Ever since the official press release was issued about Silver Peak's new restaurant, I've received a ton of emails picking up on subtle industry wording within the press release which in a round-about way questioned the future of the downtown location. People have asked on RGJ, people have asked on Silver Peak's own fanpage, and people have asked on Downtownmakeover.
"The owners have no plans to make any changes to the original Wonder Street location, but are evaluating their total presence and priorities in the downtown Reno area."
Concerned, I emailed Silver Peak and asked this question directly and received a response. So let's squash all the rumors right now.
Their current lease with their landlord, City of Reno expires at the end of this year. They have have been discussing the location, terms, for renewing the lease for the past few months. With the current condition of the commercial real estate market, it's probably no surprise they have been offered some sweet deals by other unnamed developers, including ones offering to do complete buildouts as well as offer great lease rates.
But, Silver Peak's goal is to be able to work out their lease with the city and stay in the Sierra Street location.
It would of course be disastrous if Silver Peak closed this location and moved to Legends or Summit Sierra (I am citing those as examples). Sure, restaurants close and new ones open, but Silver Peak is more than a restaurant, it's a DOWNTOWN ICON. It would be bad for the City because now there would be a near-empty parking garage spanning nearly a city block. No revenue coming in = more expensive to run the garage. It would be catastrophic to surrounding businesses. Silver Peak is ALWAYS busy in the summer, and busy most of the time in the winter, and most folks I know stopping by Silver Peak also partake of other events downtown, like a movie, or a concert, or the Riverwalk. It makes downtown look busy when streams of people are hanging out on Silver Peak's outdoor patio.
So, I ask that Silver Peak and the City of Reno play nice, and come to an agreement both parties can live with. To Silver Peak, realize the bigger picture, and that simply trying to get the best deal could jeopardize an entire block of downtown on the fringe of either coming back or continuing to spiral downward. Don't screw over the neighborhood that supports your business and helps make it the success it is today. :) Many of us like your location exactly where it is. To the City of Reno, now is not the time to base your lease proposal with Silver Peak on high end market lease rates etc blah blah blah, because having no one in your space would be worse than reducing the lease rate or doing whatever it takes within reason to accommodate Silver Peak's requests/wishes. Government or not, you have to be competitive in a depressed market. Silver Peak is successful because of its name. I think there's a risk with how long it would take to replace Silver Peak in that space in this commercial market, and if what replaces Silver Peak could match their popularity, which would be a must to keep that block of downtown alive and active. Subway and Del Mar Taco aren't going to cut it.
So for the sake of keeping one of the few revitalized blocks of downtown north of the river enjoyable, make a deal, sign the papers and keep it status quo.
So what are YOUR thoughts? Should the city do whatever it takes to keep Silver Peak there? Should Silver Peak step back from shopping around for the best lease and just decide to stay downtown for the better of the neighborhood? Or is change good? Maybe the City should hold their ground and not lease the space at a loss, and start looking for a replacement tenant? Let's discuss below.
The City should kiss Silver Peak's butt on this matter. There would barely BE a "downtown" without this anchor. No brainer.