Courthouse Radon Mystery: Is the West Hills Remodel More Important?
Commissioner Mike Clark asking at the BCC meeting how he can have access to the radon testing reporting that is supposed to have been done at the Second Judicial Distrcit Courthouse.
Is Washoe County playing a shell game with building priorities? Commissioner Mike Clark's persistent quest for radon test results at the Washoe County Courthouse raises some interesting questions about project sequencing.
Clark has reportedly been trying for months to obtain radon testing data from 2017/2018, along with results from tests supposedly conducted in February 2025. His struggle to access this basic public safety information is curious, to say the least.
For County Manager Eric Brown, no matter what you call the fund, all roads lead back to his ‘most important’ project the rehab of West Hills.
The timing is particularly interesting given plans to transform West Hills into a mental health facility. If significant radon issues were confirmed at the courthouse, wouldn't that logically push it ahead of West Hills in the county's remodeling queue? After all, employee safety concerns would typically trump repurposing projects.
The Community Foundation is raising funds for Washoe County via Regional Behavioral Health Initiatives Fund.
The county's reluctance to produce these test results—especially when requested by one of their own commissioners—certainly fuels speculation. Are they prioritizing the West Hills mental health facility while downplaying potential health hazards at the courthouse?
Without those test results, it's impossible to know if courthouse staff are working in a building with elevated radon levels while resources are directed elsewhere. The public deserves transparency on both projects and any potential health risks in county buildings.
Perhaps the real question is: Why is a commissioner having such difficulty obtaining basic safety information about county facilities in the first place?
The Deed Restrictions for West Hills are attached at the bottom of this article.