So whats the official status of the Empire store?

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 11:10 am

According to wikpedia, USG is now officially Idle. So do Gerlach and the remaining citizens of Empire have to travel to Nixon for groceries? Or has someone reached some kind of deal to keep the Empire store open? And if so, for how long? Don't mind buying my food in Reno, but I'm gonna miss their tacos.

goathead · Post by **goathead** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 11:29 am

It's still open.
Sounds like they will try to stay open if they can.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 12:02 pm

The store's owner got permissions to stay open through this year's event, beyond that will be a crapshoot.

wedeliver · Post by **wedeliver** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 6:12 pm

When does everyone one have to move out of Empire? Has the county talked about closing the school next year? Has Bruno put his properties up for sale?

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 6:42 pm

wedeliver wrote:When does everyone one have to move out of Empire? Has the county talked about closing the school next year? Has Bruno put his properties up for sale?

June 20th I believe. The school in Gerlach will be open, but with only a handful of students.

I took the Buying Empire thread seriously...and still do.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Sun Feb 27, 2011 10:26 pm

It has to be for sale first, and that may take some time.... or better yet maybe the plant will open up again in a couple of years?

Post by **Sham** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 1:05 am

I would love to see the store succeed, but there is literally no customer base left for it to draw from. Business will pick up for 3 weeks around Burning Man, but even that is just some fill-in things and sandwiches.

The Town of Empire is now clearing out and will be shuttered by the end of June. Ghost towns can stay boarded up for may years before coming to life again. Jerome AZ stayed shut down for 50 years before it started to come back--and only as an artsy tourist stop in the mountains.

Most of the people traveling through Empire during the year, are hunters, and they usually are prepared with provisions ahead of time. The locals in Gerlach make runs to the larger shopping areas and stock up with several weeks worth of groceries at a time. They may stop in to the Empire Store if they forgot a jar of Cheese Wiz or Hamburger Helper, but not for heavy shopping.

If anyone has ever traveled down highway 447 when Burning Man was not taking place, you can actually travel the entire length and not pass a car coming in the other direction. Now, with 2/3 of the residents of the area leaving, it will be even fewer people using that road and stopping in the store. Imagine a 100 mile paved road that's used by just 15 cars a day!

I will be stopping into the Empire Store this year and buy what I can, but I have a sad feeling that this will be the last year that it will be open for us to pick up a case of PBR.

Lassen Forge · Post by **Lassen Forge** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 5:26 am

Shambala wrote: Imagine a 100 mile paved road that's used by just 15 cars a day!

That many? What concerns me is the condition of 447, and especially 34, in a few years. If there's no community up there to support having that road, the 2 roads may rapidly go to "deferred maintence" status - eg - hell.

After all, who's left? Burners, Bruno, and the Ranchers. I don't think UP has a presence there anymore, do they? Bruno and his will survive off the tourists, The ranchers can survive as they have for decades (plus they have appropriate vehicles), and Burners? Well, that's what? 3 or so months out of the year.

I will tell you this - with Empire gone, and Gerlach reduced, it's gonna make burners a hell of a lot more "radically self reliant"!

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 6:58 am

Can't say that I've bought a ton of groceries at the store....other than the couple times our bar ran out of supplies.. But I like the ritual of stopping for a taco and a large soda, before I hit the playa. Plus, I like a few of the folks that have worked there. Its sad to see a community disappear before your eyes.

wedeliver · Post by **wedeliver** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:22 pm

Will the closing of Empire effect the property values in the area. Is all the private property in the Empire area owned by USG? Has anyone seen the "map" that shows the properties, zoning etc?

How much will the county lose in tax money?

Do any of the Empire employees own private property that they wish to dispose of? Perhaps someone in management who bought something in Gerlach??

what is the idea to make money from the town of Empire? Jerome AZ is an example of... well there is slide rock and if you have never slid down slide rock you haven't done no sliddin'

TomServo · Post by **TomServo** » Mon Feb 28, 2011 2:48 pm

http://www.rgj.com/article/20101203/BIZ ... /1321/news