Talk about your good news/bad news scenarios.
Carson City residents lost one of their favorite restaurants last week with the closure of the Station Grille. The restaurant, which has been in business for 15 years, had an annual month-long shutdown, but indications from the owner suggest this could be permanent.
Yet we also heard some good news from Don Lehr, a co-owner of the Ormsby House: "We'll go right on building until we're done with the Ormsby House."
With so many other projects delayed or on hold because of the sluggish economy, that's enough to inspire applause. Especially if Lehr holds true to his projections that the project will be open in 2009.
If so, he can count on all past animosity among Carson City residents stemming from the constantly delayed project to be forgotten. Work has been underway on the $25 million 10-story project since 2001, and it's become the butt of jokes.
Its completion could cause a ripple effect to nearby downtown businesses. In fact, the Ormsby House developers would be more aptly viewed as riding to the rescue of the downtown at a time when the local economy may well need a knight in shining armor.
Who knows, with the extra customers walking around downtown, maybe the Station Grille would even reopen.