Anjeanette Damon, and Bill O'Driscoll

REN

The eight-story Kings Inn, a decades-long symbol of blight on the downtown Reno skyline, has been sold.

The sale of the onetime hotel-casino to Las Vegas developer Amador "Chi Chi" Bengochea won't be final until escrow closes sometime near the end of summer, Tim Ruffin, a Reno broker representing Bengochea, said Tuesday.

Bengochea, president/owner of Bentar Development Inc., a Las Vegas general contracting firm founded in 1991, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

But according to the company's website, its projects in Southern Nevada include Terrible Herbst service stations and hotel-casino properties, the Primm Valley Resort Travel Center, the Tangerine at Treasure Island, the Revolution Bar at the The Mirage, Red Rock Casino Resort Bowling Alley and more than a dozen Del Taco outlets.

Ruffin, vice president at Colliers International commercial real estate in Reno, said Bengochea's plans for the Kings Inn property are still being developed but likely will include some kind of residential component at the site on the corner of Third and West streets.

The property's history is marked by struggle, according to news accounts.

After months of labor strike delays, the Kings Inn Motor Hotel & Casino opened in late 1974 with 167 rooms, restaurant and bars, swimming pool and convention and banquet facilities, all at a cost of $6.5 million, double earlier estimates.

In 1975, the property added a dozen table games as well as more than 150 slot machines. Then in November 1978, Washoe County health officials closed the restaurant and bars temporarily for various cleanliness violations.

In June 1981, amid disputes among its owners, the property entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. A year later, it was bought in a foreclosure auction for $3.95 million and the casino closed as part of the auction.

The hotel was closed in 1986 after sprinkler, heating and ventilation systems failed fire-code regulations and it went into probate that year after its owner died. It has been closed ever since.

The property, currently owned by Kings Inn Holdings LLC, has been a sore subject with city officials, notably Reno Mayor Bob Cashell who made it a top priority for redevelopment in his last term which ends this year.

On Tuesday, Gary Foote, owner of Harry's Business Machines which sits in the shadow of the Kings Inn, welcomed news of a sale.

"It can't be anything but positive," said Foote, whose grandfather started Harry's in 1928.

He has seen the neighborhood change over the years, he said, adding, "We always try to be hopeful about it. We've kind of rolled with the punches. Certainly, having a dilapidated building next door hasn't helped."

Foote said he'd like to see more varied use of downtown property, including residential buildings and office hives such as those popping up along nearby Startup Row.

"The tide is flowing in a positive direction," he said. "But there's a lot more to be done."

Yvonne Beasley contributed to this report