Ten Reno development issues to follow in 2026 (Part I)

Thoughts, resources, and links to get residents up to speed for the new year

Let’s face it, it’s enormously difficult (and not necessarily desirable!) to keep up with everything impacting local land development in Reno. But these decisions have the potential to affect all of us, sometimes in unanticipated ways.

As 2026 stretches out before us, I’ve compiled a list of ten local development-related issues that loom large in our city, along with some related commentary, news, and links to resources and organizations to help us think through and address them. In fact, I ended up compiling so much that I’ve decided to break this post into two parts, with the second five issues appearing in my next Brief.

You may not care personally or deeply about all of these issues, but I encourage you to think about which ones you do care about, and to pay particular attention to them in the year ahead. Seek others who care about them, too, and let that sense of shared concern help motivate you to stay informed, aware, and involved.

On that note, public meetings for the City of Reno have ramped up again, so be sure to check out the Current & Upcoming Meetings webpage here to see what’s on tap, including the first Reno City Council meeting of the year, on January 14th.

Are there more than ten issues I could mention? Of course! But ten seems like a nice round number, so let’s start with the first five, in alphabetical order.

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ISSUE #1 - CASINOS

Obviously, gambling is everywhere now, and as it spreads both geographically and virtually, Reno’s casinos are desperate to diversify their appeal—not just through the usual bars, restaurants, and spas, but concerts, sports, and other attractions.

And that’s great. But it’s important to keep in mind that the choices made by the big gaming and entertainment corporations operating in Reno will not be dictated by what is best for Reno, for downtown, for walkability, or for residents. Their priority is not good urban planning, housing, or affordability, but their own business interests.

So this year, please be skeptical of any city leader who continues to lavish praise on every single idea brought forth by casino executives. Demand that they stop blowing opportunities to negotiate better outcomes for the city and its residents whenever the casinos come to City Council for reviews or reports. A good leader will have the courage to admit that not all of the casinos’ ideas are good for local residents, that some of their execs tend to make promises they don’t keep (cough Jeff Jacobs cough), and that the City holds valuable cards that its leaders should be playing on our behalf.

Here’s a recent Nevada Indy article about casino diversification in Reno and a few prior Briefs explaining why we need to hold casinos to a higher standard than we have been doing, using every available bit of leverage to make them work better for us.

• As tourism slips, Reno casinos borrow from Vegas, lean into non-gaming attractions (Nevada Independent, 10/5/25)

Reno's Next Big Gamble

Casinos in Context

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ISSUE #2 - DATA CENTERS

One of the biggest development stories of 2025 both nationally and locally was the speed with which data centers are sweeping the country, along with their sprawling footprints and high demands for electricity and water.

In February of 2025, the Reno City Council voted against pursuing new regulation of data centers, but not unanimously. Voting to explore adding new regulations to Reno city code were Councilmembers Naomi Duerr, Miguel Martinez, and Meghan Ebert. Voting against were Mayor Hillary Schieve and Councilmembers Kathleen Taylor and Brandi Anderson. Ward 5 Councilmember Devon Reese was absent for the vote but penned an op-ed for the RGJ in August called The devil in the ‘datails’ where he stated his preference for regional and state over local regulation.

With the Reno City Council’s inaction, the local conversation on data centers has been led not by Reno but by the Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Agency and the collaborative Data Center Policy Consortium. Meanwhile, over in Sparks, the Sparks City Council voted to initiate potential regulations on data centers in September, when they directed staff to draft possible amendments to that city’s code.

Here’s some essential reading on data centers and their demands:

• OPINION: Does Nevada need all the data centers? (Pat Hickey, RGJ, 12/30/25)

• Ideas for Progress: Where are the guardrails for our local data centers? (Our Town Reno, 1/6/26)

• Do data centers create few permanent jobs? (Nevada Independent, 1/10/26)

• COMMENTARY: Data centers, Greenlink, and your electricity bill (Scott H. Williams, Nevada Current, 1/12/26)

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ISSUE #3 - DOWNTOWN REVITALIZATION

This one is so encompassing that it’s hard to consider its own category. Still, our local leaders (and city budget) have been focusing so heavily and for so long on revitalizing a relatively small portion of central Reno that it bears asking whether their current trajectory is likely ever to result in a favorable return on decades of public investment. And the more our local politicians continue to insist that Reno’s “downtown” is the area between the river and Interstate 80, the more resources they’ll justify pouring into it indefinitely, claiming that it’s still the city’s heart, which it really isn’t.

To me, that insistence is part of the problem. As I wrote in 2019, it’s time to cultivate and promote Reno’s new downtown, which extends from about First Street south to MidTown—home to museums, government buildings, offices, parks, retail, restaurants, multi-family housing, the Pioneer Center, and some key spaces yet to be defined (and in need of our attention to ensure they add walkability and interest).

At the same time, the troubled area north of the river—the original Reno townsite—obviously needs a lot of help. But the City needs to ask the people who are already living and working there—and that means all of them, regardless of socioeconomic status—what they actually want and need (and can afford) on a daily basis, not what others feel would bring them to that area every once in a while. If it’s a “neighborhood,” as some at the City insist, then treat it that way. But if the city continues to call it (and zone it as) the “Entertainment District,” then they’re relegating its primary usage to sporadic usage primarily by people without a vested interest in it. We deserve a better plan.

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ISSUE #4 - HISTORIC PRESERVATION

I was honored to help lead the City’s first dedicated community meeting about the Lear Theater this past Saturday, and the turnout was spectacular! Thanks so much to all who participated in person and online. Whether you did or not, please take the online survey about the Lear that is open through January 31. You can find it, a recording of Saturday’s meeting, and much more on the city’s Lear webpage here.

What’s next for the Lear? The Historical Resources Commission will be formulating some recommendations at their meeting this Thursday, followed by a City Council discussion currently slated for February 25th. So please stay involved, as we finally seem to be gaining the momentum and support to make some demonstrable progress.

At the same time, it’s important to remember that beyond the headlines, many more of Reno’s historic properties are constantly under threat, and they need the attention and imagination of residents and City leaders, too. Meaningful support for preservation takes courage. It means standing up to UNR when they want to demolish eight irreplaceable Victorian-era houses in the Gateway area long before they’re ready to build anything new there, and demanding more time to facilitate their relocation. It means urging Jacobs Entertainment to reconsider razing a unique block of colorful mid-century motels that could have been converted into an amazing place-based attraction (and actually retain some authentic neon on the “Neon Line”) instead of getting rid of them all in favor of a few sculptures, fences, and surface parking.

Preservation means acknowledging that it was not cool to demolish the St. Alban’s Hotel and Kiah’s Squeeze Inn building—two historic structures with street-level storefronts and great potential for renovation once located on either side of the Piazzo Building on Virginia Street—just so Caesars Entertainment could gain more surface parking, sightlines, and a paved walkway from The ROW to the Bowling Stadium.

Historic preservation means requiring the City of Reno’s own “ReStore” program to actively prioritize the preservation of historic elements on any properties receiving these public funds (I’m seeing a lot of replacement of historic doors and windows, in particular, with little if any attention being paid to actual “restoration”).

The city’s educational resources on Historic Preservation have been expanding greatly, with an array of maps and materials and info about the City’s Historical Resources Commission available online here. On the nonprofit side, join Our Story, Inc. and the Historic Reno Preservation Society to receive information about regular talks, special events, and walking tours.

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ISSUE #5 - HOMELESSNESS

The former Community Assistance Center building on Record Street was demolished this past year, marking a major victory for interests that have been angling for decades to get all homeless services out of the downtown area. Consolidation of so many services in and around the CARES Campus a mile to the east has its pros and cons. Many unhoused people remain vulnerable and in need in central Reno, making it even more necessary to support Reno’s innovative Good Neighbors Warming Center, recently featured on National Public Radio. Please visit the Warming Center website to donate funds or supplies and to sign up for volunteer shifts to help them out.

It’s not clear whether local leaders plan to enable regular public participation in discussions of homeless services. The Community Homelessness Advisory Board (CHAB), comprised of elected officials, finally met in December after a long hiatus, but some of its members seem interested in eliminating that public body entirely:

• Frustration, criticism and praise dominate homelessness advisory board meeting (This is Reno 12/4/25)

• EDITORIAL: Homelessness needs more attention, not less (This is Reno, 12/14/25)

The next CHAB meeting is scheduled for February 9th, so mark your calendars now.

Stay tuned next time for discussions of Housing, Politics, Public Spaces, the Reno Redevelopment Agency, and the Truckee River. In the meantime, please stay warm, look out for each other, and have a great week.

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Be sure to check out my Citizen Guide for helpful resources and links to help anyone become more informed and engaged in issues related to urban development (& more) in Reno.

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