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Planning Commission recommends city council approve Leera Properties master plan and zoning map amendments
Summary
The commission voted unanimously to adopt a resolution recommending City Council approve a master plan amendment and zoning map amendment for the 161.2‑acre Leera Properties site, proposing suburban mixed‑use/neighborhood commercial along Old US‑395 and preservation of the southern parcel as parks, greenways and open space; the annexation and tier‑change processes remain pending before council and regional bodies.
The Reno City Planning Commission unanimously recommended July 1 that City Council approve a master plan amendment and zoning map change for the Leera Properties site, a two‑parcel project of about 161.2 acres south of the city between Old US‑395 and the new US‑395/580 interchange.
Associate Planner Leah Picotti described the proposal as three linked actions: a master plan amendment to add a suburban mixed‑use (SMU) designation along Old US‑395, a zoning map amendment to add a neighborhood commercial node and preserve the steeper southern parcel as parks, greenways and open space (PGOS), and a concurrent annexation application for the southern parcel that will be heard by City Council. Picotti said the northern parcel will keep industrial uses in places while the frontage along Old US‑395 would be suitable for lower‑intensity neighborhood commercial that is consistent with nearby development.
Applicant Garrett Gordon said the plan intentionally concentrates commercial designations along the roadway and preserves the steeper slopes and open space behind it. "The industrial parcel is being downzoned — a portion of it is going from industrial to neighborhood commercial," Gordon said, adding that the exact development program has not been proposed yet and site‑specific projects would come back through the usual review processes.
Commissioners asked about sequencing and dependencies. Picotti explained that annexation is handled by City Council (not the planning commission) and that the commission’s recommendation would move forward as a resolution and accompanying zone‑change recommendation; the master plan amendment and zoning map amendment will also go to the Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Agency (TMRPA) for a conformance review and the regional governing board for a tier change if TMRPA finds it conforms. She noted the process requires multiple approvals (council ordinance for annexation and zone change, a council resolution for the master plan amendment, then regional conformance and a possible tier change).
Commissioners expressed general support for preserving open space on the southern parcel and for the proposed neighborhood commercial frontage. With no public speakers in chambers or online, the commission voted to recommend approval to City Council. The motion passed unanimously.
Next steps: the commission’s recommendations will be forwarded to City Council for ordinance introductions and resolution action; the city will schedule TMRPA regional conformance review and, if favorable, a tier‑map amendment would follow at the regional level.
