At what point does Washoe County stop pretending everything is fine?

Here we go again. Another mess tied to Karma Box Project, and somehow Washoe County still can’t seem to connect the dots. How many stumbles does one contractor get before the county finally admits the obvious: something is very, very wrong here. Matthew Grimsley, a Karma Box Project who works at the Safe Camp at the Nevada Cares Campus was arrested for domestic battery for the third time.

And this time, there’s no Dana Searcy or Eric Brown left to blame.
This one lands squarely on the shoulders of newly installed County Manager Kate Thomas.

Let’s take a quick trip down Karma Box Memory Lane …

The Washoe County Republican Party might want to invest in a spreadsheet — or at least a group chat — because the 2026 ballot is shaping up to be one giant, red-tinted identity crisis.

First, there’s the Reno mayor’s race. Two elephants, one chair: Councilmember Kathleen Taylor, who rode GOP backing to a razor-thin win in 2024, and perennial candidate Eddie Lorton, the party’s forever date who’s back for another dance.

Everyone Picon knows seems to be sprinting for cover, hoping to avoid catching what we’ve started calling “the Beadles bug.” It’s highly contagious and politically disfiguring — symptoms include sudden memory loss about past donations, rapid distancing statements, and an unexplained urge to say “no comment.” Unfortunately, there’s no known vaccine yet, though a healthy dose of transparency and a booster of accountability might offer some immunity.

Picon’s private investigator was questioned by the Sparks Police Department in 2022, who handled the tracker investigation, and was cleared. We’ve been following this story for years and now the answer is known. We were blamed, guess you were all wrong.

Robert Beadles has gone on the record admitting he hired David McNeely to follow Mayor Hillary Schieve and then-Commissioner Vaughn Hartung — confirming what’s been whispered in political circles for months.

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.

We’ve been hearing chatter from sources who used to work at Our Place that Dana Searcy, once the captain of the Nevada Cares Campus, may have slipped out of Washoe County without so much as a goodbye wave. No announcement, no update — just silence.

At the State of the County, the seating chart looked less like leadership and more like a middle school lunchroom. On one end: Clara Andriola, Alexis Hill, and Mariluz Garcia. On the other: Mke Clark and Jeanne Herman. The divide wasn’t just visible — it was practically screaming for a caption.

Let’s rewind the tape on a little episode of government dysfunction that Washoe County officials would now really prefer we forget — but we won’t.

At center stage is Sober 24 Testing Services, the county-run operation that was supposed to ensure accountability in the courts but instead became a hub of questionable leadership, opaque operations, and now — surprise — the focus of multiple investigations.

Try Seven Layers of WTF.

Spending Spree? Alexis Hill’s $75,000 discretionary blowout raised a few eyebrows. If Washoe County taxpayers are wondering where fiscal responsibility went, they might find it buried under a pile of discretionary receipts. On Tuesday, July 8, 2025, just seven days into the new fiscal year, Commission Chair Alexis Hill reportedly spent $75,000 of her $100,000 discretionary fund—a bold move, especially with the county staring down the barrel of a $27 million budget deficit.

Let that sink in: while departments are keeping positions vacant, taxpayers are being warned of potential service reductions, and the county floats ideas of tax hikes, the Chair of the Commission is spending taxpayer funds like it's Black Friday in July.

As the City of Reno and Washoe County shake hands over the idea of a new parks district, residents are right to ask: what’s really growing here—green space or government?

The City of Reno has signed a $223,550 taxpayer-funded contract with PROS Consulting to explore a new Service Plan, a first step toward creating a park district. This sounds nice on paper—more trails, open space, and recreation—but let’s not forget: this is also the first step toward new taxes.

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.

In the always-entertaining world of Northern Nevada politics, career paths have a funny way of curving in on themselves like a cul-de-sac. Case in point: former Washoe County Registrar of Voters Jamie Rodriguez, who has landed herself a new gig at NVR Government Affairs, the lobbying arm of Nevada REALTORS® — a group that checks notes advocates for private property rights and, well, keeping taxes in check.

There’s more at stake than you think.

The Washoe County Library System stands at a crossroads, so pay attention. The trustees—volunteers who’ve worked tirelessly to craft a sustainable budget—are now seem to be under fire, not from the public, but from within. In recent meetings, it’s been clear: some library employees are publicly challenging the very board that’s been working to stabilize and strengthen the system. Why?

Commissioner Alexis Hill, the Regional Transportation Commission of Washoe County, and School Board Trustee Chair Beth Smith want our kids on the bus—public transit, that is. Through the RTC Student Transit Program, kids aged 7 to 18 enrolled in the Washoe County School District can now ride the city bus system for free.

Sounds generous. But let’s ask the obvious: Where exactly is a 7-year-old going alone on public transit? This isn’t a yellow school bus. It’s the general population riding—meaning our kids will be sitting next to who knows who on the way to who knows where.

Picon is unapologetically amused.

Wes Duncan announces a run for Washoe County District Attorney and—poof!—a select few locals faint into their fainting couches like we're all trapped in some steamy 1860s Southern drama. Someone fetch the smelling salts—there’s a Republican challenger in the DA’s race, and the self-appointed gatekeepers of Washoe County are scandalized, and it seems are fearful of a primary.

Who died and made them the candidate police of the region?

In a move that’s raising eyebrows and red flags, Washoe County Commission Chair Alexis Hill is now at the center of an amended complaint/lawsuit that suggests a troubling breach of ethics — one that may have compromised the independence of Washoe County’s elections office during a pivotal election cycle.

Chief Judge Lynne Jones has been sounding the alarm about radon levels in Washoe County's historic courthouse—you know, that building failing radon tests and creating an unhealthy workspace for the people who serve our community daily. Yet County Manager Eric Brown and his crack team of direct reports continue treating her concerns with all the urgency of a golf tee time.

in what can only be described as a masterclass in questionable priorities, the City of Reno and Washoe County School District appear poised to introduce digital billboards in school zones dependent on the City of Reno sign ordinance—you know, those areas where drivers are specifically instructed to exercise maximum caution and minimum speed.

Nothing says “community enrichment” like a giant digital sign flashing messages every eight seconds from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.—365 days a year—even when school’s out. That’s the plan for local schools, who want to plant these LED monoliths in neighborhoods across the area.

Because what better way to enhance the charm of your quiet street than with a never-ending light show?

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.