Washoe County Manager Eric Brown says he will retire effective June 30th after serving over five years in the position, despite receiving a 10% one time bonus to his base salary of $341,000 along with an annual raise last December.
His retirement announcement comes as the county is facing a budget deficit of $8 million and a recent lawsuit by the former interim Registrar of Voters Cari-Ann Burgess for an alleged toxic work environment and discrimination.
It also coincides with a review of the county manager’s office by Raftelis Consulting which recommended improved communication at the county leadership level.
“When you get to a point where the kinds of communications challenges that are reflected in this report occur, I think one has to look at themselves and at the situation and say, well, maybe this is no longer the right place for me to be in order to be effective or for the organization to continue to move forward,” Brown said today.
Brown's tenure included guiding the county during the pandemic, the establishment of the Cares Campus, ending drag queen story hours at local libraries, taking leave for medical reasons during the 2024 election cycle and a bizarre video circulated several times by the county in which he made unfounded statements about his past as a high level sprinter.
“During the [County Commissioners] Board meeting on June 17, the Board will consider an agenda item outlining the forthcoming steps in the County Manager recruitment process,” a county press release indicated today.
