Apple is coming to Reno-Sparks

Downtown Reno News by Guy Johnson

From this morning’s Reno-Gazette Journal…

Apple Inc. has plans to build a 350-acre data center east of Sparks to house its iCloud and iTunes services as well as a business and purchasing center in downtown Reno, as part of a $1 billion investment the company plans to make in Northern Nevada over the next 10 years.

See Apple plans facilities in Reno

Construction is slated to begin in August and will create nearly 600 construction jobs. Once completed the data center will employ 41 full-time employees and 200 contract professionals. Additionally, an Apple presence in Reno-Sparks will mark the region as favorable for development to other high-tech companies – bringing additional economic diversification to the area.

22 comments

  1. Sully

    It’s a start for sure, however the fact the article even mentioned STAR bonds makes me wonder, especially since Apple is one of the most profitable companies in the country. They don’t need the money, so how much will it cost to bribe other less wealthy companies to move here? Maybe I’m just raining on the parade……

  2. Matthew

    It’s funny how quickly people seem to turn around from last month when people seemed up-in-arms about Apple “using” Nevada for favorable tax status…. The city leaders should play hardball on this issue. Apple know why they want to build here, they don’t need additional tax incentives over and above our existing favorable laws….

  3. tyler durden

    where do i apply and how many shares do i get

  4. Dirtbagger

    Calling this a high tech coup is somewhat of a mistatement. Apple, like Microsoft licensing is using Nevada to process transactions to minimize their taxes. More aptly named a high-tech transaction servicing center.

    Star bonds should be outlawed – simply more handouts to the large corporations. Got to love these CEO’s who preach capitalism for everyone but themselves.

  5. Rory

    Dirtbag,
    2 things…

    1. While they were mentioned in some of the articles, Star Bonds will not be used.

    2. Your analogy to Microsoft Licensing also falls flat as they do employ more than 100 people in their South Reno offices and many are well paid professionals with advanced degrees. In the case of the data center it will employ at a minimum of 36 full time tech jobs which will be highly desirable and well paid. Not to mention the downtown Reno office building they will construct to process shipping and receiving for the data center will be a welcomed development in a long forgotten and blighted east Downtown neighborhood.

  6. Dirtbagger

    Rory –

    1) Star bonds – tax abatements really no difference. It still boils down to taxpayer subsidies to large corporations.

    2) I hope you are right about the quality and scope of the Apple jobs and Reno is not being used as a Foxconn II. Granted Microsoft Licensing uses degreed professionals (so do schools), but this hardly qualifies as high tech. Microsoft’s main purpose for locating in Reno is to bypass Washington State gross receipt sales taxes. Instead of “Biggest Little City”, maybe Reno should promote itself as the money laundering capital of the US.

    If past history repeats, there tends to be a pretty big difference between the upfront promises that large companies make in order to receive tax breaks versus what really happens 5-10 years later.

  7. Sully

    Rory, the downtown Reno office building they will construct to process shipping and receiving for the data center? How does that work since it’s all online? The data center Apple is building is nothing more than a server farm.

  8. MikeZ

    Rory, reports are up to 200 contractor positions in addition to the 40 full-timers. Despite the perma-naysayers, this is good news for Reno/Sparks in spite of the $90M in tax breaks.

  9. Mitt

    Maybe 200 contractors with no set hours, no regularity, and no benefits. And 40 full timers. 40 full-time jobs!!
    Absolutely awesome. Gives me goosebumps thinking what this will do for Reno’s economy. I’m with you MikeZ.

  10. Rory

    Sully you are misreading my statement. Physical servers and their associated hardware need to be processed, audited, paid for, etc and they will build a downtown office to conduct those activities. Not a big one but it should help spur additional development in that part of downtown.

  11. Rory

    I love hyperbolic statements as much as the next but to define relocating operating segments to Nevada to avoid taxes as money laundering is a foolish statement. Money laundering is a real problem and it has nothing to do with legal tax avoidance.

    I don’t understand why Mitt is bagging on the project before it gets going. Hey Mitt, was Rome built in a day? yeah yeah, Reno is not Rome I get that but the cliche holds. This is a good *START* for the city and the state, whether you care to admit it or not. Nevada needs companies like Apple, and if things work out, who’s to say they won’t consider moving other biz segments to Nevada? Or maybe other firms consider the area because if its good enough for the 1000 pound tech gorilla, then maybe it’s good enough for …..

  12. Steve Jobs

    For a good feel for what kind of economic development this kind of project brings (or doesn’t bring) to a community, take a look at Prineville Oregon, where Facebook has built a large server facility and Apple is in the process of building one.

    The economic impact turned out to be much, much less than local officials first predicted. The fact of the matter is these large data centers employ very few people. There is also almost no spin-off businesses that spring up because of the presence of these facilities.

    The development of Apple’s intellectual property will most certainly stay in Cupertino – it is not coming to Reno.

  13. Rory

    Oh Steve, so confident in your opinion you won’t even post under your real name. You are quite the troll. Keep trolling, someone is bound to bite.

  14. Steve Jobs

    No troll Rory – Google “Prineville Facebook” and see for yourself.

  15. tyler durden

    so does this mean an average caughlin ranch home isn’t worth 1 mil now?

  16. Rory

    I know what Prineville is, and I also know it has little to do with the economic dynamics of Reno. The data center is not the panacea for all that ails Reno-Sparks but it’s a nice start and worth supporting. If you don’t want to be deemed a troll, don’t post under absurd troll names, Not Steve Jobs.

  18. Rob

    Reno is the next silicon valley, let’s just face it! Location, Location, Location…And, it’s business friendly. It’s the next bay area in the making! Reno will essentially become an extension of the bay area and extend silicon valley and it’s high tech dominance from Northern CA to Northern NV.

  20. Sully

    Steve J, after reading the article you posted and combining it with another company that moved to N NV it makes me even more suspicious of the fuzzy math used by EDAWN and local politicians.

    A company that moved to Minden a few years ago with 23 moved employees was credited with creating a $23 million boost to the local economy over 10 year period. Or, $2.3 million a year. Or, $100,000 per employee per year. Neither myself or the owner could figure the math and both of us estimated it to be about 5 times too high.

    Which then brings us back to Apples’ $89 million tax break or $8.9 million per year.
    At 41 full time employees that would be $217K per year per employee. Of course there is some economic boost to the local economy, however I think the numbers are off and the local politicians are just jumping on a bandwagon they will soon regret, especially if they start planning on all that income before they actually get it. You know California style! 🙂

  21. MikeZ

    For sure, data centers are not large creators of jobs, but no one said they were!

    It’s just riduculous how many strawman arguments the same people are manufacturing, over and over again, just to pee in the community swimming pool.

    Given a choice between a) no Apple data center and b) an Apple data center, I’ll take b). No one thinks this one data center is going to save Reno or turn Reno into Silicon Valley, but it should be a net positive for the economy.

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