It’s been an uneasy time to navigate Reno as the Biggest Little City hurtles forward, losing some of its authenticity, grit and caring.
With increasing rent prices, displacement of unhoused people, and feeling unheard by Reno’s City Council, to name just a few current challenges, it can often create helplessness on how to contribute.
Josh Patten, the bar manager of Corrigan’s Lost Highway on Wells Avenue, offers a unique perspective on how to approach these issues. Patten first moved to Reno 12 years ago, after deciding to move away from Seattle.
“ The writing on the wall was pretty clear that I was not going to be able to sustain the life that I had been living there for much longer,” he says of the move to the 775. “Just living very modestly and playing a lot of music and that kind of stuff. The city was getting expensive and one day I looked out of my back door and I could see 25 cranes on the skyline. And it was like, okay, this is getting pretty out of hand.”
After stopping by Reno on tour with his psych rock band, Patten began to make friends and fell in love with the sense of community that has made him stay since.
“ The things that had been happening in Seattle, where everything was tapering off, people were getting priced out of the city, moving away. It was dissolving, whereas it was very much more like cumulative here, it's fun to get here and do that,” says Patten.
Now in Reno, Patten wears many hats, one of which is helping create one of the best bar environments in town.
Outside of work, Patten plays in the psychedelic black metal band, Beachmaster, along with hosting the Stax of Wax radio show on KWNK 97.7FM @kwnk97.7
Patten has made a successful effort in incorporating his love of local music into his role at Corrigan’s with a variety of community oriented events. Across the street from DIY music and art space, The Holland Project, Patten has added on to the arts scene, from hosting live DJs to grunge bands to fundraising events.
While Corrigan’s has been a Wells Avenue staple for decades, Patten has been bar manager for three years now, and has so far watched his neighborhood’s progression closely.
“ I think that people's motivations when growth is involved are usually skewed towards profit and not sustainability. And so that's pretty nerve wracking, I don't really see the amount of population we're trying to accept matched with real infrastructure. I see it matched with flash in the pan hip spots but what I don't see is long term plans for traffic management or long term plans for water supply or things like that,” he said. “ If we're going to responsibly grow this town the way that they want to grow it then all of those considerations really need to be made.”
When I prompt Patten on what others can do to help the community, he fires off many resources, most fervently towards his recent involvement with Family Soup Mutual Aid, a group that distributes necessities for those in need at Believe Plaza every Tuesday night. Corrigan’s recently started a kimchi and pickle raffle to donate towards the cause.
“ I think that's where we're at right now, is to just hold each other closer, lift each other up, and if you have extra, somebody could use it. There's plenty of people when I get to Family Soup that are there as part of the distribution infrastructure too, you don't necessarily have to cook or love to. You can go help pass it out. It's really not hard to find.” says Patten.
The conversation with Patten comes to a close, but he ends with an age old phrase on how to keep going.
“ You can just go talk to people but there's tons of resources. It's really not hard to find. Ask a punk is what we used to write on a lot of flyers, but you can ask a punk about just about anything,” he concludes.
Reporting and photos by Sophia Nebesky