File Photo/ Nevada Sagebrush The Union and Textbook Brokers as it stands on Saturday, Dec. 7. Buildings along Eighth and Nineth St. will be shut down in order for RTC to create a bus station.

Students, staff and community members can expect more construction around the University of Nevada, Reno this month.

The Regional Transportation Commission will be breaking ground on the Virginia Street Project as soon as March 16. The Virginia Street Project will feature a new bus station on the southeast corner of Ninth Street and Virginia Street.

The first segment of the Virginia Street project will feature demolition of the east side of Virginia Street between Eighth Street and Ninth Street. This block is home to Textbook Brokers, multiple motels and The Union. The closing of The Union—more commonly known as The U—sparked a petition in 2019 that gathered more than 800 signatures.

The Virginia Street Bus RAPID Transit Extension Project includes extending the RAPID Virginia Line from Midtown to the University of Nevada, Reno. The extension will cost $87 million and will come from fuel and sales tax revenue and federal funds, according to Nevada Today.

“The Virginia Street Bus RAPID Transit Extension Project will improve safety and provide better access, enhanced transit service and improved mobility for everyone,” a post on Nevada Today said.

RTC Public Information Officer told the Nevada Sagebrush in December the RTC chose the location because it will serve university students, faculty and staff as well as passengers and area residents in the high-density and developing areas just south of the freeway. 

Construction near the university is scheduled to take place from mid-March to November of this year. Demolition between Eighth and Ninth will take place before construction on the east side of Virginia Street between Interstate 80 and the West Stadium Parking Lot commences, as soon as April 1. This will include the construction of a roundabout near Lawlor Events Center. According to the post, two-way traffic will remain on Virginia Street during the construction.

From this summer until November, construction on the west side of Virginia Street between Interstate 80 and West Stadium Parking Lot will commence with one-way traffic in place.

As these segments of the construction take place, the Midtown segment of the project will also commence. The total project is expected to be complete by November 2020.

More information on the Virginia Street Project and its impact on the university is available on virginiastreetproject.com/unr/.

Olivia Ali can be reached at oali@sagebrush.unr.edu or Twitter @OliviaNAli.