The Reno Not So Public Market
A recap of recent original hyperlocal reporting plus bonus content.
Amidst a flurry of social media comments on our posts from the anti Devon Reese drag queen mailer to rising homelessness numbers despite recent politician and county pushed propaganda, to the latest pro Palestinian protest at UNR, our reporting about vendor exodus from the embattled Reno Public Market got the most responses.
We were the first media outlet to break the story and to identify all departures, leading to many comments across our channels.
We were in contact early with Douglas Wiele, the president of Foothill Partners orchestrating this market from afar, who first told us he had a dentist appointment, and then went back on the possibility of a direct interview, preferring to send out an Abbi Agency released communique instead.
Jessica Schneider, who has moved Junkee Clothing Exchange into the Plumb Lane locale, did her own horn tooting, releasing a statement on her shop’s Instagram, and appearing on a radio show, saying perhaps those leaving weren’t cut out to succeed, something she experienced herself with a failed venture in New Orleans.
The commenting divided the community in several camps, with the majority having tried the food and walked through the stores once or twice, and not much liking the vibe there, from acoustics to lighting and excess trash, and very much feeling shocked with the prices on offer.
One thought many of us have had is that food trucks used to be mostly cheap and reliable, somewhat secret, sometimes illegally run neighborhood staples which have been hijacked by some as overpriced delicatessens. Having them set up inside, under the thumb of a developer based in El Dorado Hills, just doesn’t make sense.
Another thought is that there can only be so many “Rancharrahs” in Reno which most of us have never set foot in, turned off by the overpriced kitschy glamour we couldn’t afford anyway.
The very branding of Reno Public Market calling itself a public market gave people the hope of something more affordable, more chaotic, more locally organic and eclectic than an overly lit, echo filled, waste creating, boujee aspiring mirage of what Reno will never be.
We commend the vendors for trying, but it seems despite their best intentions many of them have been and will be set up to fail inside those doors, unless they are given better terms of operations, and can lower their prices.
There was a recent post on the Reno Subreddit indicating there seemed to be fewer people out and about in bars and restaurants of late, with most of us scraping by or not even being able to get by, struggling to cover soaring rent, utilities, school, car payments and groceries, which our income has not kept up with, making disposable fun money to be spent nowhere to be found.
There’s a recalibration of being both a small business with in person offerings and what individuals spend money on these days, here and elsewhere, so the Reno Public Market in a sense represents for many of us a missed opportunity to have a place the local community would have wanted to gather in and support each other, rather than feeling as if money grubbers are trying to take advantage of us.
Our Recent Original Hyperlocal Reporting
Jen Gurecki, Seeking the Community’s Empathy after Deciding to Close Shop at the Reno Public Market
Ward 6 Race Has Mostly Little to Nothing in Early 2024 Contributions and Expenses
What’s That Construction Project? The Cottages at Comstock
Noah Dane, Keeping a Musical Family Tradition Thriving, Releases Dookie Dog
