Washoe County Manager Eric Brown Drops the Ball on Seniors – Again

The cold salads Washoe County Human Services Agency are serving seniors with the 9th Street Senior Center closed and their rented kitchen packed up and moved. The bread inside is the roll they served that day we put it inside the container so you could see how little salad is actually being served.

What better way to celebrate Older Americans Month than by telling seniors at the last minute: “Never mind”?

Friday, April 25, 2025 email from Washoe County Human Services Agency announcing the May 1st Older Americans Month Information Fair and Senior Center Grand Reopening has been moved to the National Automobile Museum. What reopening will seniors be celebrating at the Auto Museum?

The much-anticipated reopening of the 9th Street Senior Center — originally scheduled for May 1st as a kickoff for Older Americans Month — has been delayed. No explanation. No apology. Just silence from Washoe County. Because who needs clarity when you’ve got chaos?

To make matters worse, the “Older Americans Month Information Fair” set to accompany the grand reopening was hastily shuffled to another location. How last-minute was it? Participants and vendors didn’t get the memo until April 26th — a mere five days before the event. That’s right, nearly a month of planning flushed in a Friday afternoon email.

How much is this move costing Washoe County? Is the National Automobile Museum giving them the space free.

County Manager Eric Brown’s out of town until May 5th so he was never planning on being at the reopening of the 9th Street Senior Center - that isn’t reopening on May 1st as Brown has been touting for months.

But here’s the cherry on top: County Manager Eric Brown, the man steering this rapidly sinking ship, decided this was the perfect time to leave town. He conveniently let everyone know on April 23rd that he’d out of town until May 5th. You mean to tell us that the person overseeing the entire county didn’t know the center wouldn’t be ready… less than a week before the event? That either speaks to total disengagement or master-level avoidance. Pick one.

And while we’re talking about senior centers, let’s not forget the five-star dining experience currently being served to our elders: small, cold salads. That’s not just unappetizing — it’s a violation of federal nutritional guidelines for senior lunches. Apparently, ensuring warm, balanced meals for vulnerable residents has taken a backseat to… well, everything else.

The Washoe County Human Services Agency, which is supposed to manage these centers, is clearly asleep at the wheel. And seniors, many of whom rely on these programs for food, socialization, and support, are paying the price.

This isn’t just a scheduling mishap or a construction delay — it’s systemic neglect disguised as bureaucratic hiccups. And at the center of it all? A county leadership team more interested in covering for itself (or catching a flight) than actually taking care of its aging population.

Happy Older Americans Month, Washoe County. You really nailed it.