The Reno City Council voted not to appeal the rejection of the proposed StoneGate Master Plan after it was denied by the Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Commission.
Notably, Heinz Ranch Land Company, the developer, is still able to appeal the decision. The development, in its current form, would be comprised of 1,350 housing units and 12MSF of industrial space. Lumos & Associates is the civil engineer. (NVBEX: May 28)
The project was originally proposed in 2018 and was initially planned to include 5,000 housing units, 1.2MSF of commercial and industrial space, and two elementary schools and a high school. The project was ready to break ground in 2021, but developers held off to wait for better economic conditions.
Developers said cutting the number of housing units and raising the amount of industrial space would bring about 8,800 new jobs, 6,600 more than the original proposal. The student population is also expected to decline by 1,880, which would reduce the demand for new schools.
Heinz Ranch says the new proposal is to help the City of Reno compete with the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center.
Detractors shared concerns about the numerous changes that have been made to the plan over the last seven years. Other concerns surrounded water, transportation infrastructure and conflicts with the County’s master plan.
Councilmember Kathleen Taylor, the only councilmember to vote in favor of an appeal, said the City should protect itself from any potential legal challenges and the Planning Commission’s reasons for rejection were not relevant to the findings they needed to consider. (Source)
