Transforming Reno's Fourth Street district

When Ric Licata looks at East Fourth Street in Reno he sees a modern mix of shops, homes and office buildings, interlaced with lots of inviting green space leading down to the Truckee River.

Anyone else might see a few rundown motels, a couple of topless clubs and an ugly, concrete highway overpass.

Licata's vision for Fourth Street formed the basis of his master's degree thesis and is a plan that the architect is now working to turn into reality.

Licata is not alone.

A large group of area businesses that banded together six years ago, as well as state and city officials interested in preserving the street for its historic importance, are working to turn the area from an eyesore to a must-see.

Licata is part owner of Licata Hansen Associates Architecture, a Reno-based architectural firm that is now working on a resort in north Lake Tahoe and a church in Douglas County.

He is also a professor at Truckee Meadows Community College.

And he is talking to a few property owners in the Fourth Street area about implementing parts of his plan.

The project is focused on about nine acres on East Fourth Street between Evans or Valley and Wells Avenue.

Licata's plan calls for mixed-use space, including a range of commercial, residential, entertainment and retail properties, some in refurbished buildings, others in new structures.

"The purpose is to revitalize urban areas that are underutilized or in decay," said Licata, referring to urban redevelopment work in many cities.

"And a lot of what is happening are urban villages, mixed use in a green setting."

The idea includes plenty of green space, but rather than a park or two, Licata has designed in landscaping throughout.

Licata's thesis topic, and his overall goal, is a sustainable urban environment.

The green space and landscaping, says Licata, "improves air quality, keeps streets cooler and provides wind blocks." The plan also includes what he calls a regenerative water system.Water is reused for landscaping and returned to the river through a system of ponds with vegetation that treat it naturally.

The idea is to use and treat water in the same geographic area, naturally, without moving it to costly treatment facilities.

The Truckee River plays a big part in Licata's plan.

The Fourth Street area is being impacted more than most of town by the ReTRAC project.

But Licata says that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

"Officials haven't really seen the potential," said Licata.

"Once you lower the track you can get to the river."

He envisions a series of plazas, pathways and arteries that will allow both foot and automobile traffic over what was is now the train track.

The architect would also like to see some kind of public transit system go in that might possibly allow the four-lane street to be reduced to a more pedestrian friendly walkway.

"A people mover.

One city I am most familiar with is San Diego," said Licata, where he received his master's degree in architecture from the city's New School of Architecture and Design.

"San Diego has a rail system that loops all around the city."

Licata is working now with clients who own property in the area to implement at least some of his plan.

Gaye Canepa would be thrilled if Licata's vision is realized.

"Ric is dynamite, isn't he?" she said.

Canepa, who with her husband owns Fred's Auto Repair at Sixth and Valley, is chair of the Reno Sparks Corridor Business Association, a six-year old group of about 35 to 40 neighborhood businesses interested in improving the area.

The association, with the help of Licata and others, was instrumental in getting the Fourth Street area rezoned from industrial to commercial and designated as a special planning district.

Now the group works to attract what they consider the right kind of businesses to the area.

"We're not getting as many businesses as we'd like because of the economy," said Canepa.

"But, no, no new topless bars.

There are two left because they were grandfathered in, but they have been zoned out."

Instead, Canepa and the group would like to see more businesses like Forever Yours, a furniture store in the neighborhood, or D Bar M, the area's last authentic western wear store, said Canepa.

"We want positive things," said Canepa.

The city and the state want the same for Fourth Street.

The street that runs between Reno and Sparks is on what was the first transcontinental highway in the United States the Lincoln Highway built in 1913.

Kristen Danielson, an economic development manager with the City of Reno, is working to promote the historic roadway.

"I've met with a whole host of people who are very excited about the Lincoln Highway," she said.

That includes the National Park Service, which is studying the highway now and may work to get passed the Lincoln Highway Act sometime next year.

If that happens, then federal grant money would become available just as it has for work to preserve Route 66, said Danielson.

"It's a very exciting opportunity for the city."