Has all that radon at the historic Washoe County Courthouse been quietly swept under the rug—or just vented out a window and called “handled”?

For months, Washoe County has been doing what it does best: talking about the problem while calling it “naturally occurring” and “limited to certain areas.” Translation: “Don’t worry your little lungs about it.” But according to one of our inside sources, who requested anonymity (and probably a hazmat suit), the County is now planning to install a mechanical exhaust system to suck out the radioactive gas—at a cost of about half a million dollars.

On October 14th, the Washoe County School Board met once again—armed with PowerPoints, buzzwords, and a burning desire to spend your tax dollars like they’re Monopoly money. This time, they voted to move forward with something called the Administrative Facilities Modernization Plan. Translation: “We’ve decided to modernize the things we probably should’ve modernized decades ago.”

But the plot thickens. The board also voted to rebuild Echo Loder Elementary, spruce up Libby Booth Elementary, and—here’s where the coffee spits out of your nose—close and “repurpose” Veterans Memorial and Roger Corbett elementary schools for “future district and community use.”

Apparently, “future use” means you paid for it, we’re closing it anyway.

In 2022, Colleen Westlake was a full-fledged Robert Beadles disciple — speaking at Boomtown’s “Freedom Fridays” as only the inner-circle got to do, railing against Democrats at King Buffet Conservative Talk luncheons, and vowing to clean up schools by getting rid of ‘certain’ books and ending coed bathrooms. Republicans rallied, got her elected — and then she flipped. Westlake ditched her conservative base, sided with the very crowd she once condemned, and left Jeff Church and her GOP supporters in the dust. Now, as she runs for re-election, even the Washoe County Republican Party has cut her loose — officially excommunicated and politically orphaned, just like her new supporter Commissioner Clara Andriola who has turned on her fellow Republican commissioner members, Jeanne Herman and Mike Clark.

Rarely does anyone send Picon a press release — let’s face it, Washoe County, the City of Reno, and the City of Sparks treat us like that one relative they hope skips Thanksgiving. But every now and then, something shiny lands in our inbox, and a few weeks ago it was from the U.S. Forest Service about the Capitol Christmas Tree Tour — and get this: for the first time ever, the national tree is from Nevada.

The CHAB Board Goes Silent — and So Does Accountability.

It’s been more than a year since the last Community Homeless Advisory Board (CHAB) meeting — and the silence is starting to sound suspicious.

After Reese’s Academy Award performance on Nevada Newsmakers the other day … you know the tee-up to please come to my fundraiser because i’m a ‘man of the people’ and not a ‘vexatious litigant” kind of guy.

Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese’s high-dollar fundraiser tonight at The Elm Estate — because nothing says “man of the people” quite like one of Reno’s priciest venues.

Today, Picon witnessed what could only be described as a televised bromance between Nevada Newsmakers’ own Sam Shad and Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese — and let’s just say, if there was a candlelit dinner involved, we wouldn’t be surprised.

From the opening minute, it was clear this wasn’t an interview — it was an infomercial for Reese 2026. Shad practically rolled out a red carpet, fluffed Reese’s political pillow, and offered him a free campaign ad disguised as journalism.

Well, what do you know — Sparks City Councilmember Joe Rodriguez wrapped up his ethics saga this week without a meltdown, a tirade, or a televised tantrum.

The Nevada Commission on Ethics approved a deferral and dismissal deal in the case against Rodriguez — the one where he was accused of using a few photos in uniform during his 2022 campaign for school board. After the usual legal rollercoaster (complaint, violation, fine, appeal, and settlement), the final decision reads nice and clean:

“Rodriguez has not committed any violation of the Ethics Law.”

The Washoe County School Board Strikes Again

At this point, asking the Washoe County School Board to “protect and serve” students might be too ambitious. Most of them seem far more focused on climbing the political ladder than on keeping kids in classrooms that actually mean something to this community.

At what point does compassion turn into a blank check?

Washoe County taxpayers are pouring astronomical sums into the Nevada Cares Campus, the county’s sprawling answer to homelessness — and yet, despite the millions spent, the problem on the streets isn’t getting smaller. It’s multiplying.

Nearly a decade after 28-year-old Carson City native Sierra Ceccarelli was shot and killed in south Reno, her accused killer still hasn’t faced a jury.

Nine years. Multiple delays. A family still waiting for justice. And now, under District Attorney Chris Hicks’ watch, the trial isn’t expected to begin until April 2027 — eleven years after Sierra’s death.

There’s something ironic about how the City of Reno and Washoe County operate: elected folks dish it out daily — snide remarks, public shaming, name-calling from the dais — but the moment citizens push back, suddenly the officials are the victims.

Apparently, standing up, speaking out, and asking questions now qualifies you as “unhinged,” “obsessed,” or “mentally ill.” It’s the new government strategy — intimidate the activists, shame the critics, and drive the truth-tellers to the edge.

It looks like the story of Dana Searcy’s quiet exit from Washoe County isn’t quite the tidy “career transition” narrative the county would like you to believe.

Searcy, who served as Division Director for Housing and Homeless Services and ran the Nevada Cares Campus, reportedly went missing in action shortly after the State of the County event on September 2, 2025. According to our source inside the county, what followed was a string of “closed-door” meetings with Human Resources and the interim county manager — and former Searcy “bestie” — Kate Thomas.

So here we are — Washoe County is preparing to dissolve its Department of Alternative Sentencing (DAS), a program once hailed as a model of innovation and rehabilitation. But as federal investigators circle, the public is left asking: where did it all go wrong — and where, exactly, is Justin Roper? And when is someone going to answer some question for residents and not hide behind an open investigation so no one can talk.

Roper, the program’s now-missing executive director, is reportedly under investigation federally. You’d think that alone would warrant a press conference or at least a few public words from the people who built this house of cards.

Looks like Sparks Councilmember Paul Anderson is standing by her man. While she’s not addressing the growing chatter about the Washoe County Republican Women’s clubs new “reservations only” rules (after years of open-door lunches), there HE was—Paul Anderson—at the podium during the same luncheon.

Ah yes, another City of Reno survey — because when in doubt, survey it out. The city’s population has climbed to roughly 281,537 residents, up from 264,165 in 2020 — a 6.25% jump.

So with nearly 280,000 people calling Reno home, one might think the city would listen to them without another taxpayer-funded “what do you think?” poll. But no, Reno loves a survey like it loves a ribbon-cutting — plenty of photo ops, not much follow-up.

Out of 281,537 residents, a grand total of 3,247 responded — barely 1.1% of the population. But sure, let’s call that a “success.”

Devon Reese and the perils of public service.

Councilmember Devon Reese doesn’t like Picon. That’s fine. He’s called us hacks, not journalists, accuses us of “sensationalizing,” of “causing conflict and pain,” and dismisses us as a blog. We’ll defend his right to say all that — because that’s what the First Amendment is for. We’ll even defend his right to call citizens who disagree with him “mentally ill,” “stalkers,” or “creepy.” That’s his opinion — and he’s welcome to it.

Councilmember Dian VanderWell seems to be the adult in the room. While everyone else was dazzled by the promise of blinking server lights and “tech jobs,” VanderWell was the one who hit pause and asked the question no one else seemed to: what exactly are these massive data centers doing to our city’s resources, environment, and future?

It’s that time again when Reno politics starts to feel less like City Hall and more like a soap opera filmed in a haunted mansion. This week’s episode stars Mayor Hillary Schieve, her new venture Spooge (yes, that’s really the name), and a political friendship circle that’s starting to look like a Ouija board of broken alliances.

Mariluz Garcia just threw herself a fundraiser, and it was the who’s who of Northern Nevada’s usual suspects. The room was filled with people who like to look important—and for good reason. Many of them wrote checks as big as $5,000 to keep Garcia in office. Heroes, right?