Reno Sports Arena at Grand Sierra Resort Gains Conditional Land-Use Permit

Posted on: April 7, 2025, 09:40h. 

Last updated on: April 7, 2025, 10:35h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.
  • Meruelo Group is seeking $100 million in Reno tax money to build a sports arena
  • The Reno sports arena has gained a conditional land-use permit
  • The arena is part of a $1 billion expansion of the Grand Sierra Resort

The Reno sports arena component of the $1 billion expansion plan of the Grand Sierra Resort has secured a critical conditional land-use permit from the city’s Planning Commission.

Reno sports arena Grand Sierra Resort
A rendering of the proposed Reno sports arena at the Grand Sierra Resort. The sports project took a step forward this week by gaining a conditional land-use permit from the Reno Planning Commission. (Image: Grand Sierra Resort)

Last Thursday, the city planning agency greenlit GSR’s 10K-seat arena project after reviewing the project’s latest plans. The Meruelo Group, which owns and operates Grand Sierra and Sahara on the Las Vegas Strip, wants to build an indoor basketball and ice hockey arena that would become the home of the University of Nevada, Reno’s men’s basketball team.

In exchange for providing the Wolf Pack a modern hoops home, Alex Meruelo, who has pledged that the arena “will not cost the university one dollar,” is seeking about $100 million in city financing to help build the $400 million facility. While the Reno City Council continues to review the taxpayer-funded project application, known as Tax Increment Financing, Meruelo gaining conditional-use approval is a significant step forward.

The Planning Commission signed off on allowing the arena to stand 118 feet, or 33 feet higher than the zoning’s maximum height limit of 85 feet. Meruelo’s latest arena plan includes an eight-level parking garage with 2,800 spaces and traffic flow solutions as determined by the Nevada Department of Transportation.

The blueprint found favor with the eight Planning Commission members, who voted unanimously in support of the conditional land-use application.  

Grand Sierra Expansion 

Meruelo’s Reno sports arena is only one element of his company’s $1 billion expansion of Grand Sierra Resort. Reno is amid a renaissance, with Jacobs Entertainment continuing to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into its J Resort and Reno Neon Line mixed-use corridor.

Meruelo’s remaining $600 million investment will be made over the next 10 years, should the arena come to fruition. The $600 million allocation would expand the Grand Sierra with a new hotel tower and additionally include new workforce housing, retail and restaurant spaces, and an “aqua driving range” where golfers hit balls towards floating islands.

Caesars Entertainment has questioned whether the use of Reno tax money to help Meruelo, whose estimated net worth is upwards of $2 billion, build a sports arena at his casino is legal under the city’s TIF program. Caesars operates three resorts in town — Eldorado, Silver Legacy, and Circus Circus. It also previously operated Harrah’s, with the former downtown casino now set for a mixed-use development called Revival.

Taxpayer-funded sports stadiums aren’t uncommon. In Las Vegas, $750 million in hotel occupancy taxes helped the NFL Raiders construct its $1.9 billion Allegiant Stadium.

Reno Roaring Back

“The Biggest Little City in the World” has roared back from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reno’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) totaled $785.8 million last year — more than 25% higher than in 2019 when casino win totaled $626.8 million. Last year’s tally also represents a 42% surge from 2014 revenue when Reno GGR came in at $552.1 million.

Reno is considered a great place to call home, with Outdoor Magazine in 2023 naming it the “Happiest Place to Live.” The magazine for outdoor enthusiasts said Reno’s abundance of public lands and parks, inclusivity and diversity, and median home prices make it attractive and often render its residents “happy.”