Background image of downtown Reno with illustration of people and text that reads The Future of Virginia Street Placemaking Study

Council accepted the Virginia Street Placemaking study and adopted an implementation plan to help revitalize Reno's downtown core. In spring 2022, Gehl Urban Design Firm began a placemaking study of Downtown Virginia Street. The goal of the Virginia Street Urban Placemaking Study was to create a shared community vision for downtown Virginia Street and develop a phased implementation plan to initiate the proposed changes. Gehl engaged the community and stakeholder groups for input and feedback during three phases of the process.

Council recently approved $2,550,000 in State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds to help begin implementation of recommendations from the Virginia Street Urban Placemaking Study. City staff will now create cost estimates for each project based on the recommendations set forth by the placemaking study. As projects are developed in detail, they will be brought back to Council for approval.

Gehl presented a draft of their concept designs and recommendation at City Hall on  February 23, 2023 and asked for community feedback through an online survey. The survey will remain open through March 10th. 

 

 Review a PDF of the presented material from Gehl. 

Watch the video below for an update regarding the Virginia Street Placemaking Study:


For background, the City of Reno invited the public to participate in a public engagement session with Gehl, an urban design and research consultant, as part of the next phase of the Virginia Street Placemaking Study.

During the public engagement session, Gehl summarized the data collected through the more than 2,700 Virginia Street Placemaking surveys that community members submitted earlier this summer and gathered feedback from the public to draft a community-driven vision for Virginia Street and a thriving downtown.

Next in the Placemaking Study process, Gehl will use the input from the survey to help finalize the design and create an implementation plan. 

Community engagement will be broken into two phases:

Phase 1: Information Gathering and Analysis 

During Phase 1, residents were asked to complete an online survey about how they experience Virginia Street today. From those survey results, Gehl will develop a draft vision and set of goals which will be used for Phase 2. 

Phase 2: Visioning

In Phase 2, residents will be asked to provide input (virtually or in-person) regarding the drafted vision and goals for the future of Virginia Street. 

The Virginia Street Placemaking Study process will take approximately 6 months to complete. Upon completion of the study, Gehl will provide a concept design narrative and implementation, phasing, and financing plan for the preferred conceptual street design and programming options .Next, the plan will be presented to the Reno City Council for review and approval. 

Timeline

  • May 2022: Project Setup & Kickoff
  • June-August: Information Gathering & Analysis
  • September-November: Visioning
  • December-February 2023: Street Design & Programming Concept Alternatives
  • March: Implementation & Financing Plan
  • April: Presentation to Council

Implementation

Upon completion of the Placemaking Study, Gehl will provide a concept design and proposed  implementation plan for Downtown Virginia Street. Councilmembers, the City Manager’s Office, RTC, and the community will work together to evaluate and execute a phased approach to implementation.

Additional Information

Background material related to the Downtown Virginia Street Urban Placemaking Study:

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