Aaron's Rentals to open in North Carson City

About three years after the last furniture store to occupy 3777 N. Carson St. closed and then went bankrupt, another one will fill the space.

Aaron's, out of Atlanta, is one of the leading furniture rental and rent-to-own companies in the country, according to Hoovers.com. A public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange (Aaron Rents Inc.: RNT), Aaron's posted its 2005 net income at $58 million while employing 7,600. According to an agent in the deal, the corporation chose Carson City for its high number of rental homes.

Winans Furniture, owned by a Minden family, closed its Carson City location in early 2004. The company went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2005. Competition was one of the main reasons for closing. The Winans' building is about 50,000 square feet. Aaron's will occupy a fraction of that, about 7,400 square feet.

"They were looking for a high number of (home) rentals in a certain demographic range and North Carson City was perfect," said Shawn Smith, senior associate with Colliers International in Reno.

Other developments, such as the new Wal-Mart in east Carson City and the future Home Depot, also weighed in on the decision.

Brad Spires, broker associate at Re/Max Realty Affiliates of Gardnerville, said after a year-long, $1 million renovation, the old Winans' building will probably be leased in pieces. The Brown family, who purchased it after the bankruptcy from the Robertson trust, could lease out the remaining space to one tenant or separate it for up to three other renters.

"The owner, Budge Brown, and I appreciate the couple of meetings we had with (Mayor) Marv Teixeira about some issues with bringing the building to code," Spires said.

Aaron's should open by Feb. 15. Its closest store is 3370 Kietzke Lane in Reno. Aaron's rents furniture, electronics and appliances, according to its Web site.



• Contact reporter Becky Bosshart at bbosshart@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1212.