Reno and Beyond: Nevada Assembly Democrats Go Online
- Downtown Makeover Dude has taken up commenter Steve’s question about whether Montage developer Fernando Leal is working with the Carano family to buy up every structure withing a block’s radius of the Montage. Cantankerous commenter Sara Lee may have known what she’s talking about after all. Is the fourth bid on Fitzgerald’s a partnership between Leal and the Carano family?
On Nevada Newsmakers last year, Fernando Leal mentioned he had another major downtown project in the works, but could not yet reveal the details, but we would know in about six months. Well, its about about six months, so the timing is right. The Fitz is literally surrounded by both Carano and L3 Development property, so there is an obvious benefit to one and/or both owning the Fitz. It will be interesting to see who the buyer is! If Ms. Lee is correct, and L3 Development and Caranos ARE working together on something, the Fitz might make the ideal collaboration project.
- National retailers are interested in the old J.C. Penny building at 100 North Sierra. I hope the national furniture retailer interested is Crate & Barrel or that they are shopping it to them. Getting a Crate & Barrel is like getting a Borders or Barnes & Noble because they are anchor stores that encourage more retail.
- Did you ever wonder how the results of the Reno Downtown Canopy poll ended up? I forgot to post the results, but 53% of Discontents want the canopy to go forward as designed–a highly unlikely outcome at this point. The city council might discuss the future of the canopy during the March 7th meeting.
- The Blogging Assemblyman David Bobzien (D-24) introduces his first bill today and gives a little insight about what’s actually involved in the process. Oh, and he also reminded me of how cool Schoolhouse Rock was. Seriously, how many of you learned what a conjunction was because you saw “Conjunction Junction?” or what a bill was from “I’m Only A Bill?” And of course there is the classic “Three Is A Magic Number” famously sampled by Del La Soul on Three Feet High and Rising. How much cooler can an educational short get?
- I’m so excited! This blog just got its first local ad, AND its for a retailer I love–Sundance Bookstore. They are sponsoring an event on March 15th at 5:30 with the former head of the California EPA Terry Tamminen, who is going to discuss his new book Lives Per Gallon: The True Cost of Our Oil Addiction. From their site: “Tamminen uses the path of a single drop of oil to show the destruction it leaves in its wake, and sets forth a creative, progressive energy independence plan in response.” Sounds good doesn’t it? Show Sundance some love and maybe I’ll see you there. I also found out that the Nevada Assembly Democratic Caucus just went live with their new website because they placed an ad. Its an informative site and certainly better looking than the Republicans’. Yikes.
- Scott Schrantz at AroundCarson.com came across a pretty funny map drawn by Ward Kimball, an important animator for Walt Disney and apparently a huge train buff–thus his fascination with the V&T Railroad. Anyway, check out the images from the map Scott highlights. The woman with the axe kind of looks like me.
- That crazy German Sven found out that John Edwards, Bill Richardson, and Dennis Kucinich will be spent some quality time with Sam Schad on Nevada Newsmakers this week. You can watch the videos the evening following the show at their website.
- It looks like U.S. Attorney David Iglesias was dismissed because he didn’t make Senator Pete V. Domenici (R-New Mexico) happy, which leads me to ask what Daniel Bogden did or didn’t do and did someone complain about him?
- Will costing people elections or her new found ability to raise money for Democrats finally get the majority of conservatives to turn their backs on Ann Coulter? I guess we’ll see.
Similar Posts:
- Personal Thoughts: Who is Buying the Fitz?
- Fitz Rumors….Perhaps Bowl a Strike?
- The Covers are Coming! The council agrees to build them
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[...] Recent Blog Posts Reno and Byeond: Nevada Assembly Democrats Go Online That crazy German Sven found out that John Edwards, Bill Richardson, and Dennis Kucinich will be spent some quality time with Sam Schad on Nevada Newsmakers this week. You can watch the videos the evening following the show at their …Dennis Kucinich to make several appearances in Texas on Saturday … Dennis Kucinich will be speaking from 3-4PM San Antonio’s Northeast Service Center “Toolyard” 10303 Toolyard San Antonio, TX Food and Registration Fees: Box lunches will be provided for those who pay in advance . …DENNIS WOWS THE CROWD! See the video–Dennis WOWS the crowd in Carson City, NV last weekend…there is also a transcript at the link if you would rather read it. Watching it is MUCH BETTER, you will see what I mean at the end… http://kucinich.us/node/3069.ZEUS DEMANDS SACRIFICES: … is a “conversion of conscience” in which the miscreant–Dick Gephardt, Al Gore, George Bush the elder, even the hapless Dennis Kucinich–is brought to heel in a fairly undignified manner, and sees what his party sees as the light. …ABC News Informal Poll 435 Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio 280 Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ariz. 253 Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif. 120 Gov. Tom Vilsack, D-Iowa 87 Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn. 55 Gov. George Pataki, RN.Y. 54 Total Vote: 31885 Not a scientific survey.” [...]
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One further note on the Fitzgeralds sale.
The buyer of the Fitz - regardless of who it is - may also be interested in negotiating with L3 (Leal), because I “think” L3 owns both the old Vino lounge building and the former Golden Phoenix annex building that faces South Virginia (now closed with a “remodeling” sign out front). Both buildings lie just south of the Fitz properties on the opposite side of the Douglas alley. They used to be connected to the former main Golden Phoenix casino (Montage) by a couple of skybridges over both Sierra St. and the Fulton Alley which runs north/south.
Obviously, any entity that controlled the property on both sides of Douglas Alley, could request that the alley be abandoned or rerouted further south by the north end of the old Ace Motel to create one much larger contiguous parcel for a Fitz expansion.
If the Fitz buyer wants to keep the property a casino, it may well want to expand by purchasing these properties. Or, if it is another condo rehab plan, they may want to use these added (now mostly idle) properties to expand the project or add on-site parking or whatever.
Therefore, Leal could well be involved as an additional property seller whether or not he is a direct participant in actually buying the Fitz.
It will be interesting to see what is finally announced.
Hi Myrna!
Wow that V&T Map is soooooo cool I would be willing to pay for a duplicate enlargement for my office. The V&T went right in front of my house on Holcomb back in the day. How cool that would have been to have the V&T chug past your house.
Regarding the Fitz, I hadn’t even seen Steve’s post before I posted that question on my web site…coincidence! But it does bring up the question of what’s going on there. Especially if more than one person draws the same conclusion.
Also be sure to watch Nevada Newsmakers this week…..John Edwards is on today, Bill Richardson is on tomorrow, Kunisich or whatever his name is is on Wednesday and Harry Reid is on Thursday. Nevada Newsmakers has video podcasts in case you miss the shows.
So what if gibberdagrabber pressed Bogden for the midnight raid? bfd. He’s no longer in Congress so what can they do? Remember the Foley thing that nobody remembers now? Not even a spitwad fired toward him after he left Congress.
Ooh Also, regarding JC Penney building, I would love to see a fitness center on the second floor…..there’s something so urban about a row of exercise bikes that would overlook Sierra St. through a wall of glass on the second floor. Would be fun to work out and people watch at the same time.
oh Duuuuuuh der you posted that all the guests would be on his show..sorry didnt notice that! Guess I scan more for your development posts than political posts. I just plugged Nevada Newsmakers cuz I designed and maintain their site. Plug plug plug!
Desert Beacon has a WaPo story on who was the outsource for Walter Reed. You guessed it - Halliburton!
Just for grins, I searched harry’s official site for the Western Majority Project and then the New West Project.
“No longer available” it says. Is that interesting or WHAT? Like they never heard of either thing……
these changes in the Downtown area projects is like a nighttime soap opera!
It’s amazing…. and it makes perfect sense for the Eldorado to own or patially own the Fitz. I doubt they’d spend for it’s sorely needed updates.
Better hold on to your stomachs for this one from CrooksandLiars.com quoting Army Times: The letter said Walter Reed also awarded a five-year, $120-million contract to IAP Worldwide Services, which is run by Al Neffgen, a former senior Halliburton official.
They also found that more than 300 federal employees providing facilities management services at Walter Reed had drooped to fewer than 60 by Feb. 3, 2007, the day before IAP took over facilities management. IAP replaced the remaining 60 employees with only 50 private workers.
“But the push to privatize support services there accelerated under President Bush’s ‘competitive sourcing’ initiative, which was launched in 2002,” the letter states.
I just can’t go any further right now on this……
A fitness center would be sweet! But, it seems like a lot or wefi residents have gym in their building (well, not Park Tower of course).
I like the Lucky Strike idea! A bowling alley/Pool Hall would be good.
Wiley, the changes going on downtown are indeed like a nighttime soap opera.
And, if you read this document, the intrigue GROWS.
http://www.cityofreno.com/gov/boards/pdfs/board_pdfs/staffreportlinksMarch7redev_1.pdf
First, as Mike over at DowntownMakeover points out, the canopy at 10 North is now a top 3 priority (which means it likely will be started if not completed this year). The newest and cheaper proposal is Fiberglass (shown on link).
Also in the top 7 are some other interesting projects including the acquisition of the Post Office and presumably transforming it somewhat along the lines of what Myrna via Around Carson showed us in this link.
http://www.renodiscontent.com/2007/01/29/abandoned-reno-town-square-plan-circa-1995/
Maybe the whole 1995 idea is not so “abandoned” - just delayed a few years
As I thought more about the “top 7″, what I don’t see on the list is Plaza del Sesso (did I get that right Myrna).
As I recall, the plaza was first going to cover two blocks, then one block because some of the funds had been spent on the Virgina St renovations, then they were going to study it some more and now it is not listed.
But, what is listed is this paragraph about how the city might fund the canopy at 10 North… “There is approximately $6,300,000 available from the taxable lease revenue bonds issued for the ReTrac project that could be used to fund the canopy. If council determines that these funds should be used for this project, it will reduce funds available for other projects…”
Perhaps it is all about timing, since council “wants” to try to do the first 3 as quickly as possible and all 7 before too long.
And, perhaps the Fitzgeralds Mystery is somehow involved - since a new owner might want to change the configuration of the streets or rights of way or whatever. And, perhaps they are playing hardball with the owner/developers of the adjacent property since they also say somewhere that they hope to get private funding to “help” with some projects
At any rate, the staff links are worth a quick read if only to reinforce the notion that the city is indeed juggling a whole lot of balls at one time with a limited overall budget.
I can’t read. The latest canopy proposal is to start construction in Mar 08 and finish in Jun 08.
That was a good read! I still think I am more excited about the Truckee River redo down to Lake Street than anything else….it is very suspicious the train trench fell off the priority list….when so much was being done to fast-track it through before….
I am a bit skeptical about the eco plan for the river. I don’t see how they can make it half as wide and still allow for flooding at the levels we saw last year. I like the idea of extending the whitewater park in general though and wish they would connect 10 N. Plaza to the river more directly.
Myrna, as I read it the eco-channel concept seems to involve dredging out a narrow “meandering low flow channel” within the larger main channel that will improve esthetics and allow for greater recreational use by making this low flow portion 2 to 5 feet deep - even during low summer river levels when depths of this portion of the river currently drop to just a foot or so - so that folks with kayaks, rafts and inner tubes can still transit this traditionally shallow stretch.
It seems like the project will also add to high-flow capacity - by deepening the central portion of the main channel - rather than reducing it. Note that under “objectives”, number one is “Increase and maintain flood stage capacity”.
Like you, I also hope the city will add future river access points along the river below wefi. The addition of the access at Grants Landing is good, but more access at 10 North or perhaps across the river at the Post Office - if that project is realized - would be even better.
Hey Steve! I tried explaining this to Myrna in her post from 3/6/07 but I still dont think she understands…I think she thinks they are going to literally narrow the river banks to half their size and that’s totally not what they are going to do…..they are only dredging deeper in the existing riverbed to make the river flow narrower and meander through the existing larger channel and river banks.