The following are highlights from today’s Washoe County Board of County Commissioners meeting:
1. Board hears two presentations related to efforts to address behavioral health: Washoe County Behavioral Health Administrator Julia Ratti presented an update on the county’s strategic priority of behavioral health to the Board of County Commissioners, highlighting the significant regional efforts to improve behavioral health services for our community.
The region in collaboration with the State is working to improve our response to someone experiencing a behavioral health crisis including enhancing 988, the crisis hotline, standing up mobile outreach and crisis response teams, and opening a crisis stabilization center. These are all components of a crisis response system comprising three basic spokes: Someone to talk to, someone to respond, and a safe place to be.
Washoe County is pursuing a “sequential intercept model” (SIM), a widely accepted conceptual framework that identifies key points within the justice and behavioral health systems to “intercept” individuals before they fall deeper into the justice system. This system is in place in Miami Dade County, and county leadership and interested individuals have traveled to Miami to witness the success and learn what can be implemented in Washoe County.
The next step in developing SIM locally is finalizing the strategic framework and identifying key initiatives to move forward, importantly identifying critical gaps in the behavioral system of care and work to add additional resources.
Ratti also presented an update on the status of the former West Hills Hospital, which was purchased by Washoe County in 2023 and is being developed into the Washoe Behavioral Health Center. The County hopes to include a psychiatric residential treatment facility, crisis center for youth and children, sex-trafficked children receiving center, adult live-in treatment program, office and training space, and more. A more detailed plan is anticipated in the first half of 2025.
Ratti’s presentation was followed by Steve Shell, vice president of Behavioral Health at Renown Health. Renown’s Crisis Care Center will open in early 2025 as a private-public partnership between Renown and Nevada Department of Health and Human Services. It will serve as an important part of Washoe County’s crisis response system for adults, both as a crisis stabilization center and as a 24/7 walk-in and law-enforcement drop-off location. Shell estimated that the center will serve 18-20 adults per day and can accommodate up to 35 individuals in seating areas and beds at any given time.
“It truly is a game-changer for our community. We have needed this for a very long time,” Shell said. “We all know the emergency room is not the appropriate setting for someone who’s having a crisis, whether mental health or addiction.”
2. Board hears update on Truckee River Vision Plan: The City of Reno and Washoe County are looking for a cohesive plan to improve the Truckee River from Sparks to the California State Line. Brandon Sobiech with Dig Studio presented an update on the plan addressing issues such as safety, ecology, land use, open space, public art, and mobility. Part of the plan regarding land use adds development along the river while allowing for water overflow along the riverbank.
As the Truckee River flows through multiple jurisdictions, the plan identifies the need for a special parks district to oversee and maintain open space and trails along the river corridor.
View the full presentation here.
3. Board awards contract bid for phase 2 of Washoe County Senior Center remodel: Facilities Management was awarded more than $746,000 for the Senior Services Phase 2 Remodel Project. The project will include several improvements at the Washoe County Senior Center, which has offered a variety of valuable services to more than 85,000 seniors, since opening in 1978. As Washoe County’s elderly population experiences significant growth, several areas at the center have deteriorated, are too small, and unsafe, making it more difficult for staff to continue serving seniors safely and efficiently. The Senior Center remodel will help the Meals on Wheels Program’s production and distribution process by creating more freezer space, a refurbished patio, and a backup location for meal pickup. Meals on Wheels is a vital program in our community that prepares and serves more than 400,000 meals to seniors in need every year.
4. Board approves construction contract for new TB clinic: In 2023, Northern Nevada Public Health (NNPH) received a $10 million federal grant to build a new tuberculosis clinic to serve the residents of Washoe County. Today the Board approved a contract with Plenium Builders Inc. to construct the clinic at 1240 E. 9th for an amount not exceed $8.2 million. H&K Architects provided the architectural and engineering design services for the project.
5. Board awards contract for first-ever inclusive playground in Washoe County Regional Parks: The Board awarded a contract to Garden Shop Nursery Landscaping Division Inc. to build Washoe County’s first-ever inclusive playground The $582,000 contract will consist of demolition of existing non-compliant play equipment and surface materials and installation of necessary drainage components, subgrade, and aggregate base which supports the new all-inclusive play equipment, benches, rubber safety surface, landscaping, American with Disabilities Act (ADA) sidewalk, ADA parking, and a play area perimeter fence. Washoe County is purchasing the playground equipment and benches directly from the manufacturer at a cost of $355,862.99 from Landscape Structures, Inc. for the contractor to install.
The Board also approved a $3.5 million grant from the William N. Pennington Foundation for the South Valleys Regional Park expansion.
“I’d like to recognize item 10 as the first inclusive playground of a Washoe County owned park – at Rancho. This is super exciting, and I commend staff for that,” Chair Alexis Hill said. “We also need to commend the William N. Pennington Foundation for their ballfield grant on item 19, it’s incredibly generous and we’re so lucky to have our private partners.”
6. Sun Valley to get a new bike park: The Board of County Commissioners approved a $488,000 contract to Sierra Sports Marketing LLC dba Sierra Trail Works to construct a new bike park in Sun Valley Regional Park. The Sun Valley Bike Park Project consists of the construction of a new bike park located at the Sun Valley Regional Park. The work includes construction of those elements that the Washoe County Parks and Open Space staff working with the public had identified as part of a neighborhood meeting that was conducted on April 24, 2024, where a presentation was given by staff to community members.
7. Board hears appeal and conducts first reading on housing-related code amendments: County Commissioners considered an appeal to the Planning Commission’s recommendation of approval of Housing Affordability Package 2.5a. While the appellants are identified as Citizens for Spanish Springs, the ordinance in question is a package of County-wide zoning code changes to enable and support what is commonly referred to as “missing middle” housing. These amendments do not change the allowed density of homes in residential areas or expand allowances for multifamily projects (ex. apartment complexes), but they do allow more opportunities for different types of housing and allow employee housing with a special use permit in commercial zones.
The Board first had to determine that the appellants have standing to appeal the Planning Commission, then they decided on the merits of the appeal. In a 3-2 vote, the Board decided that the appellants could not prove legal standing to appeal the Planning Commission’s decision and that the Planning Commission properly met its findings. This means that the Planning Commission’s decision as upheld and the appeal failed.
“I totally empathize with everyone I’ve met with several of the people who are not only here but also are a part of this group,” Commissioner Clara Andriola said. “I think that the item before us is to look at the standing, and the fact is that in looking at the language in defining an “aggrieved person” or person or entity who suffers substantial grievance – that grievance is right now, and some of these rural areas aren’t even being impacted at all. The burden is on the appellant to prove it being aggrieved, and I do not feel that’s been upheld.”
Commissioners Jeanne Herman and Mike Clark disagreed: “These are citizens in our community who already live there. I see people who have real standing who are going to be impacted by this, and we should listen to them,” Clark said.
Following a decision on the appeal, the Board heard a summary of the proposed amendments, then introduced and conducted a first reading of the ordinance. A second reading and possible adoption are scheduled for mid-December. The proposed changes are intended to implement initiatives from Washoe County’s Strategic Plan related to housing supply and affordability. They would also implement policies from the recently adopted Envision Washoe 2040 Master Plan, which is the long-term vision for how our community should grow over time.
9. Board appoints Patricia Gallimore to the Senior Advisory Board: The Senior Advisory Board is an 11-member volunteer board to advise on issues facing the senior community in Washoe County. Patricia Gallimore, a 32-year resident of Washoe County, was appointed to serve a four-year term representing District 1, effective immediately.
10. Board allocates District 3 Funds to Northern Nevada Public Health program: Commissioner Mariluz Garcia recommended $1,500 in District 3 Funds to be allocated to Northern Nevada Public Health (NNPH) for its Aca Entre Nos (AEN) initiative, a four-part conversation series for families on mental health to foster a healthier community and empower families to take charge of their health. The Board approved the recommendation.
