Reno, NV | NO F'IN WAY: 330', 330', 319', 286', 220'... | PRO

[kenratboy]

...165', 165', etc.

OK, to make this clear, this project is proposed to be in what anyone would consider suburbia. The biggest buildings here are 3 story walk-up apartments and some 3 story office buildings. It is mostly (90%) a sea of single family homes, parks, school, Home Depots, rich white kids acting ghetto, strip malls, grocery stores, and all that.

Here we have a billion dollar proposal to make something absolutely astonishing and huge for a city like this.

That said, I say the odds of it happening are less than 10%, if that, and the place thet have this proposed is already built-up, so no idea where they would build this

Here is the intersection (note: most of the open space in this old picture has been developed): http://local.live.com/default.aspx?v...5190&encType=1

Here is the link: http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar...10413/1071/BIZ

Here is the text (from RGJ.com, Aug 1):




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Four condominium towers up to 30 stories tall, altering the skyline of the south Truckee Meadows, could be built under a zoning change in a project to be considered tonight by the Reno Planning Commission.

At the south edge of the South Meadows Business Park, the 16-acre South Boulevard project would contain up to 1,726 condos and 130,000 square feet of space for shops, restaurants and offices. A zoning change to boost the height limit from 55 feet to 360 feet is being sought.

The condos would be about the same height as the twin peaks in the Huffaker Hills, south of Rattlesnake Mountain, that frame the site. The tallest peak is 350 feet while the other is 326 feet, according to Washoe County geographic data.

With the nearby U.S. 395 interchange and other major streets and thousands of nearby jobs, the city planning staff concluded that the site at the northeast corner of Double R Boulevard and South Meadows Parkway is appropriate for the project. More than 25,500 jobs are within two miles of the center of the business park, according to Sierra Pacific Power Co. research.

When the project is finished in 10 to 15 years, the investment could reach $1.5 billion or more, said Jeff Codega, a planning consultant for the project proposed by Reno developers Mark Kubinsky and Tami Topol, daughter of Lakeridge developer Nate Topol.

If each of the 1,726 housing units were built out on 6,000-square-foot lots instead of in condo towers, senior city planner Vern Kloos said the project would consume 272 acres.

"It will use less water. We don't have to build roads, and police and fire are already there," he said.

The biggest problem is traffic, Kloos said. The finished project would generate more than 10,000 vehicle trips a day.

Two youths were killed in automobile accidents in the past year on nearby South Meadows Parkway, prompting the city to install a new stoplight.

When half of the project is completed, staff is recommending a traffic study be required and its recommendations followed for nearby intersection improvements, traffic signal changes and additional lanes. Another study and more work could be required when 90 percent of the project is built.

The Regional Transportation Commission is recommending additional land be purchased for added lanes on Double R Boulevard. Codega said the project sets aside land for those future lanes.

Toronto architect Cliff Korman, who has done work in Las Vegas, designed the project. The towers would have glass walls and a glaze to minimize glare from the sun and pick up the colors of the changing sky.

Ingrid Lubbers, a dentist whose office is on Double R and lives in the south Truckee Meadows, is not impressed.

She said the developers should "buy enough land while playing by the rules" to build their project. She said high-rises should be kept downtown.

She fears "unbearable amounts of traffic" and will miss a loss of green space around a small lake where the tallest buildings would be built.

"This proposal is profiteering at its worst," she said.

Kloos said the business park is zoned as a planned-unit development, which he described as "custom-made zoning." As such, developers can apply for zoning to change the height limit.

The height limits have been approved by Federal Aviation Administration officials, according to local airport officials. The FAA found that the tall buildings will not present a hazard because the project is east of approach and departure paths for Reno-Tahoe International Airport, officials said.

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[Lecom]

Rich white kids acting ghetto vs rich weirdo yuppies acting urban and sophisticated... tough call.

[brinvion]

Here is the proposal. looks pretty cool. but i too am having a rough time wondering why they want to develop there, instead of somewhere more central

[kenratboy]

Wow, where did you find that?

Here is the real question - WHERE is it supposed to be!? Is it on that lame little lake behind the apartments on the north side of South Meadows Parkway?

[leftopolis]

Looks good. Reno has a decent downtown for a city of it's size but it already has randomly scattered high-rises as well, so I don't see why not. The architect (according to the rgj article) has some happenin' projects:

http://www.kirkorarchitects.com/

[Stu]

weird render... like one might find in a terraforming manual

[bigd]

This project was recently approved.

http://news.rgj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar...D=200771128048

Boulevard South, a 1,726-unit condominium project with a 30-story tower at its center, was approved unanimously tonight by the Reno City Council after hearing from dozens of speakers.
More than 200 people attended the public hearing at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center held to hear about the project.
Councilmen Dwight Dortch and Dave Aiazzi said they hope Boulevard South encourages other high-rises in South Meadows nearby on Virginia Street, which includes mixed-use zoning to concentrate people near the transit line.
“In this community, we need to make a choice: To go up or go out,” Aiazzi said, saying the project should help curb some sprawl at the city’s fringes.
Ingrid Lubbers, a dentist who lives in the South Meadows, said the changes sought for the zoning for the business park were outrageous and would “undermine the whole concept of city planning”
She said the 360-foot, 30-story tower exceeded the 55-foot height limit by 655 percent.
The 16.2-acre project near the northeast corner of Double R and South Meadows boulevards at the southern edge of the South Meadows Business Park borders a 16-acres lake and would include nine condo towers, 140,000 square feet of commercial including shops and restaurants along the lake.
Sue Currier, personnel manager for Intuit, which employs 900 people in the park, said the business park needs this new type of housing to help in “recruiting and retaining talent in this area.”
Pete Gillon, the former city redevelopment director, said it would fill a market niche for younger workers. “What’s raised in Reno should stay in Reno,” he said, adding the complex would be “a cool place to live.”
More than 25,500 jobs are within two miles of the center of the South Meadows Business Park, according to Sierra Pacific Power Co. research.
To sweeten the deal, the developers propose to landscape the lake and the U.S. 395 freeway interchange at South Meadows.
The project would include swimming pools and hot tubs on the rooftops, with four major restaurants at the lakefront. Toward Double R, a larger plaza would be built for concerts, a farmers market and other special events.
Condo prices would range from $380,000 to $3 million. Piers would be built so people could rent kayaks or paddleboats for the lake, fed by White and Thomas creeks, that’s 60 feet deep.
The first building would take about four years to start and the entire project would take 12 years, said Jeff Codega, planning consultant for developers Tami Topol and Mark Kubinski.
Developers agreed to make improvements on South Meadows Parkway as well as contribute $1,000 a unit for a police station and other funds for fire service.