After years of waiting, the location of the former Harrah's Casino might finally be getting revived in downtown Reno.
We reported a couple of months ago after talking with some of the developers, including Tommy Ahlquist, CEO of Ahlquist LLC, about progress on the Revival Reno project.
On Tuesday, Johnathan Fine with Fine Entertainment, a Las Vegas hospitality group, spoke with media about his vision for his space in the building.
Fine is looking to bring restaurants, clubs, bars, and more to downtown Reno. Specifically, a cocktail bar within 30 days.
The fencing around the Reno Arch entrance is now decorated with Revival logos and renderings that you can also find online.
The old Harrah's building closed in March 2020 and has since stood near the heart of downtown, empty and fading on the outside.
Multiple developers have said things were shortly on the way, but with nothing to show.
"We were knee deep," Fine said. "We were already invested. We're already here. We were weeks away from opening."
Things changed when the previous developer, CAI from Caesar's Entertainment, filed for bankruptcy last year.
Fine Entertainment has been involved with the project since 2021. Originally, they were signed on to open two restaurants and a bar, but now that's just a piece of the puzzle.
"The first phase of what we're doing, which was the entire project, is now the first phase," Fine said. "Once we start moving dirt, we are, we're hopeful for 90 to 120 days out."
Fine Entertainment is taking over 180,000 square feet for dining and entertainment space.
That first phase will include the temporary Mint. It's a cocktail lounge that will feature slot machines, TVs, and food and drinks, all day, every day.
"Once we open this space in thirty days, there will be something open on this property 24 hours a day, seven days a week for the foreseeable future," Fine said.
However, the lounge is only temporary, and after about a year it will be repurposed into something else.
Fine says they want to open this first to show people that things are just around the corner.
Included in phase one is PKWY Tavern and the BLVD Grille, and Fine expects those to open by the end of the first quarter of 2026.
PKWY Tavern has several locations in Las Vegas. It will include 400 different beers, bowling alleys, and pool tables.
The BLVD Grille will be more of a fine dining establishment centered around steak, fish, and a ton of wine.
Other places include the Sleepy Cat, which will be a live music and karaoke venue. Another is George Sportsmen's Lounge. Fine also has plans for a speakeasy lounge, country bar, underground nightclub, a burger restaurant and a Mexican restaurant.
In total Fine's plan is to have five restaurants, three bars, and two nightclubs in the space by 2027.
"It is about ten times bigger than anything we've done in Las Vegas as a single unit, but again, this is not, this is this is multiple units," Fine said.
Fine has plans to work on the plaza near the arch as well but needs to work some things out with the City of Reno before doing so.
Fine says the hardest challenge with this project has been the starting and stopping of the development.
One time they had to stop the development when they made a discovery beneath the floorboards of the first floor.
"There were three holding cells, and Alcatraz style doors that were on these things with scratches and kick marks and you name it," Fine said.
He thinks this is where they held cheaters way back in the day.
Fine has been successful in the Las Vegas market, and he plans to bring those same skills to the Biggest Little City.
"In Las Vegas, it's very segmented," he said. "You are either in the local market, or you are in the tourist market. I see downtown as being both."
Fine clarifies this project is not trying to bring Sin City to the 775.
"I don't think we're doing what people would consider Las Vegas style," he said. "I think we're doing a Nashville style. An Austin style, but with more, more glamour and glitz."
Fine says when his section is fully up and running, it will employ about 500 to 600 people full-time.
