By John Seelmeyer
A 104-acre parcel at the University of Nevada, Reno’s Main Station Field Laboratory is back on the market after an $18 million deal to sell the land fell apart.
Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education approved the sale of the land in November, and the transaction was set to close on Dec. 24, 2018.
But the buyer, Reno Land Inc., decided not to move forward after completing its due-diligence on the transaction. The company hasn’t commented on its decision.
ArchCrest Commercial Partners of Reno, which has contracted with the university to market the property, will re-start efforts to find a buyer, said Kerri Garcia, a spokesperson for UNR.
The $18 million price established by an appraisal last autumn will remain unchanged.
Reno Land Inc. planned business and office buildings on the land, which extends south from Mill Street along McCarran Boulevard in east Reno.
The company specializes in projects that find new uses for vacant land within the metropolitan area. Among its high-profile projects is redevelopment of the Park Lane site at Plumb Lane and South Virginia.
The 104-acre parcel that’s on the market at the Main Station Field Laboratory represents about 11 percent of the land at the agricultural research station.
University officials have said they intend to protect the rest of the Main Station Field Laboratory — about 800 acres in all — with a conservation easement that would permanently bar any development.
John Seelmeyer is a business writer and editor in Reno. In his 40-year career, he has edited publications in Nevada, Colorado and California and written several thousand published articles about business and finance.
