A new Courtyard by Marriott is set to go up across from Aces Ballpark, where the AAA baseball Reno Aces call home. Par Tolles, president of developer Basin Street Properties has high hopes this is more than just a hotel, but rather a complement to the entertainment district and a boon to the downtown casinos.
Tolles said, “because those people who don’t want to stay in a smoking casino will go south of town and probably won’t visit downtown. This provides branded [hotel] option for somebody to stay downtown and visit the entertainment district.” the four-story 135-room Courtyard by Marriott along Second Street will feature a groundbreaking ceremony soon, and has a date of spring 2016 for the grand opening.
The project will provide over 200 construction jobs and 25 jobs once complete. “I think the more we can bridge the downtown business community with the university, that’s incredibly important… This is a strong indication that those two worlds are starting to meld together,” Tolles said. The hotel will not feature gaming or allow smoking, and has actually been in the works for several years. The 2008 recession held back the project.
The strategically situation hotel will feature a bistro, fitness area, indoor-outdoor swimming pool, and flexible meeting space. In regards to the pool, Tolles said, “It’s covered, but it’s an open area.” The hotel is being developed by Basin Street Properties, a California based company making it’s first splash into Reno. The guestroom design is aimed at young business travelers primarily.
Just a short drive over in Sparks, New Orleans-themed Bourbon Square Casino went dark on February 5, after a long-planned renovation never saw the light of day. On August 1, 2013, guests wearing hard hats stepped around carpenters working on the project to catch the first glimpse of the casino.
Plans for an expansion, which included a high-raise hotel never came to fruition, and the site will now be used for retail and office development. The hotel out back will be turned into housing. Nearly 30 years ago, the then Karl’s Silver Club opened, but was never big enough to compete with larger casinos in the area, and was too small to grind out decent numbers.
