Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Riverfront Access topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents urge protection of historic Riverwalk access and caution against losing activation history
Summary
Public commenters urged the advisory board to preserve Riverwalk public access, raised archival evidence that the AT&T walkway was built as public right‑of‑way in the 1970s, and warned that closed gates, setback reductions and private fencing have reduced public frontage and the area’s historic activation.
Two public commenters used the advisory board meeting to press officials on downtown public access and the history of Riverwalk properties.
Tony Harsh, who identified herself as a former city councilwoman and former president of the Truckee Meadows Heritage Trust, urged the board to pursue a public plaza solution and to restore earlier redevelopment commitments. Harsh referenced a Pete Walker design held by the city and asked the board to reconcile redevelopment boundaries and public‑facing design features with prior public input.
Damien Holder, a longtime regional resident, said he researched the origin of the walkway under the former AT&T building and found contemporaneous newspaper reporting that the city required the developer to provide a public walkway in the early 1970s. Holder claimed multiple gates to the walkway are now permanently closed, that a required 25‑foot esplanade was reduced in places to 10 feet, and that an Auto Museum had closed required active retail frontage and converted it to private function space. He urged staff to review archival documents and zoning/code sections relevant to riverfront setbacks and frontage requirements.
Both commenters urged limited pilot programs, sunset clauses for new activations and better infrastructure (including a downtown circulator bus) to ensure activation results in sustained downtown economic activity rather than temporary spikes.
Ending: Board members thanked the commenters and asked staff to pursue further archival research and follow‑up memos; staff agreed to provide additional background at a future meeting.
