Plans For Rebuilding Glendale

Since the Stagecoach Depot in Glendale was burned to the ground on April 10, residents of Moapa have founding themselves wanting for a convenient location to buy simple necessities like a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread; or even to just to go get a cheeseburger during lunchbreak. To get these things, and many more, Moapa folks now have to make a considerable trip into the lower valley. Many people are, thus, wondering what the plans are for the Glendale site and when things will be up and running again.

The charred remains of the Stagecoach Depot in Glendale as they appeared last week. The cafe and bar burned down on April 10. Plans are currently being made to rebuild.

That process is now complete. The cause of the fire was determined to be a new freezer unit that had just been installed in recent months.

“It is kind of ironic,” said Rinaldi. “That building has been there forever; as long as most people can remember. But it was the newest piece of modern equipment that ended up being the cause of the fire.”

The site has been opened back up and turned over to the owners. Moapa residents will now see the process of demolition and cleanup at the site begin.

It is hoped that the demolition will go quickly. But Rinaldi said that some environmental concerns may slow the process. Last week the company was working through the difficult problem of handling asbestos at the site. There is also some indication that there may be contamination in the ground beneath the cafe site due to an old underground gasoline tank leak. If that is the case, then cleaning that up to environmental standards would require additional time and attention, Rinaldi said.

Following demolition, Glendale Holdings hopes to place a portable building at the site that will serve the community during construction. This will provide people in Moapa with a source for eggs, milk, soda and other necessities. It will also provide a public restroom at the facility.

The developer had already brought plans for a new convenience store, ice cream shop complex at Glendale. Those plans had already been approved and the final architect drawings and building licenses are nearing completion.

“We hope to have approval to start construction in the next 5-6 months,” Rinaldi said. Meanwhile the company is working on longer-term plans for a new restaurant and bar to be built on the site to replace the old one. Rinaldi said that a new facility would be placed in another location, probably behind the existing gas canopy.

Rinaldi expressed appreciation to staff at the Clark County Northeast office, Clark County Fire Deparment, Overton Power District and Moapa Valley Water District for helping facilitate the process of preparing to rebuild.

The Glendale complex when in full operation employed 32 people. The building was insured with a policy that allowed for employees to be paid for a three month period and allow a continuation for health benefits for a period of time as well. “Those benefits haven’t been paid out yet because we have been waiting for the insurance company process,” Rinaldi said. “But they should be made available to our employees.”

Even so, Moapa Town Board chairwoman, Anne Schreiber, expressed appreciation to Glendale Holdings at Thursday’s Board meeting for taking care of their employees. “They didn’t have to hold that kind of extensive insurance on the place,” Schreiber said. “I’m sure that it wasn’t cheap to do it. But we sure appreciate that they did.”