There’s a growing narrative being pushed that Washoe County Commissioner Mike Clark somehow failed to engage, failed to lead, or failed to represent his district on the Sierra Reflections project. It’s a nice talking point—but it doesn’t hold up under scrutiny.

The questions aren’t going away—and neither is the timing.

In a recent opinion piece in This Is Reno, Tom Daly highlighted campaign contributions received by Washoe County Commissioner Mariluz Garcia shortly before a key vote. No formal allegations have been made—but the optics are hard to ignore.

Is Troy Regas a renegade… or a marketing genius?

Because what happened yesterday doesn’t look accidental.

While announcing his first major fundraiser against Mariluz Garcia — often seen in the same orbit as Devon Reese and his loyal following — Regas didn’t just launch a campaign.

He lit a match.

If politics in Washoe County is a card game, then Clara Andriola isn’t just playing—she’s going all in.

The problem?

No one’s quite sure what hand she’s holding.

Let’s start with District 2.

Andriola is no fan of Commissioner Mike Clark—that much is clear. So instead, she’s backing his Republican opponent, Jon Killoran.

Who remembers the great cannabis lounge rollout of 2022?

All the hype. All the vision. All the promises about a “community-driven” experience in Washoe County.

And yet—after all the applications, all the talk—only one proposal stood standing: SoL Cannabis.

It was supposed to be the future. Events. Outdoor experiences. Even cannabis weddings. The pitch from Alexander was nothing short of a lifestyle revolution—complete with crowds of eager supporters ready to show up and prove the demand.

Except… they didn’t.

Dueling fundraisers—because nothing says campaign season in Washoe County quite like competing invites and overlapping donor lists.

On one side, Mike Clark working his well-known network. On the other, Mariluz Garcia building momentum and testing hers.

Washoe Valley Residents Speak — But the Votes Were Already Counted …

At the Tuesday, March 10, 2026 meeting of the Washoe County Commission, the setup on the dais appeared clear from the start.

A trio had formed.

Commissioners Alexis Hill, Clara Andriola, and Mariluz Garcia seemed poised to overturn the earlier denial of the Sierra Reflections development by the Washoe County Planning Commission.

But before that vote arrived, the meeting began with what Commissioner Hill hoped was a dramatic moment.

It slipped past the daily write-up schedule, but the social media moment surrounding Troy Regas may end up being more telling than a formal campaign announcement. Instead of a polished press release or scripted video, Regas posted something far simpler: a photo of campaign sign designs — created by his father — and asked Facebook friends which one they liked best yesterday.

Readers send us plenty. Not all of it rises to the level of a full story, but some of it certainly deserves an honorable mention.

We understand that while Karma Box Executive Director Grant Denton has been sashaying around Washington, D.C. speaking at a drug summit, a few quiet edits were happening back home. Rumor has it SAFE Embrace requested their logo be removed from his website, we can’t find the page to confirm or deny, and Denton also scrubbed references to being the co-founder of an alpaca business. Did the Alpaca's complain?

Picon continues to marvel at the rare and mysterious presence of Her Highness, Commissioner Mariluz Garcia — a public servant said to possess the wisdom of Job, though she appears to keep most of it locked away from the very public she serves. Our humble observation is that she descends from the political mountaintop mainly when votes are required, and otherwise communicates through carefully polished statements and county staff intermediaries.

So… does Commissioner Garcia still support Sheriff Balaam the way she said she did from the dais on August 22, 2023 — or not?

That was a very public statement of support. No ambiguity. No qualifiers.

We noticed Commissioner Mike Clark posted a list of Sun Valley properties in need of intervention — parcels where people appear to be living without maintaining the land and, in some cases, without even owning it.

That alone raised eyebrows.

What raised more eyebrows was the sudden urgency from Commissioner Mariluz Garcia, who made a bit of a public hoopla over the issue — despite saying she’s been “working on this problem” for the last three years.

Three years?

When The Nevada Independent recently reported that ICE arrests in Nevada don’t happen through dramatic raids, but rather through targeted, coordinated actions—often with the cooperation of local law enforcement—it triggered a memory we couldn’t shake.

Washoe County has launched a new pilot program allowing people living in their cars a place to park overnight at the Our Place campus in Sparks, billed as a compassionate response to homelessness. The program offers six first-come, first-served parking spaces through May 15, along with access to showers, restrooms, laundry, and meals.

On paper, it sounds humane.

In reality, it raises deeply troubling questions — especially about where this program is being placed and who may be put at risk.

I had one hell of a week — the kind that reminds you why local history still matters.

Honored to sit in on a meeting with Commissioner Mike Clark and announced District 3 commission candidate Troy Regas. Talking with Troy feels like a moment in time. Reno, Sparks, and Washoe County have changed — a lot — and yet somehow stayed the same.

Let’s rewind the tape.

In March 2024, Washoe County commissioners voted on an ordinance that effectively criminalized unhoused people for living in their cars. The split was clear — and telling.

• Commissioners Mike Clark and Jeanne Herman voted NO, opposing criminalization.

• Commissioners Mariluz Garcia, Alexis Hill, and Clara Andriola voted YES, supporting arrests and citations for people who are homeless.

Those votes are not a matter of opinion. They’re a matter of record.

We noticed something interesting (and a little weird) about the Washoe County Human Services Senior Breakfast on Friday, December 19 at the 9th Street Senior Center:
There are no photos online of the event — absolutely none we could find, until today.

After several weeks of driving Washoe County to view the parcels of land generously handed over by Washoe County to EDAWN for sale, we feel compelled to acknowledge what is now obvious: EDAWN is no longer just an economic development group — it’s a government-funded real estate operation.

Congratulations on the rebrand.

If you listen closely — and sometimes all it takes is one podcast — you can hear the unmistakable sound of a campaign quietly warming up.

It certainly looks like Troy Regas is preparing a run for Washoe County Commission District 3, and if that’s the case, incumbent Mariluz Garcia may be facing her most serious challenge yet.

Regas isn’t new to the political ecosystem, and what makes this potential matchup interesting isn’t just ideology — it’s relationships.