Past Pages, March 28, 2011: Economic officials mull overhaul of 'Target 2010' plan

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Each week in 2021, we will feature snippets of stories that published a decade ago to provide readers a 10-year perspective of business news in the region. This week’s stories first published in the March 28, 2011, edition of the NNBW. Please note – due to several digital changes made over the past decade to www.nnbw.com, some stories may no longer exist on the website; in those cases, we will include full page images for context.

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Bidding on geothermal leases lukewarm

An auction of geothermal leases on federal lands in Nevada last week drew tepid interest from a small handful of companies that are developing the renewable source of power generation.

But development of steam power is by no mean cooling down in the state, industry executives say. Last week’s auction, which put 51 parcels on the block at the Reno field headquarters of the Bureau of Land Management, netted just $456,000 in bids for 17 parcels. Leases on the remainder weren’t sold.

By way of comparison, the BLM’s 2008 geothermal lease auction netted a record $28.2 million, which translates into a decline of more than 98 percent in bids in two years.

However, geothermal industry executives say that last week’s decline in leasing activity reflects the reality that companies are interested in simply filling in around their existing geothermal claim blocks.

— Page 1, by Rob Sabo

 

Four years after Target 2010, economic road map to be revisited

Northern Nevada’s “Target 2010” plan rolled forward for only two years before the wheels fell off the region’s economy in 2008. Now, the region’s economic leaders believe it’s time to begin thinking seriously once again about the future.

There may not be an appetite to finance a large-scale study such as the report developed by Angelou Economics of Austin, Texas, that led to the Target 2010 recommendations in late 2006. But leaders at EDAWN believe the four-year-old plan needs a fresh look.

“You have to continually look at your plans relative to your environment,” says Stephanie Kruse, vice chair of the board of directors of the economic development agency. “It’s the prudent thing to do.”

— Page 1, by John Seelmeyer 

Raceway expects to hit full speed with NASCAR’s OK

Jon Hodges, president of Racing’s Field of Dreams LLC, the newly created race promoter for Reno-Fernley Raceway, is banking on a boost from NASCAR to double or even triple race attendance at the dirt oval track in Lyon County.

And if that happens, Hodges says, the land around the track could eventually see upgrades such as a 200- to 300-space RV park with full hookups and retail storefront space.

Crews are busy preparing Reno-Fernley Raceway for the upcoming short-track racing season, which kicks off in late April. Fourteen races at the track recently were sanctioned by NASCAR, racing’s governing body, which is expected to draw drivers from Utah, Idaho and California seeking to earn NASCAR points for racing in different categories.

— Page 4, by Rob Sabo