Around Downtown - CommRow and More

I know there is no money for it, but I think its time for a new Reno arch. The existing arch is dated with an 80's design and just looks obsolete.

Very nice Mike, a good overview of the good things happening downtown. Question for you - you know Leal better than most, I was surprised to read about all the different eateries going into CommRow. Does he have any experience in the food service business?

Maybe it's just me being sentimental, but I honestly miss the previous arch (the 1960s version). The arch is about due for replacement; it's been 24 years, which is how long the second arch stool. Perhaps something that looks modern, but with some inspiration from the previous arches...

I agree with the Reno Arch. Make it more cost effective with LED lights, that way it would be cheaper to run.

It's funny how some people like the old arch and then they want a completely new arch. There is something to be said for history and classic designs. We shouldn't aspire to be Vegas and blow up everything that is old. Any new arch would be cheesy. Do you want a 3-D LCD billboard up instead with lasers? The existing one is fine and is synonymous with Reno. Gee, why don't they update the Eiffel Tower, it's SOOOO 19th century. Why don't they replace Big Ben with a digital satellite clock? Why don't they replace Stonehenge with concrete, steel reinforced slabs? I swear to god.

Easy there Blake let's not rip my readers' heads off lol. With me personally, the older the arch, the more I like it. http://www.newtoreno.com/renoarchpix/renoarch6.jpg That is probably my favorite arch, the 1960's version. Simple, elegant, geometric. http://www.newtoreno.com/renoarchpix/renoarch5.jpg I was a fan of the flames too. The Reno Arch has been using LED lights (2076 of them to be exact) since 2009. Was one of many 'green' projects the city embarked on. The transition received widespread coverage particularly in the Bay Area. The current arch was built in 1987, not exactly 'historic', but as time goes on, provided it's not changed out again, it will take on a historic feel. So Blake does have a point, you have to give something a chance to be historic...especially since so many of downtown's historic buildings were lost.

Blake, Just because the current arch is old does not make it good. The design is dated and it is not aging well. I actually prefer the previous arch design to the current. There is nothing wrong with replacing something that is inherently bad. And a new more timeless arch design could be metaphor for a new beginning in downtown Reno. The current arch is trapped in the 80s where many people feel Reno is stuck. Its time for a change.

yep, I also agree the Reno arch should be replaced with one made to resemble the 1960's version of course with LED lighting and maybe a video marquee for special occasions. When I see the current arch I hear Huey Lewis and Phil Collins coming from my car radio. If a private fund drive was started I bet the money could be found in a year or two. There's nothing classic about the current arch.

Changing the arch to modernize it would be helpful; however, I think the best thing for downtown would be for the Virginia Street hotels to update their facilities. The majority look pretty woebegone.

since I moved here in 2003 I've seen many of the obsolete motels downtown torn down. Unfortunately there's still many more to go. And thanks that another gawd-ugly souvenir shop is closing under the Fitz garage. hey, maybe we can all meet up to paint the outside of Beverly's Souvenir Shop at the corner of Virginia and Second? That place is a mega-eyesore.

Wow. I wonder why they went with blue? I like the lower of the two pictures you took. You balanced the blue building against the sky blue very nicely with more foreground and background. Until I saw that second picture, I was thinking it was too much blue on blue. Not that I am a huge animal nut or anything, but I worry a little about birds flying into it.