"They Paved Paradise": Reno Residents Fight Back Against City-Backed Overdevelopment

Save Lakeridge LLC signs are all over the neighborhood. Just a hint Save Lakeridge folks get larger ones made for empty lots and put your signs where candidates plunk theirs in the dirt.

In 2021, the residents of Lakeridge were blindsided. The Reno City Council approved a development that locals said would permanently alter the character of their quiet, golf-centered neighborhood. To add insult to injury, a former city councilmember even implied that only the “entitled” lived in Lakeridge—and that it was time for that to change.

It was a message that didn’t just sting—it stuck.

Then came Rancharrah. Promised as a luxury equestrian community with upscale homes and horse facilities—Riata, Lariat, the whole “horsy set” vibe—it was marketed as one thing and swiftly transformed into another. When developers realized the land under the horse barn was worth more than the horses themselves, they moved to redevelop it. Residents objected, loudly and in numbers. The City Council listened—then sided with the developers. Again.

Fast forward to 2024: The original Lakeridge project, still untouched, returned to the table. The developer wanted to sell it, and the new buyer envisioned something even taller—four or five stories—in a neighborhood of one- and two-story homes. Residents appealed. They fought. They made their case. And by April 2025, they lost again.

This time, though, the losses are piling up—and so is the frustration.

Within ten days of that vote, the owners of the Lakeridge Golf Course announced a sweeping vision of what could be: a hotel, spa, event space, restaurant, 100 rooms, 15 villas, pickleball courts, tennis courts, and more. That’s not a clubhouse renovation—that’s a resort complex in the middle of a residential neighborhood. But to pull it off, they'll need a change to the Master Plan.

If you’re from Rancharrah, you know exactly how those "Master Plan changes" go: residents speak up, Councilmembers smile and nod—and then vote with developers. Again.

Let’s talk traffic. All of this development—the new hotel, the multi-story apartments, the increased density—is being funneled into an already broken artery: McCarran Boulevard. Intersections at McCarran and Plumas rated F—a flat failure—by regional traffic engineers, McCarran and Talbot, McCarran and Lakeside. But City Council’s answer? Councilmember Devon Reese’s favorite refrain: "They’ll ride bikes."

In snowstorms? In triple-digit heat? With groceries and kids in tow? Is there a bike built for all seasons we don’t know about?

We can only guess Councilmember Devon Reese thinks a whole lot of residents in Reno own cargo bikes.

So when Councilmembers Reese, Brandi Anderson, Miguel Martinez, and Kathleen Taylor voted to approve yet another out-of-scale project over resident objections, the message was crystal clear: the developers come first.

And yes—developer money flowed into their 2024 campaigns. You don’t need to be a political consultant to connect those dots.

Now, residents are done playing nice. Save Lakeridge LLC, a new grassroots coalition made up of neighbors from both Lakeridge and Rancharrah, has formed. They’re lawyered up, organized, and energized. Over 200 people turned out for a meeting at Bartley Ranch. Signs are popping up all over town. And this time, it’s not just a zoning appeal—it’s a full-scale fight to protect one of Reno’s last green spaces.

The Lakeridge Golf Course is home to more than just tees and fairways. It supports local wildlife, mature trees, and one of the last wide-open green views in the city. Groups like the Sierra Club, The Nature Conservancy, Project EverGreen, and World Wildlife Fund could all have a stake in protecting it.

Because here’s the truth: if they can pave over Lakeridge, they can pave over anywhere. This is bigger than one neighborhood. It’s about the soul of a city being carved up and sold off one vote at a time.

Councilmembers Reese and Taylor have their eyes on a run for mayor in 2026. But after their relentless pro-development votes—overriding residents, ignoring traffic warnings, and dismissing public safety concerns—they’ve made it clear where their loyalties lie. And it’s not with the people.

Reno doesn’t need more unchecked growth. It needs responsible planning, real transparency, and leadership that values community over campaign cash.

Help Save Lakeridge LLC, put up a sign. Make some noise. Save Lakeridge—and send a message to City Hall.

www.savelakeridge.com