There are 1,258 individual parcels within 500’ of the golf course proposed for SPD re-zoning, and while all neighbors and Lakeridge communities would be impacted, many more, including those far beyond Lakeridge, will also be impacted. For example, Duncan Golf’s proposed re-zoning the entire golf course to SPD could have implications for any land currently zoned PGOS anywhere in the City of Reno, making this re-zoning an important issue for all City residents.

Now is the time to act. Ask the appointed Planning Commissioners and Elected City Council members to vote NO on this application. Tell Duncan Golf to keep the course PGOS, that SPD for 155 acres is a bad plan for the community.

Please make it a priority to be part of the fight to Save Lakeridge by writing letters, making calls, and, most importantly, providing testimony at the July Planning Commission hearing tentatively scheduled for July 16th.

Reference Zoning Map Amendment LDC25-00061 in all communications. 

1. Write the Planning Commissioners now! RenoPlanningCommission@reno.gov. Letters can be mailed to: 

   City Of Reno Planning Commission, P.O.Box 1900, Reno, NV 89505.

2. Contact all of the City Council members! CityCouncilMembers@Reno.Gov

3. Email and Call Duncan Golf:members@dgmgolf.net(775) 851-3301

4. Attend the July Planning Commission meeting. Date TBD. Stay tuned here for more information. Make public comment to get your position on the matter on the record. The meeting is at Reno City Hall – 1 East First St. Arrive early to ensure you get a seat in the City Council Chamber. If you plan to speak, you must submit a “request to speak” form to the staff liaison. These forms are on hand so simply request one to write your name. Your name will be called and you will have 3 minutes to provide comment that will become part of the case records.

5. Sign up for Save Lakeridge updates!

6. Donate to support the Save Lakeridge campaign.

Save Lakeridge is a community-wide effort to stop Duncan Golf Management’s application to re-zone ALL 155 acres of the Lakeridge Golf Course to Specific Planning District (SPD) from Parks Greenways Open Space (PGOS). A SPD re-zoning creates an endless possibility of outcomes including the permanent closure of a portion or all of the Lakeridge Golf Course and the introduction of additional residential including high density townhomes, apartments, hotels, commercial, retail, and offices. The introduction of more density could compromise safety and quality of life with unknown increases in noise and traffic and the potential elimination of important open spaces which serve as firebreaks between residential communities, provide habitat for wildlife, and were originally requested per the adopted Lakeridge Master Plan assigning a ratio of density to open space. 

Save Lakeridge is a coalition of residents, neighbors, friends, and golfers who are volunteering their time to ensure safety and preserve the community. Save Lakeridge is for everyone interested in preserving the open space that is the Lakeridge Golf Course. This website is the effort of Save Lakeridge LLC which supports Save Lakeridge’s efforts to ensure safety and preserve the community. The content on this site is meant to inform and engage the public and is prepared by members of the community. While we do our best to keep things accurate and up to date, we can’t guarantee everything is perfect as we are not experts in Municipal Planning and Zoning. We thank you for your support!

Duncan Golf Management owns and operates several area golf courses, including Lakeridge, Toiyabe, Eagle Valley, and Wolf Run in Northern Nevada and the Winchester Country Club course in Placer County, California. The Duncans purchased Lakeridge Golf course in 2013. The Duncan family is not a developer; they buy and manage golf courses that offer only clubhouses and restaurants. 

Duncan Golf submitted application LDC25-00061 which requests a Zoning Map Amendment to SPD for all 155 acres of the Lakeridge golf course. The application includes a 12-acre Conceptual Plan to build a 100-room four story hotel, a spa, villas and amenities such as tennis courts, pickleball court, swimming pool, indoor and outdoor venue space, and a garden. 

Comments from TJ Duncan, vice president of Duncan Golf Management, about the proposed Lakeridge Resort said there is no dollar amount for the project at this time and the timeframe is 7-10 years. On the website for the project, there are no specific renderings of the hotel and spa, only stock photos to provide a “look and feel”..

While Duncan has noted in the media there will be “no material change at this time to the golf course”, a re-zoning to Specific Plan District opens the door for serious material changes on all 155 acres of golf course open space.

In September 2019, Reno Land’s re-zoning application included retaining many of the club amenities. However, months after the re-zoning was approved, the Lakeridge Tennis Club was demolished and the property sold to developers with approval to build high density residential. 

Duncan Golf says they will develop a “hotel and spa” on 12 acres and “the golf course will not undergo significant changes.” Why would they only promote their 12 acre conceptual “hotel and spa” plan and not reveal that their application is to re-zone all 155 acres? Are they espousing what they want the public to believe while they have other intentions in mind?

No, as confirmed by City staff, there is no requirement in the Reno Municipal Code to rezone all parcels owned by a single entity to another zoning designation. Typically, a re-zone application pertains to parcels and land areas sought for new and/or specific development.

Lakeridge is a par 71 golf course and is Reno’s premier public/private golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones in 1969. It is important to understand the golf course consists of 4 separate parcels, each with an individual Assessor’s Parcel Number. The driving range was originally designated on 6 acres; however, the Duncan application states it is requesting a re-zoning on a 12-acre driving range contained within  an 84-acre parcel. Lakeridge Golf Course is most noteworthy for its signature vista from the 15th hole which overlooks Lake Stanley with an island green. The 15th hole rates as one of the greatest par 3s in the western United States.

Yes, it is part of the Master Planned Community approved by the Reno City Council and constructed in 1969. As part of the Master Planned Community design and in exchange for the allowable residential density, a certain percentage of open space was required. The golf course fulfills the original open space requirement and became the glue which holds the various neighborhoods together and provides for the important firebreaks between developments. The City of Reno is required by its Reimagine Reno Master Plan to provide open space areas in conjunction with new development. These open spaces help ensure a healthy community and reduce heat island effects.  The Lakeridge Golf Course open space is not only enjoyed by golfers for recreation, but appreciated and enjoyed by all Reno residents for its scenic beauty, mature trees, and the flora and fauna it supports. The vast open space is a respite in the center of our beloved Lakeridge community.

Duncan Golf closed the 6.5-acre driving range in 2021 after it sold land to Lakeridge Place LLC (aka Toll Brothers) to build 38 townhomes at the ridge atop the driving range. The Toll Brothers property has a Restrictive Covenant that no longer allowed the driving range to be used as a driving range with golfers hitting balls towards the residential homes. Duncan Golf chose not to utilize the closed driving range to provide the golfers with other amenities such as a putting green or a chipping green, to name a few, rendering it “underutilized”.

The golf course was rezoned in 2005 at the behest of the City of Reno City Council to Parks Greenways Open Space (PGOS) to align with the City’s Comprehensive Master Plan. Alignment of underlying zoning and master plan designations has been a goal of the city since 1999. Nothing has changed in our community to warrant a re-zoning now to Specific Planning District.

A 2005 staff report about the decision to zone the course PGOS cited the city “desired a more comprehensive approach to regulating golf courses that involves situating golf courses within a zoning district that corresponds in purpose and intent to golf course characteristics.” See the background section for more information about the historic zoning and City Council’s actions to rezone it to PGOS from SF15. 

The application request includes a re-zone of 155 acres; however, the impact analysis completed was only for the 12 acre conceptual hotel and spa plan. The assessment should include the entire golf course property. By definition, a specific plan assumes the development has a plan in mine and that plan should be assessed.  

In 2005, the Reno City Council re-zoned all 155 acres of Lakeridge Golf Course to PGOS. Read more about this re-zoning in the background section.

Specific Planning Districts (SPD) grant extreme flexibility to the property owner to pursue its current aspirations for the moment with land uses, heights, densities, etc. all incorporated into a handbook. Handbooks are frequently modified to respond to market conditions. SPD, for example, allows blank slate for mixed-use infill development with residential densities higher than Lakeridge’s current surrounding single family density, as well as commercial, offices, and/or retail.

No. The underlying master plan land use designation could remain PGOS until such time as the applicant applies to change the master plan designation to SPD. Alternatively, the city could initiate a master plan amendment to make the zoning and the master plan consistent, as required by the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS). The city initiated a zone change to PGOS in 2005 to comply with NRS. If the property owner obtains an approval on its application, it is almost certain a master plan designation approval to SPD will follow. The applicant's strategy is to only ask for a zone change because it leaves room for hope that the master plan will not be changed. A zone change approval could all but guarantee future redevelopment of the golf course. description

Yes. The SDP zoning change is only required to build the hotel. The amenities such as tennis courts, pickleball courts, swimming pool and putting greens are all allowed in the PGOS zoning that the golf course currently has and does not require a zoning change. 

Yes, zoning remains with the land, so a sale from Duncan to another entity, including a developer, would enable the new owner to modify the SPD Handbook and request an entirely different project from the “hotel and spa” Duncan is proposing today. 

Yes, these residential communities throughout Reno were all designed and approved as Master Planned Communities through a Specific Planning process. A Specific Plan is a land development tool used in the City of Reno to offer flexibility in the land uses and densities through a handbook of tailored regulations. But these handbooks are often revised through a public hearing process. Master planned communities are conceptual mixed-use developments offering amenities e.g., open spaces, walking paths, golf courses, and horse arenas in exchange for higher residential densities in order to provide residents with a desirable quality of life and a strong sense of place. If the re-zoning of Lakeridge is approved from PGOS to SPD, the precedent is established such that other master planned community open spaces could be considered for a similar re-zoning. description