It's been closed for a few years now but the old post office building in downtown Reno is getting a makeover.
It'll be called FiftySouth Virginia, and it's being turned into retail and office spaces, but the main goal is to preserve as much of the old building as possible.
“Most of the things we've done in the post office is basically go back to the original 1932 plans. Through the years, the post office modified the building and our objective is to go back to the original concept that Frederic DeLongchamps envisioned,” says Bernie Carter, 50 South Virginia, LLC. Managing Member.
That includes reopening the third floor of the building, restoring its high-ceilings and having a skylight on the first floor.
They're also adding windows to the upper floors to bring in more natural light and also provide a view of the Truckee River.
Carter says they're preserving some of the key portions of the building, like the main lobby area with the old mailboxes.
He says a large number of groups are interested in putting their office and retail space in there.
They expect the first floor to host shopping in an effort to draw more people to the downtown area.
“It'll actually be a high-end retailer. That's our objective to be able to bring shopping to our community and also to tourism to our community, the ability to find product that we don't have today.”
A number of surrounding businesses on the Riverwalk District agree it's an opportunity to bring in more money for their business.
"I'm not sure what's going on at the old post office," said Brett Blagen, with The Chocolate Bar Lounge (95 North Sierra Street, Suite #101, Reno) "But, I'm excited to see what it is to go check it out. Adding more businesses down here is going to bring more people down here. So, it's going to be a plus for everybody down here."
"More people downtown during the daytime," said Cullen Wishart, Manager of Reef Sushi and Sake Bar (50 North Sierra Street, Reno). "It's not just being quite so much of a nighttime destination. We like to see people on the Riverwalk, checking out all the eclectic stores around us now."
Carter says they'll start looking at potential tenants next week.
