Moana Nursery is about to have a grand opening of its new, improved Pyramid Way location in early March. The company, which has two other locations in the Reno-Sparks area, decided to step in and take over the lease at 3397 Pyramid Way, perfectly timed with the completion of the new Pyramid/McCarran intersection.
“We moved closer to the central Sparks area and (the new facility is) not quite as onerous to get to as it once was,” says former Moana Nursery President Bruce Gescheider.
Frank Lepori built the original property for G&G Nursery, which leased it until the recession and then Old Stone House rented it before moving to a location on Geiger Grade. When the new Pyramid Highway reconstruction project came up, Granite Construction took over the space to use as a staging area. At that same time that Pyramid Way was being reconstructed, Moana Nursery’s lease in Spanish Springs was coming up for renewal. They would’ve had to invest a significant amount of money to add on shade screens and a greenhouse whereas the location that Granite was using already had everything Moana Nursery needed.
“It was the perfect place for (Granite) to be onsite during construction. They did a nice job; they added a stop sign above McCarran which makes for easy access and included a driveway exit. It was a monstrous project, it would’ve been difficult for anyone to stay open for business during that time,” Gescheider says of the Pyramid-McCarran Intersection Improvement Project.
Fortunately, since the land has been used previously for gardening centers, a big greenhouse was already constructed that could be used for Moana Nursery’s needs. However, it will be a few weeks until its official opening.
“We had a soft opening, but we don’t have that much to sell since it’s the winter. Our big months are the end of April through June, that’s when we sell a lot of high desert plants and shrubs,” he says.
Its official grand opening of the Pyramid Way Garden Center is set for March 10, and Moana Nursery will have offers and deals for those who want to try out the new location.
“We are focusing on the flow and layout of the store and I’m confident that this is a significant improvement in ambiance and the shopping experience,” says Gescheider. He says that the facility alone is a major upgrade for Moana Nursery, allowing it to nurture the quality of the trees, shrubs, perennials, and plants important to our region.
“We make sure we bring in plants that are appropriate for the high desert and are able to test it for quality. This new facility allows us to give proper care to the plants. I always laugh when I see grocery or box stores put shrubs out at certain times of the year when they are at a high risk of being damaged. It’s so obvious to us local gardeners that gardening here is hard- we are dealing with tough soil, no humidity… It’s different in the high desert so those plants better be darn strong and well taken care of,” he says.
Gescheider believes that the quality of its plants is why Moana Nursery has been in business for so long; its outstanding reputation carrying it through tough times like the recession and when there are no major construction/landscaping projects going on.
For more information about the new Moana Nursery Pyramid Way Garden Center, visit www.moananursery.com.
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