Roadway renaissance?

Right now, East Fourth Street, that long strip between downtown Reno and the Highway 395 overpass, is a stretch of beat-up motels, auto repair shops, taverns, and weedfilled lots.Not pretty.

But the area is too close to town to remain rundown, says Joe Hensler, president of Team Power Forklifts.

The forklift sales and lease company, headquartered in Sacramento, operates five sales and service facilities the Reno one since 1973.And Hensler is putting his money on the street he believes in, spending to beautify the old Mayflower building at 2730 E.

Fourth, transforming it into a cool,multi-color building inside and out.

Fourth Street, also known as the Lincoln Highway, a piece of the old Highway 40, is home to some once-hip motels the Sandman, the HiHo, and the Highway 40 to name a few that date back to pre-freeway eras.

Those are just west of Hensler's new building.

Going east toward Sparks, the street becomes Victorian Avenue.

The whole street reminds Hensler of a road in Sacramento, Richards Boulevard.

A decade ago, that street looked like East Fourth in Reno.

Then the city invested in landscaping and a few amenities.

Investors improved their properties.And now, the street's beginning to be very cool, according to Hensler.

That's where Fourth Street is headed, he believes.

Back to its hipper, cooler days.

Back to its cool-again future.

"There's a resurgence of interest in the Lincoln Highway," says Kristin Danielson, economic development manager with the Reno Redevelopment Agency.

"And also in the roadside America theme."

Some of Reno's most popular events, such as Hot August Nights and Street Vibrations, in fact, are wrapped around that Americana, she adds.

And another indication of resurgent popularity for East Fourth is that private individuals are collecting neon and Americana signs such as the ones that bedeck the old motels along East Fourth.

Danielson points to some concrete signs of interest in East Fourth as well."We see a lot of investment on both the public and private sides," she says.

Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development loan funds set aside for economic development in planned districts are available in the area.

These funds, along with a streamlined path to the permit process, are geared toward major projects.

And they are teamed with omnibus funds of $250,000 set for improvements and enhancements to the streetscape.

Hensler, too, points to concrete indicators of the street's more glamorous future."There's not much for sale on the street," he says.And yet, the properties are not being maintained by the owners.

That combination is one of the clues he looks for when seeking peeks into the future of an area.

Plus, for his kind of business and possibly for others, he says, the location is enormously convenient.

Hensler is moving to downtown from a South Meadows building with great visibility from Highway 395, a plus for his kind of business.

But more important to him is freeway access, especially if it leads to Fernley, his major customer base.He's got it from Fourth Street,with access to both I-80 and Highway 395.

Location is part of the attraction, but for Hensler there's more.

There's East Fourth and being part of what it represents, he says.

Hensler knows that he could have just painted the old Mayflower building and moved in.

Forklift buyers and customers seeking parts and repairs do not require a beautiful building.

"But I'm priming the pump," he says.

Hensler finds passion and excitement in the buildings in which he houses his business, as well as in the business itself.He enjoys being first on the block -- one of the first on East Fourth's revival.

"He has a knack for it," adds his Reno general manager, Rick Crandall.A tour of the partially finished building reveals office space cut out of a big box,with blocks of color, a mezzanine, and internal windows overlooking forklift workspace, all making use of warehouse utility wires and painted conduits, along with exposed insulation and sparkling warehouse drop lights.

Team Power Forklifts will use about a third of the 15,250-square-foot building and lease the rest.

One potential tenant is a coffeehouse proprietor who's considering opening shop at one end of the building, installing mezzanine and patio dining.

For the other two spaces,Hensler is in search of something beyond auto repair.A flooring company, for example, he says,would be welcome.

And what effect can one building have on the renovation of an entire street? "Team Power is the east anchor," says Danielson.

And the street is a gateway into downtown, as well as a connection to Sparks.

The first big tenant can help set the tone.