Visitreno

[remano]

JD's link to the King's Inn article combined with some truly pleasant November weather convinced me to spend a little time walking around downtown this afternoon. Here are some of my observations.

JD is right about the King's Inn situation. Although the city may have sent a letter to the owners, the eyesore is far from taken out. If the owners come up with the back taxes by March they can keep the building as is. Nevertheless, it is a good starting point and I am looking forward to progress.

Across the street from the Inn, the patch of bare ground that used to be the Gospel Mission serves as a reminder that demolition of an eyesore solves only half the problem. Much remains to be done before the location comes to serve a useful purpose.

Just east of the former Mission site is the Third Street Bar, which I mention because it is the only open storefront along either side of the train trench plaza (I don't consider Eldorado's loading dock to be an attraction). There is no activity in the Montage retail spaces and Fitzgerald's and Old Reno Casino are closed up. Although the trench plaza was used for some of the special events, they really have to get the next phase going before it will realize its potential. Third Street Bar, by the way, is a nice little freestanding venue for live music, lots of blues but they also feature all types of music from time to time.

Continuing east across Virginia Street we come to the Freighthouse Entertainment District, one of the brightest new spots downtown. The first phase connected to the third-base end of the baseball stadium will feature several bar/restaurant choices, most of which will have overlook baseball field. There will also be a sports bar in the stadium itself where some of the luxury boxes are now situated, but with a separate entrance from outside the stadium. I am going by memory here are based on an article in today's RGJ, so the description might not be entirely accurate. All you can see today are the steel beams of the structure's skeleton so it doesn't look like much. The scheduled opening date is April 8. Given that it is being built by the baseball folks in the way that they were able to bring in the stadium on time, it's a good bet that this project will likewise be a first-class, on time production. There is talk about using the stadium next summer for concerts, special events and more than just baseball and the entertainment district is intended to blend well with any of those.

To the south of the baseball stadium across Second Street the Park Center Tower is showing good progress. Formerly Harrah's corporate headquarters, this building is being remodeled to feature restaurant and retail spaces on the ground floor with offices on the floors above.

In the midst of all this remodeling and new construction, however, one business is moving out of the area. The Italian restaurant, La Famiglia, which in my not infallible opinion is the best Italian restaurant downtown, is moving to a new location in the just completed State Street Center next to the Pioneer Center. Although there are fewer businesses on the south side of the river, this may turn out to be a good move. There is free parking in the courthouse parking lot across the street evenings and weekends whereas the parking is limited in their current location, and the proximity to the Pioneer Center makes it a natural for a dinner and show evening.

Heading north again up Virginia I passed the old Woolworth Building which is just starting a major remodeling. The exterior has been painted, and the announced plans are for the interior to be completely stripped and rebuilt, not just remodeled, beginning in January. Again, the first floor is designated for retail and restaurant, the upper floors for offices. Although I am beginning to worry about the chances of success for so many retail/office combinations dotting the downtown area, if this one does come through it will go a long way toward upgrading that end of the street albeit not with casinos.

In the next block, across from Harrah's, the Knitting Factory is beginning to take shape. This is a music venue being put together by a company that successfully operates three or four similar operations around the country. I see their experience as a good omen for success. From what can be seen looking through the glass front doors, it looks like they are completely stripping the interior and starting from scratch. They claim they will be open sometime in December, but that doesn't look likely to me. They might be lucky to have a grand opening for New Year's eve.

Going back west on Second Street there is a new $.99 store being put together midway down the first block. This doesn't seem to be of much interest to visitors in the hotels, but at least it's not another tattoo parlor.

On the southwest corner of Second and Sierra, a new Mexican restaurant is being added to the building that also houses the Second Street Bar. It is my understanding that it is being built by the owners of the bar, which makes sense because a vacant space filling up half of their building is not doing them any good. This one looks pretty close to being ready to open.

On the river in the next block to the north, the Ole Bridge Pub opened last month on the first floor of the Palladio condos, in a nice little spot overlooking the river. It is done in the style of an Irish or English pub with lots of dark wood paneling (is the word wainscotting?) And features patio tables overlooking the river in nicer weather. Although there is no food, there are plenty of eating establishments in the area and it is close to the theaters, Pioneer Center and Wingfield Park.

If I hadn't had to get back to work I might have stopped in for a few cold ones. Duty called, however, so that was the end of my hike. Some of these developments are not of interest to visitors, others definitely are. Either way, I think it shows a positive trend for downtown, especially given the current economy.

[jerry]

great report, as usual, Remano. Thanks very ;much for all the data. Makes me wish that I could have taken the stroll with you.
Still, it was well-written and the next best thing to being your passenger/sidekick/second observer or whatever.
I would have enjoyed the cold one with you.

[Dave]

Great post as always. Thanks so much for taking the time to put it together. So nice to hear of some positive things going on downtown. I can't wait to get back to Reno!
Have to ask what is happening with Siena now and their new mode of operations? Have you heard anything new there?
Thanks again Remano. It is appreciated!
Dave

[remano]

Thanks, my pleasure.

Jerry - maybe we can work something out next time you're in town. I would suggest we pick up where the report leaves off - just about to enjoy a cold one.

Dave - I haven't seen the dealertainers in action, but they're still there for the night shifts. The casino at first tried a small stage at the end of the pit, which required them to remove the roulette table to make room. Now there's a larger stage over along the wall beside the pit, and I'm told some of the dealers get up there to sing a few songs. The stage is big enough to be used for other bands as well. I'm not sure how well they're received but I know the concept was tried and failed at a couple Vegas casinos in the past.

Table gaming conditions at the Siena have declined from years past, in my opinion. They have 3 tables of single deck blackjack but you can only double on first two cards totaling 10 or 11. Used to be you could double on any first two cards. There is one double deck table that allows doubling on any two cards, and one table of "no commission" pai-gow but with a $10 minimum when I was there. With the repositioned stage the roulette table is back, single zero which cuts the house edge to about 2.7%, . Craps odds, which used to be 10X, are now down to 3-4-5. I also have no report on what the drink service is like. In most casinos it seems to vary with the day of week/time of day/location in casino and how well you tip the server. Siena's probably much the same.

This is not saying the games are bad, just not as good as they used to be. In blackjack, for example, double on 10-11 only is pretty standard at most Reno casinos so Siena is no worse. But they used to be better. 3-4-5 odds on craps is better than straight 2X, which you will find at a lot of places. It's just that Siena used to offer 10X. And their roulette hasn't changed - it's still the only single zero wheel in the area as far as I know, so it's still the best roulette game around.