Oh, the great fire study fix …

Did anyone actually take the time to watch the Regional Fire Services Study Board make its debut on September 4 at 10 a.m.? Probably not. But for those who did, it was a show worth critiquing.

The board is stacked with two reps each from the City of Sparks, City of Reno, and Washoe County. Logical enough. But what’s not logical is who didn’t make the cut: Commissioners Mike Clark and Jeanne Herman — the only two commissioners with firsthand wildfire scars in their districts. Instead, we got Clara Andriola and Mariluz Garcia. Why? Don’t ask — just “call it good to go.”

Commissioner Mariluz Garcia wants “rules of procedure” for the Washoe County Board of Fire Commissioners. Sounds harmless enough, right? Just a little housekeeping on decorum and best practices. But anyone watching closely saw what this really was: not about efficiency, not about process — but about publicly taking Commissioner Mike Clark to the woodshed.

Back in 2024, Commissioner Mike Clark’s attempt to direct $10,000 in discretionary funds to the Reno Toy Run blew up in spectacular fashion. The spark? A vest.

More specifically, a “swastika vest” worn by a member of the motorcycle club The Branded Few inside commission chambers — an image that Channel 4 in Reno blasted across the airwaves. Outrage followed fast, and Commissioners Mariluz Garcia and Alexis Hill jumped in to support revoking the funding.

The club, under pressure, promised to remove the symbol from their jackets. That was supposed to be the end of it.

After hiring outside consultants to evaluate its County Managers Office leadership dysfunction, Washoe County got exactly what it paid for: a detailed Raftelis report outlining what many residents have known for years—there’s a breakdown in trust, communication, and strategic priorities at the top.

But instead of focusing on the actual substance of the report—like rebuilding credibility or creating a strategy that doesn’t resemble a bureaucratic scavenger hunt—Commissioner Mariluz Garcia had a different takeaway: Let’s move commissioner comments to the end of meetings. Because obviously, the real problem here is the order of the agenda, not the disconnect between elected officials and the public they serve.

County Manager Eric Brown's June 30th retirement marks the end of a five-year stint—and the beginning of some uncomfortable questions about how Washoe County hires, and potentially rewards, its top executives.

As the county gears up to hire another pricey headhunter firm to find Brown's replacement, it's worth remembering how well that worked out last time. In 2019, Washoe County paid handsomely for professional recruitment services, only to end up with a candidate pool so thin that former Commissioner Marsha Berkbigler had to personally call her old friend and former boss Eric Brown to convince him to apply.

Washoe County might want to invest in mucking boots — not just for the fairgrounds, but for the growing pile of bureaucratic nonsense it keeps stepping in. This week’s rodeo stunt? A memo quietly urging county employees to work from home because gasp... the Reno Rodeo makes it hard to park.

Let’s get this straight: After over 100 years of the Reno Rodeo, now it’s too difficult for county employees to do their jobs from the office? Welcome to the Wild West, folks, where public servants apparently clock in from the couch when parking gets inconvenient.

Turns out the Great Library Budget Crisis of 2025 was nothing more than a work of fiction, authored by none other than former Library Director Jeff Scott. For six long months, Scott spun a budget fairytale worthy of a Netflix limited series—complete with looming layoffs, weeping children, and seniors fearing they'd have to turn to YouTube tutorials instead of librarians for help.

The financial saga unfolding at Washoe County Library raises more questions than a mystery novel. With a base budget of $12 million annually, the library system has accumulated additional funding requests to stay “whole” $1.3 million from the Washoe County General Fund and $3.2 million from the Library Expansion fund — and now we’ve got Baker & Tayler $850,000 and OverDrive, Inc. $300,000 asks from recently-resigned director Jeff Scott on the commission agenda on Tuesday, April 22, 2025.

In a move that surprised absolutely no one familiar with his history, Washoe County Library Director Jeff Scott resigned moments before his potential termination—repeating his 2015 Berkeley playbook when faced with similar circumstances. Now, as predictable as the sunrise, those who haven't bothered to examine his performance record are rallying with cries of impending book banning.

Look closely at Senator Daly and Taylor's SB-319, or you might miss the burning hole it's about to put in your wallet. This isn't just legislation—it's a blank check written in your name.

The bill creates a Fire Protection District with truly spectacular taxing power by the Washoe County Commissioners: no limits on property assessment values and the ability to keep raising taxes. Miss the first tax hike? Don't worry—there's always round two, three, or ten.

Picon noted that media/press are asking questions as to the closure/remodel of the Washoe County Senior Center on 9th Street. You know, the facility that County Manager Eric Brown and his Human Services team are remodeling during the winter months in Northern Nevada.

Grab your parkas - Washoe County's putting on quite the winter performance. Picture this: elderly residents shivering outside a makeshift dining room in January because somebody thought winter was the perfect time to remodel the Senior Center. But hey, at least County Manager Eric Brown got his cozy $34,000 bonus. Who needs outdoor heaters when you've got all that warm bureaucratic air?

Oh, honey. Washoe County is doing that thing again where they think we can't do basic math or read between the lines. Let's break down this bureaucratic theater, shall we?

Picture this: Once upon a time, seniors got daily visits with their hot meals. Now? They're lucky if they get a lukewarm "here's your food, bye" drive-by. But don't worry! Commissioner Mariluz Garcia has written very important "opinions" about Washoe County Seniors in the RGJ. Slow clap

Nothing says "Season's Greetings" quite like Washoe County's culinary insult to seniors on December 20, 2024: a solitary dry biscuit, minuscule country gravy, accompanied by two strips of bacon and some canned fruit – a meal that would make Tiny Tim look spoiled.

The architect of this nutritional nightmare? TRIO Community Meals, now proudly serving disappointment county-wide thanks to a crack procurement team that managed to attract exactly one bid – TRIO’s. How convenient. While Commissioner Mike Clark – the only commissioner who actually eats these meals – voted no, the cheerleading squad of Andriola, Hill, and Garcia, happily rubber-stamped this culinary catastrophe.

As Eric Brown's annual review is tomorrow, Washoe County has conveniently "revised" its evaluation criteria – presumably to mask another year of mismanagement behind a façade of independence. The only thing more remarkable than Brown's list of failures is the chorus of commissioners rushing to applaud them.