Reno Aces owner Herb Simon buys Park Center Tower near ballpark

The owner of the Reno Aces has acquired one of downtown Reno’s biggest properties in a multimillion-dollar deal.

Park Center Tower LLC, a company tied to real estate magnate Herb Simon, acquired Park Center Tower across the street from the ballpark on Tuesday from Basin Street Properties. The sale price was not disclosed but amounts to about $28.4 million based on its $116,505 transfer tax that was paid to Washoe County.

Reno Aces President Eric Edelstein confirmed the sale when reached by the Reno Gazette Journal on Wednesday. The 15-story Park Center Tower was first built in 1981 and is just under 520,000 square feet, according to county records.

Edelstein described the purchase as an opportunity that aligned perfectly with Simon’s plans for the downtown neighborhood around the ballpark.

“(Park Center Tower) represents such an important part of the downtown area in terms of parking and for the ballpark but also for continuing to develop this neighborhood,” Edelstein said.

“The office space also represents that live-work-play (philosophy we have for the) neighborhood so it made sense for us to pursue it.”

Herb Simon talks about improvements to ballpark area

Simon says he is excited to finalize Park Center Tower’s acquisition, which reflects his continued belief in downtown Reno’s potential.

Simon pointed to several attractions and developments occurring around the baseball park in talking about his company’s vision for the neighborhood. The Ballpark Apartments development, for example, continues to see good progress after breaking ground in April 2022. Simon sold the land to current owner Pacific Development in September 2021.

“Since constructing Greater Nevada Field in 2009, we have seen the area around us improve with the Courtyard by Marriott, the Ballpark Apartments and the Brewery District,” Simon said.

“The Park Center Tower has been and will be an important piece of a true live, work and play neighborhood.”

Question marks remain about some neighborhood properties

Although projects such as Ballpark Apartments are seeing steady progress, questions remain about some parcels within the neighborhood.

The parcels include the old Freight House building as well as the Bundox site, which Simon previously considered for building new lodging and retail. Simon bought the Bundox site on 0 Lake Street south of the ballpark in 2014 for $1.95 million.

Most of Simon’s attention was focused recently on the Park Center Tower acquisition, according to Edelstein.

“There’s no other development at this time,” Edelstein said. “We will take a look at how ownership of the Park Center Tower might play into what’s possible and developable at that Bundox site.”

The biggest question mark — literally — is something out of the Simon Property Group’s control. 

The nearby Reno City Center project, an ambitious redevelopment of the former Harrah’s Reno hotel-casino by Gryphon Private Wealth Management, recently filed for bankruptcy in an effort to get its finances in order.

Edelstein is still rooting for Reno City Center to pull through.

“I think the bankruptcy is a setback but hopefully it’s a step toward getting (Reno City Center) completed,” Edelstein said.

“It’s hard to overstate the importance of the City Center project to the success of downtown.”

Momentum is positive overall downtown despite challenges

Despite the challenges, the overall trends for downtown look good, according to Edelstein.

Park Center Tower is 95% occupied currently. There’s also development activity going on in the West Fourth Street corridor all the way to Keystone Avenue with the J Resort’s Reno Neon Line District and S3 Development’s West End Commons.

Given how tough things were during the pandemic just recently, the pace of development is not bad, according to Edelstein.

“Development momentum can be slow momentum but it’s great downtown,” Edelstein said. “There seems to be stabilization with projects.”

“Herb Simon … continues to invest in downtown and that’s a great sign,” Edelstein added. “Downtown is exciting right now.”