Former RGJ home trade planned

The University of Nevada, Reno is expected to trade the old Reno Gazette Journal building at Second and Stevenson streets to obtain property that is currently the site of the Nevada Historical Society.

The RGJ built the plant on Second Street and moved there from its Center Street offices. Then, it built and moved to a new plant on Kuenzli Street, which itself is now up for sale. The Second and Stevenson building came into the hands of UNR after it served as the home of Nevada School of Law at Old College.

Old College held its first classes in the former classrooms of St. Thomas Aquinas School on Arlington Avenue. Then, Gannett Newspapers donated the empty RGJ building for a new Old College home and took a $2.5 million write-off. It was named the Nelson Building, after Club Cal-Neva owner Warren Nelson, who provided much of the money for Old College. But the law school never obtained American Bar Association accreditation and folded. Title to the property was transferred to UNR, which used it for “lifelong learning” classes.

The historical society building on the UNR campus belongs to Nevada State Land. UNR will get it and two other parcels inside the campus, plus $773,625 in cash. The trade has been approved by the Nevada Board of Regents but still needs legislative approval and approval from the Board of Examiners, made up of the governor, secretary of state, and attorney general. The society, which has been becoming more cramped, would then move to the Second and Stevenson building.