Sparks is a city in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was founded in 1904, incorporated on March 15, 1905, and is located just east of

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is th ...

. The 2020 U.S. Census counted 108,445 residents in the city. It is the fifth most populous city in Nevada. It is named after John Sparks, Nevada Governor (1903–1908), and a member of the

Silver Party The Silver Party was a political party in the United States active from 1892 until 1911 and most successful in Nevada which supported a platform of bimetallism and free silver. In 1892, several Silver Party candidates were elected to Nevada ...

. Sparks is located within the

Reno–Sparks metropolitan area The Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in Western Nevada, anchored by the cities of Reno and Sparks, part of Greater Reno-Tahoe- Fernley CSA. As of the ...

History

Euro-American settlement began in the early 1850s, and the

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

remained very low until 1904 when the Southern Pacific Railroad built a switch yard and maintenance sheds there, after moving the division point from Wadsworth. In 1902, The Southern Pacific purchased a large tract of swamp-like land near its newly built railyard, and gave everyone clear deed to a lot for the sum of $1. They also offered to pick up and move every house in Wadsworth and reassemble it in this new town free of charge. As the population increased, a city was established, first called Harriman, after

E.H. Harriman Edward Henry Harriman (February 20, 1848 – September 9, 1909) was an American financier and railroad executive. Early life Harriman was born on February 20, 1848, in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman Sr., an Episcopal clergym ...

, president of the Southern Pacific, and then renamed Sparks, after John Sparks, then governor of Nevada. Sparks remained a small town until the 1950s, when economic growth in Reno triggered a housing boom north of the railroad in the area of Sparks. During the 1970s, the area south of the railroad started to fill up with warehouses and light industry. In 1984, the tower for the Nugget Casino Resort was finished, giving Sparks its first, and currently only, high-rise

casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live enterta ...

. In 1996, the redevelopment effort of the B Street business district across from the Nugget that started in the early 1980s took a step forward with the opening of a multi-screen movie complex and the construction of a plaza area. This area, now known as Victorian Square, is a pedestrian-friendly district that hosts many open-air events. Under direction of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, a comprehensive dynamic water quality computer model, the DSSAM Model, was developed (Earth Metrics, 1987) to analyze impacts of a variety of land use and

stormwater Stormwater, also spelled storm water, is water that originates from precipitation ( storm), including heavy rain and meltwater from hail and snow. Stormwater can soak into the soil ( infiltrate) and become groundwater, be stored on depressed l ...

management decisions throughout the Truckee River basin; this model was used to develop a set of

surface runoff Surface runoff (also known as overland flow) is the flow of water occurring on the ground surface when excess rainwater, stormwater, meltwater, or other sources, can no longer sufficiently rapidly infiltrate in the soil. This can occur when t ...

stormwater management measures for Sparks in the 1980s. Panasonic Energy's manufacturing plant in Sparks, Gigafactory 1, produces EV batteries for Tesla. It employed about 7,000 people in 2020.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Sparks has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.47%, is water. Stormwater surface runoff from the city drains into the Truckee River, a sensitive waterway that empties into Pyramid Lake, which has no outlet and is the habitat of two endangered species.

Climate

Sparks has a

semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi ...

. Due to frequent low humidity, especially in the summer, daily temperature ranges are fairly wide. The average January temperatures are a maximum of and a minimum of . Average July temperatures are a maximum of and a minimum of . There are an average of 59.5 days with highs of and an average of 140.6 days with lows of . The record high temperature was on July 11, 2002, and the record low temperature was on February 7, 1989. Average annual precipitation in Sparks is . There are an average of 45 days with measurable precipitation. The wettest year was 2017 with and the driest was 2013 with . The most precipitation in one month was in January 2017, including the most precipitation in 24 hours, which was on October 25, 2021. Average snowfall per year is . The most snow in one year was in 2016 and the most snow in one month was in February 2010. Sparks has a cold desert climate ( BW) with warm to hot summers and cool to cold winters. There is a great amount of diurnal temperature variation, causing summers to go from very hot during the day to cool at night. Winter temperatures during the day go well above freezing but can go to as low as during the night.

Demographics

As of the

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...

of 2018, there were 104,246 people, 38,056 households residing in the city. The

was . The racial makeup of the city was 76.8%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 2.5%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 1.5% Native American, 5.7% Asian, 0.5%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, and 5.0% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 29.3% of the population. In 2018, the population of the city was spread out, with 23.5% under the age of 18 and 15.3% who were 65 years of age or older. There were 50.3% females. In 2018 the estimated median income for a household in the city was $60,785 and 9.9% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

Arts and culture

Cultural events include the

Best in the West Nugget Rib Cook-off The Best in the West Nugget Rib Cook-off is an annual rib cook-off in Sparks, Nevada. The competition involves St. Louis-style pork ribs. The event is held at Victorian Square in Sparks and has taken place annually over the Labor Day weekend si ...

. Tourist attractions include the

Great Basin Brewing Company Great Basin Brewing Co. is a brewery headquartered in Sparks, Nevada. It is Nevada's largest and oldest currently operating brewery—though not the state's longest operated. Great Basin beers are available as bottled draught beer at over 400 l ...

, Nugget Casino Resort, an
Scheels
– The World's Largest All-Sports Store; featuring multiple indoor displays and exhibits, including an indoor ferris wheel, two giant aquariums one can walk through/under.

Libraries

Sparks has two public libraries, one downtown adjacent, and another in Spanish Springs. Both are branches of the Washoe County Library System. The Sparks Library is . In 2019, the Sparks library started a drag queen story hour, despite opposition from parents and conservative groups.

Parks and recreation

The Nugget Event Center is an 8,600 seat outdoor concert amphitheater in downtown Sparks. Sparks Marina Park was established on a naturally occurring aquifer in Sparks. Aquatic activities include windsurfing, sailing, swimming, scuba diving, fishing and boating. The surrounding park includes walking paths, a dog park, volleyball courts, playgrounds, picnic areas, showers, and a concession stand. The

Mustang Ranch The Mustang Ranch is a brothel in Storey County, Nevada, about east of Reno. It is currently located at 1011 Wild Horse Canyon Drive, Sparks, Nevada, 89434. Under past owner Joe Conforte, Mustang Ranch Brothel, the precursor to Mustang Ranch, b ...

, described as "Nevada's most infamous brothel", has operated at various locations east of Sparks since 1967. Sparks is home to two golf courses, Wildcreek, and Red Hawk.

Education

Public education in Sparks is administered by the Washoe County School District. Schools located within the city district territory include: High Schools *

Edward C. Reed High School Edward C. Reed High School is a public secondary school in Sparks, Nevada and is one of three public high schools run by the Washoe County School District within the city of Sparks. The school was founded in the winter of 1974 to accommodate the ...

Sparks High School Sparks High School is a public high school located at 820 15th Street, Sparks, Nevada, United States. It serves about 1150 students as a member of the Washoe County School District. It is ranked in the top-1000 schools based on the number of AP exa ...

* Spanish Springs High School Middle Schools * Sky Ranch Middle School * Sparks Middle School * Mendive Middle School * Dilworth Middle School * Desert Skies Middle School * Yvonne Shaw Middle School Elementary Schools * Robert Mitchell Elementary School * Alice Maxwell Elementary School * Florence Drake Elementary School * Greenbrae Elementary School * Lena Juniper Elementary School * Bud Beasley Elementary School * Van Gorder Elementary School * Alyce Taylor Elementary School * Jesse Hall Elementary School * Spanish Springs Elementary School *

Excel Christian School Excel Christian School is an accredited private Pre-K through grade 12 Christian school in Sparks, Nevada, founded in 2003 as a non-profit organization. The school mascot is the Warriors, and the school colors are red and black. Description E ...

– a private institution. * Katherine Dunn Elementary School *Miguel Sepulveda Elementary School * Lloyd Diedrichsen Elementary School

Infrastructure

Transportation

The Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County (RTC) operates a city bus system that services the cities of Reno and Sparks. Sparks is served by the nearby Reno–Tahoe International Airport.

Rail

The

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

runs east–west through the center of Sparks. The Union Pacific has a significant

rail yard A rail yard, railway yard, railroad yard (US) or simply yard, is a series of tracks in a rail network for storing, sorting, or loading and unloading rail vehicles and locomotives. Yards have many tracks in parallel for keeping rolling stock or ...

south of I-80, just south and adjacent to the Nugget Hotel/Casino towers in downtown Sparks, and is a central part of the area's

industrial park An industrial park (also known as industrial estate, trading estate) is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development. An industrial park can be thought of as a more "heavyweight" version of a business park or office park ...

. Passenger rail service to the Sparks Amtrak Station ended in 2009, although service continues in neighboring Reno by the

California Zephyr The ''California Zephyr'' is a passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area (at Emeryville), via Omaha, Denver, Salt Lake City, and Reno. At , it is Amtrak's longest daily route, and second-longest overall ...

Roads

Interstate 80 Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from downtown San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one ...

runs east–west through Sparks. State Route 445 (Pyramid Way), El Rancho Drive, Sullivan Lane, Rock Boulevard, Sparks Boulevard, Vista Boulevard, and State Route 659 (McCarran Blvd) are the city's major north–south thoroughfares. Pyramid Way runs from Nugget Avenue in downtown Sparks to Pyramid Lake, about 35 miles north of the city, and has been designated a

Nevada Scenic Byway The U.S. state of Nevada maintains a system of scenic byways throughout the state. Currently, there are 20 designated state scenic byways. Some of these state scenic byways have also been incorporated into national byway designations. State sc ...

. Sparks is connected directly to south Reno by the Southeast Connector. It is a northerly extension of Veterans Parkway to the Sparks Boulevard at Greg Street. It serves as an expressway, with only 2 signaled intersections along its 5.5 mile stretch (one at Pembroke Drive and one at Mira Loma Drive), and constitutes a major arterial connection between Reno and Sparks. It provides an alternative route to existing, overcrowded routes such as the US-395/I-580 freeway, Rock Boulevard, and McCarran Boulevard. Construction began in late 2013, and was completed in July 2018. Sparks also is gearing up for the record of decision on a major, $1.1 billion (estimated) arterial road project, one that will turn a large portion of Pyramid Highway through nearby Spanish Springs into a controlled access, high speed arterial road that connects directly with the US 395 freeway via a complex interchange at the current Parr Boulevard connection. This will directly connect Spanish Springs, a major population center (parts of which are annexed with the city of Sparks), located in the valley just north of Sparks, with the existing Reno/Sparks freeway system which consists currently of Interstate 80 and US 395. This project will also offer more direct freeway system and inter-valley connections to and from Sun Valley, another major population center of the Reno/Sparks metropolitan statistical area. Sun Valley is located just north of Reno and just west of Spanish Springs, and is home to just over 20,000 residents as of 2020.

Notable people

* Mädchen Amick (b. 1970), actress on ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 ...

'' and ''

Witches of East End ''Witches of East End'' is a 2011 novel by author Melissa de la Cruz and the first entry in her ''Beauchamp Family'' series. It was published on June 21, 2011, by Hyperion Books and follows a family of Long Island witches struggling against dar ...

'', born in Sparks * T. J. Bell (b. 1980), motorsport driver, grew up in Sparks *

Scott Cousins Scott Michael Cousins (born January 22, 1985) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the Florida / Miami Marlins and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim from 2010 through 2013. Amateur career ...

(b. 1985), professional baseball player * Brian Crane, syndicated cartoonist of '' Pickles'' *

Jacob Dalton Jacob "Jake" Dalton (born August 19, 1991) is a retired American gymnast who was a member of the University of Oklahoma gymnastics team and the United States men's national gymnastics team. He represented the United States at the 2012 Summer Ol ...

(b. 1991), Olympic gymnast * Jim Gibbons (b. 1944), former governor of Nevada * David S. Loeb (1924–2003), businessman, co-founder of Countrywide and IndyMac * Jena Malone (b. 1984), actress, '' The Hunger Games'', ''

Pride & Prejudice ''Pride and Prejudice'' is an 1813 novel of manners by Jane Austen. The novel follows the character development of Elizabeth Bennet, the dynamic protagonist of the book who learns about the repercussions of hasty judgments and comes to appre ...

'' *

Jake McGee Jacob Daniel McGee (born August 6, 1986) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. McGee was selected by Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the fifth round of the 2004 MLB draft. He made his MLB debut in 2008. He previou ...

(b. 1986), professional baseball player *

Brian Retterer Brian Retterer (born 1972) is a retired American swimmer specialising in freestyle and backstroke Backstroke or back crawl is one of the four swimming styles used in competitive events regulated by FINA, and the only one of these styles s ...

(b. 1972), NCAA champion swimmer * Karl Rove (b. 1950), political activist, lobbyist, pundit, and

Deputy White House Chief of Staff The White House deputy chief of staff is officially the top aide to the White House chief of staff, who is the senior aide to the president of the United States. The deputy chief of staff usually has an office in the West Wing and is responsible ...

Dan Serafini Daniel Joseph Serafini (born January 25, 1974) is an American former left-handed baseball relief pitcher. He was taken in the first round (26th overall) by the Minnesota Twins in the 1992 MLB draft. Early life Serafini attended Junípero Serra ...

(b. 1974), professional baseball player with Naranjeros de Hermosillo *

Josh Weston Chad Jason Hull (January 20, 1973 – December 16, 2012), better known as Josh Weston, was an American pornographic actor who appeared in gay pornographic films and gay pornographic magazines, magazines. Personal life and career A native of Neva ...

(1973–2012), adult film star * Vernon White (b. 1971), mixed martial artist

References

External links

*
Chamber of Commerce
{{Authority control Cities in Nevada Cities in Washoe County, Nevada Populated places established in 1904 Reno, NV Metropolitan Statistical Area