Reno - a Book of Short Stories and Information Part 3

[Ill.u.s.tration: Views of Reno's Public Play Grounds]

RENO HAS ALL THE ADVANTAGES OF A BIG CITY WITH NONE OF ITS DISADVANTAGES

The following is a reprint of a circular prepared by the Reno Chamber of Commerce:

Location--Reno is situated in Western Nevada, twelve miles from the state line, and on the borderland of the lofty Sierras and Nevada plateau. The city lies in a fertile valley through which the beautiful Truckee flows, and is surrounded by high mountains.

Area of Reno--Three square miles.

Population--Power company, telephone company and school census show over 15,000; government census, 12,016.

Elevation--4,500 feet.

Climate--Winters short, moderately cold and open, with very little snow. Cool, dry, delightful summers, with cool nights, allowing refreshing sleep. No thunderstorms, hail, fogs or earthquakes. Average number of days without a cloud in the sky, 195; partly clouded, 105; and cloudy, 65. Doctors prescribe Reno's sunshine, dry atmosphere and alt.i.tude for health.

Railroads and Rates--Three railroads enter Reno; the Southern Pacific, the Western Pacific and the Virginia and Truckee, affording the city transportation facilities enjoyed by few Western cities. At the present time Reno enjoys full terminal rates or better for goods shipped from Eastern points and the distribution rates to the Nevada and Eastern California territory are also very favorable. All three roads furnish ample freight handling and side track facilities.

Highways--Reno is the center of the highway system of Nevada, and an important station on three transcontinental highways; the Lincoln Highway, the Overland Trail and the Pike's Peak Ocean to Ocean Highway.

City Government--The government is a munic.i.p.ality with a mayor and six councilmen elected by popular vote. Appointive officers are city clerk, chief of police, chief of fire department, city engineer and city health officer. The city attorney is also elected.

Industries--Reno is not an industrial city, but may be termed the office of the big industries of the state. Its biggest industries are a packing plant, machine shop and foundry, soap factory, planing mills, brick plant, flour mills and railroad yards.

Financial Strength--The six banks in Reno have a total capitalization of $1,745,000 and total deposits of $14,782,751.92. Total resources amount to $18,363,651.94. The clearings average $4,500,000 monthly, indicating that Reno does a business of a city at least twice its size. Of the six banks, three are national.

Tax Rate and Indebtedness--The tax rate of Reno, including state, county and city taxes, is $3.55 and the bonded indebtedness $433,000.

Jobbing Center--Due to its central situation Reno is the jobbing center for the territory of Nevada and Eastern California. Reno has several warehouses and wholesale grocery, automobile supply, produce, tobacco, building materials, hardware, bakery and confectionery store.

Cost of Living--The cost of living is about the same if not lower than in the Middle West and Western communities. The surrounding country supplies Reno with wholesome and cheap food and Reno's location on the main lines from the East and California enables the merchants to sell imported goods at a reasonable figure. One person can live well on $75 a month and the average family of five lives on $150 a month.

Housing Conditions--Like most of the cities of the country there is a shortage but not an acute one of apartments and small homes in Reno.

However, the amount of building done in Reno this year was almost three times that of any previous year, and the housing problem is expected to be solved by the summer of 1921.

Health Conditions--The clear, dry air, alt.i.tude and sunshine of Reno's climate are especially beneficial to health, and persons with lung trouble find relief in Reno. There are no tenements or unsanitary conditions and the city health authorities enforce the laws strictly.

Dairies, restaurants and bakeries are inspected regularly, and no refuse is allowed to acc.u.mulate in streets or yards. The water supply is pure.

Labor Conditions--Labor conditions are good in Reno, which is the shipping point for the labor of the mines, lumber mills, ranches and construction camps of the Nevada and Eastern California territory.

There is always work to be found in the trades and unskilled labor markets. The supply of office and store positions is about equal to the demand. There are no strikes or other quarrels between employer and employee in Reno. The trades are on a union basis.

Schools--There are five grammar schools, a kindergarten, business college, high school and university in Reno. Plans are now being perfected for the establishment of a junior high school which will take care of the eighth grades and freshman high school cla.s.ses. The scholarship standard is high and the best laboratory and playground facilities are offered. The teachers are paid salaries above the average, enabling the schools to maintain an efficient teaching force.

Churches--There are twelve churches as follows: Baptist, Congregational, Presbyterian, Episcopal, Christian Scientist, Lutheran, Methodist, Methodist Colored, Roman Catholic, Salvation Army, Seventh Day Adventist, Spiritual.

[Ill.u.s.tration: University of Nevada]

Hotels and Apartments--Reno has excellent hotel facilities with three large, first-cla.s.s hotels and forty smaller hotels and apartment houses.

Clubs and Civic Organizations--Headed by the Reno Chamber of Commerce there exists a live and aggressive group of civic and other organizations in Reno. Enumerated they are the Rotary Club, Lion's Club, Woman Citizen's Club, Italian Benevolent Society, G. A. R., Women's Relief Corps, Nevada Bankers' Society, Nevada Historical Society, Nevada Livestock a.s.sociation, Nevada Mine Operators'

a.s.sociation, Reno Clearing House a.s.sociation, Nevada Highway a.s.sociation, Y. M. C. A., Y. W. C. A., American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Red Cross, Salvation Army, Reno Grocers' a.s.sociation, Reno Automotive Dealers' a.s.sociation, Washoe County Medical Society, W. C. T. U., Spanish War Veterans, Washoe County Farm Bureau, Washoe County Tax Payers' a.s.sociation, Truckee Meadows Water Users and Washoe County Bar a.s.sociation, Twentieth Century Club, Reno Nurses'

a.s.sociation.

Fraternal Organizations--Ancient Order Foresters, B. P. O. E., Fraternal Brotherhood, F. O. E., I. O. O. F., Daughters of Rebecca, Knights of Columbus, Knights of Pythias, Ladies of the Maccabees, Loyal Order of Moose, Masonic Orders, Modern Woodmen of America, Royal Neighbors, U. A. O. Druids, Woodmen of the World, Women of Woodcraft.

There are four lodge buildings maintained by the Elks, Masons, Odd Fellows and Woodmen of the World.

Public Buildings--Reno has many imposing public buildings, among them the county court house, city hall, public library, post office, Y. M.

C. A., high school building, churches and university buildings. A new post office and Federal building is contemplated, and $100,000 a year is being spent on new buildings at the University.

Theatres--Reno has four first-cla.s.s theatres: The Rialto, Majestic, Grand and Wigwam. The first is a combination vaudeville and picture house and during the show season the best road shows are brought to Reno by the management and staged there. The other three are motion picture houses which secure the highest cla.s.s films to be had. Their combined seating capacity is over 5,000.

Publications--Two daily newspapers, five weekly journals, and three monthly journals are published in Reno. The Reno Evening Gazette and the Nevada State Journal give full a.s.sociated Press reports.

Parks and Playgrounds--The city maintains two parks and one playground, and there is a playground at each of the public schools.

Wingfield Park is a recent acquisition given the city by George Wingfield and consists of a beautiful island of over two acres, situated in the Truckee river within three blocks of the business district. The city is now improving this park and connecting it with the playground on the sh.o.r.e. The playground has three tennis courts, swings, and teeters and is used constantly during the year. In addition to the munic.i.p.al parks the children of Reno have all outdoors to play in.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Wingfield Home]

[Ill.u.s.tration: General View of Reno, Looking N. W.]

Hospitals--There are three hospitals in addition to the county hospital and the state hospital for mental diseases. The St. Mary's Hospital is also a training school for nurses. With a staff of thirty- three physicians, these hospitals are well able to take care of any emergency and the most expert treatment can be obtained in Reno.

Libraries--Reno has a Carnegie Library, University Library, county law library and the high school library. The Elks Club, Y. M. C. A. and Chamber of Commerce maintain reading rooms.

Telephone--The Bell Telephone Company of Nevada furnishes telephone service in Reno with 3,729 stations in the city. Of this number 1,725 are business phones and 2,004 residence phones. The rates are lower than most cities on the coast. The company plans to spend $300,000 in Reno the coming year in a new building to house its exchange. Long distance communication with most of the points in Nevada is also provided.

City Water Supply--The city water supply is taken from the Truckee river by the Reno Power, Light & Water Company, twelve miles west of Reno, and is of the purest quality. It is snow water and is treated by a purification plant near the outskirts of Reno. Two large reservoirs store the water and give it ample pressure for distribution. A monthly rate of $2.75 for an unlimited supply of water is charged each residence. This allows for irrigation of small gardens and lawns.

Gas and Electricity--Gas is manufactured by the Reno Power, Light & Water Company and distributed to nearly every home in the city through thirty-one miles of mains. The minimum rate is $1.10 a month and averages $2 per 1,000 cubic feet. Electricity is sold by the same company for light and power purposes from three hydro-electric plants on the Truckee river. For domestic uses the electricity is sold at seven to two cents a kilowatt hour, and for power at a minimum of five cents a kilowatt and as low as two cents for large users.

Street Cars--The Reno Traction Company has five miles of track in the city and connecting with Sparks, three miles to the east. Cars are run on the half hour during the day and on the hour at night until 12:30 a.m.

City Paving--Reno now has six miles of paved streets with five additional miles on the program for 1921. There are forty miles of sidewalks covering practically the entire city.

Sewers--Rena has thirty miles of sewers emptying in the river at a point below the city.

Shipping--The railroads entering Reno do a large business in the local yards, and Reno's importance as a distributing center is growing rapidly as shown by the following figures: Imports 1915, 155,000 tons of freight; imports 1920, 207,000 tons of freight. Exports, 1915, 45,000 tons; export 1920, 89,000. Several trucking lines also operate out of Reno to surrounding points and handle a large tonnage which it is impossible to estimate.

Building Activity--The building permits issued for 1920 totalled in round numbers $300,000, which is twice the figure of last year.

Contemplated Civic Improvements--The city council is working upon a comprehensive plan of civic improvements which includes paving work already mentioned, landscaping the river banks west of the Virginia street bridge, and improvement of Wingfield Park. A new bandstand costing $5,000 is being completed in the city park and close to $100,000 is being spent in purchasing an aviation field and building a hangar. A free tourist camp ground is to be modernly equipped.

Building and Loan a.s.sociations--There are two Building and Loan a.s.sociations in Reno. The Union Building & Loan a.s.sociation and the Security Savings & Loan a.s.sociation. Both offer material a.s.sistance to the home builder on long payment plans.

Fire Department--The equipment of the fire department is valued at over $75,000, and consists of the most modern fire-fighting apparatus.

High speed motor trucks which can reach any point in the city within three minutes after the alarm is sounded, are used, and twenty-four men man the trucks on the platoon system. The department has a record of efficiency and the loss by fire is very low in Reno.

Police Department--Reno also has a very efficient police force of fifteen men. An identification bureau and emergency hospital is maintained by the police department. Only sixteen burglaries occurred in Reno in 1920, and eight of the perpetrators were apprehended.