A few blocks away, on Rock Boulevard, the street is lined with locally owned businesses — an Asian market, a Hispanic taqueria, clothing stores and more. A turn onto Prater Way reveals a young, pregnant Hispanic woman walking home from work as she passesby a parked catering truck — the owner ready to feedany hungry passerby.

Heading east toward Vista Boulevard, one jostles for road space with construction vehicles, utility crews and other workers helping to build the city’s newest housing and business developments.

In all, Sparks is a city on the move — residents ofvarying ethnic, economic and social backgrounds weave a rich tapestry of diversity. The casual observer need look no further than area schools, shopping centers, neighborhood parks, churches and busy streets to see Sparks is thriving.

That vitality has proven an irresistible pull — over the past 10 years, the Rail City’s population has nearly doubled.“The mountains, the blue skies and the fact you cansee the stars at night — that was the enchantment,” says resident Tony Llaguno of what inspired him to move to Sparks some 10 years ago. “Then we got to meet and know the people here — we felt very at home.”For Llaguno and many of the city’s estimated 72,000residents it’s clear that Sparks’ cozy neighborhoods and family oriented community have combined with thequickening pulse of new growth to herald a bright future.

In fact, it’s that promise that has inspired the native of Cuba and his wife, Dulce, to open a restaurant — Cubamania — on Prater Way. Open nearly one year, the Llagunos say their eatery — boasting the flavors and foods of Cuba — has received a warm welcome.

And it’s that neighborly atmosphere that has impressednew resident Lucero Martinez most.“I like the people,” says Martinez, who moved toSparks from Incline Village a few months ago andrecently started work at Artist Cleaners and Laundry onVista Boulevard. “Everyone has been so nice — they arereal ladies and gentlemen.”Martinez and the Llagunos are reflective of Sparks’changing landscape. Working people, families, youngprofessionals, retirees and others — looking for aninviting, safe place to put down roots and build a life —are finding Sparks an attractive alternative to thecongested freeways, over-priced homes and hectic pacethey left behind in Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix andother big cities.

People-friendly improvements are turning headsIt wasn’t all that long ago that Sparks was consideredto be the perfect punch line for just about any bad joke.
Many a Truckee Meadows resident considered thesleepy little railroad town the ugly step-sister to Reno’s more cosmopolitan atmosphere and bright lights.However, over the past 15 or so years, a concertedeffort to remake itself has paid off — handsomely.A revitalized Victorian Square, complete with a myriad of family centered special events; the emergence ofluxury homes, apartment communities and golf courses;and a new marina boasting a park, beaches and otherrecreational opportunities are just a few of theimprovements that have government officials and cityplanners from nearby communities taking notice. Thesedays it looks as if Sparks is having the last laugh.“It’s a friendly community,” says Ron Schmitt, a Sparkscity councilman who moved to the area about 14 yearsago. “It’s just a different place — you can feel it in the air.”

Across the city — from the newly emergingdevelopments along the Pah Rah range at its easternedge to the residential suburbs near the PyramidHighway to its north, the commercial and residentialareas along Oddie Boulevard and El Rancho Drive andthe industrial zone bordered by the Truckee River to the south — evidence of Sparks’ vitality is everywhere.Nowhere is that energy more present than along VistaBoulevard. A commercial center is under construction atNorth D’Andrea Parkway and Vista Boulevard. Justacross the street, a Texaco gas station and market nowshares the site with new shops and services. Further up, at Interstate 80, a new gas station and food market, a traffic light and a motel have made appearances on Brierly Way. To the north, just beyond Disc Drive, a new residential community is taking shape. And developers of Copper Canyon — a 1,238-acre master-planned community featuring residential, business, retail and light industrial components voted down by the Sparks City Council in 2002 — are preparing to unveil redesigned plans that address previous concerns about traffic and congestion.Community Development Director Randy Mellingersays by allowing residents to live and work in the samearea, master-planned communities, such as CopperCanyon, will not only create a solid tax base for citycoffers but ease traffic and air quality issues.“The commuting situation is of great concern,” saysMellinger, who noted projections estimate Sparks’population may grow to as many as 120,000 residents.“If we can put more jobs (near residential areas), thatwill give a lot of people the opportunity to stay off the freeway,” he says.

Yet growth hasn’t solely concentrated on the city’souter edges. A new office and retail center at the Sparks Marina’s northeast side is nearing completion. A second development phase — the Marina Landing — isexpected to commence this summer. The 19.6-acreproject includes an RV park, a convenience store, arecreation area, a meeting room and 68,000 square feet of commercial and office space. And in keeping to itscommitment to strengthen the city’s downtown corridorand reduce urban blight, the Sparks RedevelopmentAgency has announced plans to build a 72-unit seniorcitizen residential complex at the corner of Prater andPyramid ways.

Growth brings challengesBut Mellinger and other officials say there are challengesthat lay ahead. An increasing population coupled with flatrevenues has burdened city services and, accordingly, theSparks City Council recently approved more than $2.8million in cost-cutting measures to balance its budget. Fireand police services are stretched thin — city officials arehopeful a tax override, needed to fund construction and operation of a new fire station in the WingfieldSprings area, will be approved by voters this summer.Additionally, efforts to secure more retaildevelopment for Victorian Square have fallen short.Once convinced the area needed a major anchorstore to sustain retail activity, officials are nowconsidering a phased approach that would possiblyemphasize more locally owned businesses andspecialty retailers.City planners remain optimistic they can meet andovercome the retail challenges and still preserve thesmall town atmosphere residents have come totreasure.“Like all cities that are growing, you run a verydistinct risk of losing (your identity),” councilmanSchmitt says. “But if you remember your history and remember who you are, you can maintain it.”