Legends at Sparks Marina

Construction continues at a fast and furious pace on the new Legends at Sparks Marina shopping complex. The first phase of this million square foot development is scheduled to open this fall. Anchoring the center is a huge Scheels sporting goods store, opening on September 27. Numerous other retailers will be opening as well. In a future phase, look for a new 1,000 room hotel / casino. The Legends part of the name refers to the center's theme, which will incorporate the athletics, music, exploration, science, technology, politics and art of Nevada and by Nevada's people.

All of this is happening around the east shore of the lake at Sparks Marina, at the corner of I80 and Sparks Blvd. I think all of this is rather remarkable considering that what is now a nice lake was the Helms gravel pit until the 1997 floods filed it with water. For the curious, here is a picture of the pit by Peter Goin.

Check out Downtown Makeover for a look at artist drawings of this huge new shopping and entertainment zone. The builder, RED Development, has more information about the Legends at Sparks Marina project.

As an aside, I think it may be difficult for the casual outside observer to think there's a recession around here. Everywhere you look, something is under construction; downtown Reno baseball stadium, train trench cover, the Montage condos, new hotels, Rock Park renovation, etc. For lots of individual Nevadans, though, times are indeed tough (Nevada has the highest per capita home foreclosure rate in the country and unemployment keeps creeping higher.). Hopefully, all this new stuff will get the economic ball rolling again.