Renaming Old Dayton Valley Road 'Pres. Trump Way' fails by 3-2 vote, ballot option proposed

On Thursday at the Board of County Commissioners meeting in Lyon County, the board again discussed the proposed road change of Old Dayton Valley Road to “Pres. Trump Way.”


The proposal, which would have begun the application process, failed by a 3-2 vote, and Commissioner Ken Gray stated he would be bringing another proposal to convert the item to a ballot question.

Multiple commissioners, staff members, and commenters all stated that this item had the most interest of any in recent memory, on par with discussions regarding the brothels.

“This is a sensitive issue,” said Gray. “We are not a direct democracy we are a representative republic, but in this issue, I think the public needs more direct input.” 


Gray proposed to direct county staff to prepare language for a ballot question.

However, the District Attorney told commissioners that they could not vote on whether or not to put the language to a ballot question that day because it was not on the agenda, and would need to be brought forward at a future meeting.

Over two hours of public comment heard opinions on the proposed road name change, both for and against. During public comment, the board needed to stop comment multiple times to remind crowd members to remain civil or else they would be asked to leave chambers.

Many residents arrived in person to the board meeting to show support for the renaming.

Silver Springs resident Lori Olson stated, “President Trump was our president. He meant everything to us, who did everything he promised and everything to protect us.”

Dayton resident Elaine St. John stated that she moved to Lyon County from California because it was a Republican county, and she wanted it to stay that way, and because it is a Republican-majority county they should be able to name the road after Trump. She stated that she did agree with the other commenters about the likelihood of the sign being defaced, but that many statues get defaced currently such as George Washington, Teddy Roosevelt, and Christopher Columbus.

Many who voiced their disapproval of the item stated they were registered Republicans, and voted for Trump, but disagreed with the proposal on a multitude of reasons, including the history of Old Dayton Valley Road, the division it has caused within the Dayton community, the fact that schools and parks are on the street, and the cost.

Several residents suggested that if the board wanted to name a street after Trump, they should choose a new street instead of renaming a historic street that would have a financial impact on Dayton’s schools and community offices such as the senior center and the library. One resident suggested that they could name the streets of new development after all of the Republican presidents.

Many of those who were against the proposal stated that they wished the board would use their time to instead focus on issues facing the county at large, as well as the Dayton community.

On discussion throughout the agenda item was the fact that Lyon County was a declared “constitutional county,” and how that applied to public comment, and the agenda item itself.

Dayton resident Christopher Gonzales stated that Lyon County had declared itself a constitutional county, which voiced opposition toward an over-arching government, but the idea of allowing all of Lyon County to vote on an item that will only affect Dayton was in direct opposition of that ideal. He also stated that naming the road after Trump was against county codes.

“I’m not on either side of this, I’m just a concerned citizen to make sure that we abide by our own laws and our own county codes,” said Gonzales.

Commissioner Robert Jacobson stated that he still wasn’t sure how Old Dayton Valley Road was selected and that this decision should fall to the residents of Dayton alone.

Commissioner Wes Henderson stated he would be voting no, that he supported President Trump and felt he needed to be honored, but that he appreciated the valid concerns from his constituents. He stated he would continue to find an appropriate way to honor President Trump in Lyon County.

Commissioner Dave Hockaday stated he agreed with Henderson and that the hatred “has to stop.”

“If you’re gonna make hateful comments to someone of another political party, don’t come in here and tell us we’re hateful for doing stuff on our side of the aisle,” said Hockaday. “Quit listening to the news, start getting your own research, and finding your facts yourself and let’s knock this garbage off.”

Ken Gray stated that the commenters who were opposed were incorrect in their beliefs in a variety of ways.

He stated that there is “nothing historic about Old Dayton Valley Road,” that the name change would be funded by private donations, and that people had been harassing and intimidating him.

Gray stated that he was contacted by many people in support of the renaming, but that they were too afraid to come forward.

“Quit using the cost as an excuse,” Gray stated. “Divisive? This is beyond divisive, this had been straight intimidation. There have been so many people who have called me and written emails that don’t want to come forward because they’re afraid to.”

He also stated that he has “a whack job neighbor” who is against the agenda item, and believes his dog was poisoned by this neighbor due to this agenda item and had to take the dog to the vet yesterday.

“I have had my house egged," said Gray. "I had a dog that I had to take to the hospital yesterday because he was sick for unknown reasons. Perfectly healthy dog. You know, I’ll be the first one to say, I have a whack job neighbor that is an avowed — well I won’t even go there but let’s just say he’s not for this in any way shape or form so, yeah, my first thought goes straight to poisoning. Especially, people in my neighborhood know how much my dogs mean to me — they’re family. I spent all day yesterday, had to miss a funeral, in the hospital with this dog and he’s still not doing a hell of a lot better today.”

He said people are intimidating him, calling him in the middle of the night, and using profanity.

“I’m so ashamed of the behavior of some of the residents of our county, and people outside of our county, outside of our state and throughout the country,” said Gray.

“I will be bringing this back,” said Gray. “The people who are intimidated and have been intimidated are entitled to their say.”

Commissioner Chair Vida Keller stated that she has tried not to take a side on this item, and that she tries to vote with the citizens who elected her to office. She stated that she was and remains a Trump supporter.

The vote failed by a 3-2 with Gray and Keller voting in favor.

Manager Jeff Page stated that staff applauded the board for being able to remain civil and professional under immense pressure.