, if not all, of the concerns raised and will continue to address them in the future,” Douglas officials said Friday afternoon. “However, the county will not allow Park Ranch Holdings to use Muller Parkway as leverage to obtain more than Park Ranch Holdings is entitled to, particularly when Park Ranch Holdings’ demands would more than double the cost to Douglas County residents.”
A bypass around the cities of Minden and Gardnerville has been discussed for half a century. One version or another of the parkway was already on maps before the name first appeared in the Record-Courier on February 10, 1991.
While no hearing has yet been scheduled in connection with the temporary restraining order, a pretrial conference is scheduled for April 21, 2025, according to the Douglas County Court Clerk.
The district has until December 31, 2025 to complete the road.
Douglas County’s Muller Lane Parkway webpage can be found at https://douglas-county-nv.civilspace.io/en/projects/muller-parkway
