High up on the 17th floor of the Sands Regency’s Empress Tower in Reno is a painting of a cowboy being unceremoniously bucked off a rambunctious bronco.

Jacobs Entertainment CEO Jeff Jacobs quips that he keeps the painting in his office as a reminder of how easy it is to get thrown off one’s high horse in the high-stakes world of gaming and development.

Just outside, the sound of nonstop drilling serves as a constant reminder to Jacobs of those high stakes. Unlike his well-furnished office, the rest of the 17th floor has been stripped down to its bare walls and concrete flooring. Given how secretive real estate deals can be, it’s interesting how every project starts out fully exposed.

The construction extends to a huge chunk of the Empress Tower’s upper level, with guests blocked from accessing anything above the eighth floor.

“We’re spending over $100,000 a room,” Jacobs said.

With 820 units targeted for remodeling, Jacobs' comment was delivered with a sense of pride as well as a sprinkling of self-deprecation. All it takes is some simple math to figure out the price tag for the room renovations alone, an amount that Jacobs jokes he’d rather not be reminded of.

By the time the remodel is done, Jacobs expects the full restoration of the Sands — which will also include changes to the older Dynasty Tower — to reach $250 million. It's an astounding amount with plenty of zeros. But a quarter billion dollars is exactly what Jacobs thinks it will take to change not just the Sands but the long-held image people have of the nearly half-century-old property. Mention the Sands to locals or visitors familiar with the Reno hotel-casino and “high end” likely won’t be the first thing that comes to mind. Jacobs says he “fully intends” to flip that script by making the Sands “the nicest casino” in the Biggest Little City.

“Depending on how far we want to take it, we probably need another 40,000 square feet of convention space to be competitive,” Jacobs said.

“We probably need three to four more restaurants. Once we're finished doing all the rooms, we could expand the casino. It’s not going to be the Sands that your grandmother was used to.”

It’s the kind of thorough reinvention that will likely require a rebrand of the hotel-casino, according to Jacobs. At the same time, Jacobs does not want to simply slap a new name on the Sands, only for people to be disappointed if nothing changes inside.

“You really can’t invite people into a rebranded property until you make improvements,” Jacobs said.

It’s a lesson Jacobs has experienced firsthand with an even bigger project that’s taking shape on the streets below. Jacobs Entertainment’s Reno Neon Line is a billion-dollar, 20-square-block effort that aims to turn the West Fourth Street corridor from West Street to Keystone Avenue into a buzzing “live-work-play” destination.

The project raised concerns, however, after its demolition of several aging motels, a move that occurred just as Reno finds itself in the midst of an affordable housing crunch. With Jacobs Entertainment yet to release specific plans, the uncertainty surrounding the properties led to worries that the parcels would sit vacant for an extended amount of time and fizzle out or worse — be part of an opportunistic land grab.

Jacobs says he understands the concerns. Downtown Reno has seen its share of developers and private groups coming in with grand plans that ultimately did not pan out. These include projects that were proposed during Reno-Sparks' last boom cycle that ended up being scuttled during the recession. Other projects were floated during the downturn as well, with promises to improve blighted areas that remain in poor shape to this day.

The Reno Neon Line, however, will be different, Jacobs said.

By November, Jacobs plans to announce more than $100 million in new development along the West Fourth Street corridor to show that his company means business. The amount is in addition to more than $100 million that his company has invested so far as part of its acquisition spree along the corridor. While Jacobs remained coy about what the announcement will involve, he says it will include the kind of urban development that will revitalize West Fourth Street.

“As I always say, stay tuned,” Jacobs said.

A giant steel sculpture of a Mongolian warrior towers over passers-by just outside the Sands Regency on a chilly fall afternoon.

Back in 2018, the “Desert Guard” sculpture by artist Lu Ming stood tall at the Black Rock Desert during Burning Man. Today, the piece is one of four Burning Man sculptures that are displayed on West Fourth Street.

In the coming months, the art pieces will be joined by at least two more sculptures as part of the Reno Neon Line’s second phase. Jacobs originally envisioned the installations — which will be enhanced with sounds pumped through a battery of speakers as well an array of lights — as compelling attractions that will draw locals and tourists to the revitalized district. Instead, they fueled a debate in Reno on whether art should replace housing as soon as their footings were put in place.

At the center of the debate is the loss of hundreds of housing units downtown. While the weekly motels were in poor condition, they also served as the housing of last resort for many low-income residents who could not get into more traditional apartments.

It’s a debate that resurfaced with the recent purchase of the Sundance Motel and Coed Lodge near the University of Nevada, Reno, by the Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County. RTC Washoe plans to raze those properties to make way for a new station as part of the Virginia Street Bus RAPID Transit Extension Project. The ongoing motel demolitions equate to the loss of hundreds of units downtown at a time when Reno-Sparks is suffering from a shortage of affordable housing. Many of the new developments entering the market also include high-end luxury units with higher rents, raising even more questions about housing affordability.

Jacobs was able to save and remodel the blighted Crest Inn, which has been transformed into Renova Flats. The rest of the motels, however, were too blighted to restore, he said. Add rising construction costs combined with a shortage of construction workers and it becomes even harder for developers to build housing with an affordable component that pencils out, according to Jacobs. A San Francisco developer that Jacobs approached looked at Reno and said rents would need to be $2,500 per month to support the kind of project they wanted to build at today's cost of development.

Instead, Jacobs pushes for public-private partnerships to address the needs of those who require housing assistance. Although opinions can differ in the community about the best way to improve housing affordability, Jacobs felt strongly about one thing: blighted motels are not a viable solution.

“Housing of last resort is best served by governments not by slum lords, and that’s what you had in this district before,” Jacobs said. “You had some really difficult living conditions for people.”

Jacobs was so appalled by conditions at the Crest Inn that he stopped charging rent to residents while finalizing plans about what to do with the property. Once Jacobs decided to remodel the property, his company provided relocation assistance to the motel tenants, including donated furniture, moving costs and utility payments. All in all, 38 of the 42 residents received help, most of whom ended up moving into Italian Capital Rentals property on Lake Street.

Such moves, however, only serve as a Band-Aid to Reno’s housing crisis. Jacobs pointed to joint projects such as the Reno Housing Authority’s 44-unit, $13 million Willie J. Wynn Apartments as an example of the right approach to affordable housing. Jacobs Entertainment donated $1.5 million to the project as part of a deal when it acquired RHA land on West Fourth Street for its Neon Line project.

One challenge with coming up with a public component is that smaller cities such as Reno typically do not have as much funding available for affordable housing projects, Jacobs said. Jacobs says he’s willing to work with other companies in the area to see if they can do more partnerships with agencies such as the RHA for affordable housing.

“Bigger cities have bigger budgets dedicated to affordable housing,” Jacobs said.

“(Affordable housing) is difficult, but it should be an ongoing process.”

Jacobs paces in his office while having a spirited discussion on his cell phone. It’s about one of the sculptures he wants to add to the Neon Line display.

So far, Jacobs has publicly confirmed two pieces. One is artist Dana Albany’s “Tara Mechani,” a sculpture of a female form constructed from recycled materials. The other is the 35-foot “Polar Bear,” which artists Don Kennell and Lisa Adler made from scrap car hoods. Like the four sculptures installed before them, both pieces were displayed at Burning Man.

Asked about the debate raised by the sculptures, Jacobs says that art and housing does not have to be an either-or proposition.

“That’s really the front yard for the development that will occur behind it,” Jacobs said.

Jacobs first mentioned the $1 billion in development for the Neon Line earlier this year during an interview with the Reno Gazette Journal. The number is so high, it garnered an article from the Wall Street Journal several months later. In addition to his own investment in the district, Jacobs says the estimate includes potential projects from other companies. Jacobs, who has been pitching other developers to look at the West Fourth Street corridor, says interest in Reno has been strong.

“They like Reno’s growth trends, they like the demographics and how young professionals are moving in, and they like how wages are increasing at a faster rate here than most cities, which is important to covering the cost of new construction,” Jacobs said.

One potential wildcard would be a recession. Jacobs previously predicted a downturn in the U.S. economy sometime in 2021 or 2022. Jacobs says he is sticking with his prediction but is hoping for a “very, very mild recession,” especially for Reno.

“Just a bump,” Jacobs said. “Reno’s economy has diversified to the point where it won’t be a Great Recession.”

A downturn, however, could still lead to another shakeout in the local gaming industry, he said. Many of the old downtown casinos are no longer downtown casinos, for example, but Reno has managed to reinvent itself after being heavily reliant on gaming.

Reinvention is a common theme in any urban center, whether it be big cities or up-and-coming ones such as Reno, according to Jacobs.

“Real estate recycles and there was a forced recycling after Native American gaming and the last recession,” Jacobs said. “That brought about properties like Whitney Peak so when those buildings become available and hit bottom, they recycle.”

For its part, Jacobs Entertainment is about 90% done with its planned acquisitions for the Reno Neon Line. Jacobs expects to have the Reno Neon Line displays ready between West Street and Washington Street by next summer for locals and tourists to check out. This will be accompanied by an advertising blitz in the Sacramento and Bay Area markets. The extension to Keystone Avenue should be ready by early 2021.

Jacobs also hopes the West Fourth Street corridor gets additional attention from government entities for improvements. Jacobs plans to approach the city of Reno later this year to ask it to formally recognize the Neon Line as a district. This will allow Jacobs to better market the Neon Line outside of Reno, he said. Jacobs also hopes that the RTC would consider doing traffic and transportation improvements in the neighborhood, just like the $87 million Virginia Street Project that the agency is working on at the Midtown district right now.

“We have concerns about the lack of bike lanes,” Jacobs said. “We’d also like to see some roundabouts and new street lights specific to our project.”

In May of this year, Jacobs put his $42 million North Palm Beach estate in Florida up for sale. The mansion, which Jacobs bought in 2011, boasts 18,852 square feet and features designs by architect and preservationist Gene Pandula.

The listing garnered coverage from the Wall Street Journal and real estate news site The Real Deal.

“I’m spending more time here so I don’t need a big house in Palm Beach,” Jacobs said. “I need a big house in Reno.”

Jacobs laughed while making the comment about needing a big house in the Biggest Little City. When it comes to his plans for Reno, however, the developer says he is dead serious. It’s been 18 years since Jacobs acquired a stake of the Gold Dust West Casino, which his company completely bought out from the Piazzo family as it started amassing parcels for the Neon Line. While Jacobs owns other gaming properties such as the Lodge and Gilpin casinos in Colorado, the Reno Neon Line project is special for Jacobs. A big part of it is because it takes him back to his development roots.

“This is what I enjoy,” Jacobs said.

“Since Cleveland, I haven’t done urban redevelopment, just mostly gaming.”

The Jacobs name is well-known in the northeast city. Jacobs’ father, Richard Jacobs, was one of the former owners of the Cleveland Indians Major League Baseball team. The team’s stadium, Progressive Field, also used to be named after the family, opening in 1994 as Jacobs Field.

Jacobs still remembers the challenges involved in Jacobs’ Investments’ redevelopment of Cleveland’s waterfront. At the time, the city was suffering from the effects of a recession, high unemployment and financial default. Today, the Nautica Entertainment Complex, which opened in 1987, is home to the Greater Cleveland Aquarium, a concert pavilion and several restaurants.

Jacobs says Reno is in better shape now for development than Cleveland was back then.

“We did Cleveland when the population was declining,” Jacobs said. “We were alone on an island for 20 years when we were redeveloping the waterfront and warehouse district for young professionals.”

“Here, it’s nice to have some company,” Jacobs added. “You’ve got the wind at the back of your sails here in Reno.”

In addition to developers that Jacobs is in talks with for the Reno Neon Line, he also pointed to the T3 and 101 North projects proposed by Bay Area-based SVE Development Partners and the 20-story luxury hotel project by CAI Investments as examples of downtown Reno’s development momentum.

Jacobs says he understands that developers are often seen as outsiders who swoop into an area. After nearly two decades in the Reno market, however, Jacobs considers the Biggest Little City home.

“I walk the streets often, I’m pretty hands-on,” Jacobs said. “I’ve made a lot of operational changes because this is my backyard.”

Jacobs also described the Neon Line as a fitting bookend to his career, which started with urban redevelopment. Projecting $1 billion in development for a 20-square-block area, however, is a big ask. Back in 2016, someone else proposed downtown Reno development in the ballpark of a billion dollars — except on West Second Street. The project hasn’t been heard from since. It’s one reason why locals tend to view ambitious downtown projects with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Asked if he ever wakes up at night about the Reno Neon Line, Jacobs laughed.

“The good, the bad, and the ugly (from my Cleveland days) impacts my decision making here,” Jacobs said. “I have to be able to look around the corner and see what each of these 16 parcels can be individually and collectively.”

Jacobs assured that he is all-in on Reno and the Neon Line.

“I’m committed to it.”

Jason Hidalgo covers business and technology for the Reno Gazette Journal, and also reviews video games as part of his Technobubble features. Follow him on Twitter @jasonhidalgo. Like this content? Support local journalism with an RGJ digital subscription.