Our Nevada Judges Fights Against Total Secrecy of Reno-based Murdoch Trust Case

The non profit Our Nevada Judges is seeking to remove the total secrecy surrounding a family trust court dispute for the future of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire scheduled to proceed in the Washoe County Second Judicial Court in September, saying that’s illegal.

A suit the non profit has on its website and filed August 16th requests that the court “bring the case file into compliance with SRCR 3(5)(c) so that the public and press can independently monitor it.”

It indicates SRCR 3(5)(c) states that “Under no circumstances shall the court seal an entire court file.”

“Our Nevada Judges has filed a request to deploy high-definition cameras and this request has been submitted and is pending,” the lawsuit goes on.  

“ONJ can only assume that the extensive seal imposed in this case directed the clerk to refuse to disclose not only the hearing dates and times, but also the existence of the case entirely, and the names of counsel of record and the parties, as none of this information is publicly available for this case. If so, the sealing order unconstitutionally interferes with press access to the courtroom and violates SRCR 3(5)(c).”

Court records identify Murdoch as Doe with an evidentiary hearing scheduled on September 20th at 9 A.M. with Probate Commissioner Edmund Gorman overseeing the case.  

The lawsuit was first reported on locally by This is Reno. The attorney filing for Our Nevada Judges, Luke Busby, represents This Is Reno in public records litigation.

On a social media post Our Nevada Judges had a screenshot quoting Court Administrator Alicia Lerud indicating :  “Any public information related to this matter can now be located at https://www.washoecourts.com/AttendingCourt/NotableCase. At this time, any information not provided on this page is sealed pursuant to court order.”

As reported in the New York Times in July, the 93-year-old media mogul abruptly changed the terms of the family trust to guarantee his conservative ally and eldest son Lachlan would remain in charge of his media empire, pitting him against three siblings in the dispute. 

According to the Times, the three others who are more politically moderate than Lachlan and their father, are being represented by Gary A. Bornstein. The elder Murdoch is being represented by Adam Streisand, a trial lawyer who has been involved in estate disputes involving Michael Jackson and Britney Spears. 

Murdoch owns Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Post and major conservative newspapers and television networks in Britain and Australia.

The New York Times reported “Nevada is a popular state for dynastic family trusts because of its favorable probate laws and privacy protections.”

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Reno City Council Moves Forward with Easing Anti Tracks Trespassing

The Reno City Council has approved the first reading of a new ordinance to make enforcement of trespassing near railroad tracks easier, removing a requirement for “No Trespassing” signs or fencing along the tracks.

“Let’s keep in mind that people are sleeping with their heads right next to railroad tracks,” police chief Kathryn Nance told the city’s council on Wednesday. “People are going to get hurt if we are not proactively stopping this.”

It’s not known how often this has happened locally, even though many unhoused do congregate by railroad tracks, seeking shade or being left alone, when they aren’t forced to leave from those areas.  

Many in favor of this new ordinance have called it “a new tool in the toolbox,” which led to dismay from an advocate for the unhoused Ilya Arbatman, who said during public comment he associates tools with building homes. Arbatman has called this new ordinance unnecessary, seeing it as one more tool to possibly criminalize the unhoused, and making it harder for them to get out of difficult situations, rather than helping them.

Councilwoman Jenny Brekhus was a lone no vote saying helping the unhoused is a “real complex problem,” with more focus needed on subsidized housing.

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Washoe County School District Considers More Student Cell Phone Limitations

After the Carson City School District said it would start locking middle and high school student cell phones and smart devices in secure locked pouches effective August 19th, the Washoe County School District Board of Trustees discussed the possibility this week for its own students.

No action was taken, but some kind of new phone limitation Washoe County district wide pilot program is being considered to begin after winter break.  

"We have to start looking at all of these opportunities that are inadvertently pulling us away from our goal, which is educating kids and preparing them for the real world," Board President Beth Smith said.

Some parents in opposition have expressed concern about reaching their kids in case of an emergency.  

WCSD has an existing regulation stating phones and personal electronic devices need to be turned off unless they’re being used for instructional purposes, such as signing onto certain learning apps.  Students though have been using their phones on school grounds during school time for cyberbullying, spreading misinformation and recording fights, which also all happen outside of school.

Since the WCSD is coming at this later than other districts in the state and country, it’s had the time to study other stronger bans, with potential liability when a phone is damaged or lost while stored away, the cost of buying phone pouches, and students having multiple phones or smartwatches and earbuds to access technology. 

Some schools such as Reno High already have a bolstered cell phone policy, which in that high school’s case also prevents use of cell phones, earbuds or smart devices in hallways and bathrooms during instructional time, as that’s been a common way for students to evade any teacher restrictions during class time.  

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

In Rare Split, City Council Goes Against Staff Recommendation on Plans at Former Shelter Compound

In a rare split from a staff recommendation and from usual allies, Mayor Hillary Schieve and council woman Naomi Duerr joined Jenny Brekhus and Meghan Ebert in voting to sell the former Record street shelter compound to the Ulysses Development Group, which offered a higher offer than other bids and an all affordable housing concept.

Other council members usually in the majority, all initially selected rather than voted in, Devon Reese, Miguel Martinez and Kathleen Taylor, voted for the city’s recommendation for another housing project with Baxter Construction, with much less affordable housing and a lower offer.  

In the Ulysses proposal, all units would be restricted to residents earning 60% or less of the area median income, compared to just 10% of the units with the Baxter plan.

Affordable housing advocates called it a victory, even though many in that camp initially wanted the gone to disrepair compound to still serve unhoused neighbors in the community.

Brekhus said she didn’t understand why ideas floated by County Commissioner Mike Clark for the compound to be used for social services weren’t taken more seriously, and why a County spokeswoman Candee Ramos wrote in an email to Clark that “the City of Reno has made it clear that they aren’t interested in selling it to the County to house people experiencing homelessness. They have a different vision for that neighborhood. So, while this is a great suggestion, unfortunately it is not feasible.”

Brekhus wondered where Ramos got that idea, but got no response at Wednesday’s meeting.

We wrote Ramos and her colleague Bethany Drysdale about that email but did not hear back. 

In its press release following the sometimes contentious and drawn out agenda item the City of Reno said it “is moving forward with plans to sell two city-owned properties east of Downtown Reno. The former Community Assistance Center, located at 315 and 335 Record Street could be sold to Ulysses Development Group after Wednesday’s vote.

Council voted to move forward with the Ulysses Development Group proposal to build 136 units of affordable housing and directed staff to enter into an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement to negotiate the financing structure, affordability length, and development milestones and timelines.    

In June, the City released a Request for Proposals designed to give all who may be interested and qualified an opportunity to suggest an economic development program or project that are both physically and financially feasible while meeting the City’s goals.  “  

Two other rejected proposals were for non-profit office space and for repurposed shipping containers to be placed at the downtown location near the main bus stop as micro-business units. 

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

As Reno Housing Authority Tenants Move on from Doomed Apartments, Frustration Remains Over Relocation Process

While for some, a long and complicated ordeal to relocate from the Housing Authority's soon to be gone Hawk View Apartments is winding down with a somewhat satisfactory outcome, for others it's still an uncertain process or a deeply disappointing one.

The 100 apartments here are being destroyed to be rebuilt safer with double the capacity as part of a public/private agreement between a hidden partner and the Reno Housing Authority. Many of the former tenants we interviewed will miss its community spirit and cozy environment, with a colorful mural outside, a picinic area, a small community garden and playground.

Early this week, a staff point person for the contracted Housing to Home relocation company told Our Town Reno eight tenants still needed to finalize getting new apartments in different parts of northern Nevada.

Among them is William, who couldn't figure out some of the required computer logistics for his paperwork, which delayed his relocation process.

"Last Friday, some stuff happened with the lease, so I couldn't sign the lease, so I couldn't get the keys," he explained.

He didn't put his 11-year-old kid in school for his first day back amid the uncertainty of where he would end up going.

William had a job here as a groundskeeper, getting paid $200 per month, which he's lost now. He's also afraid at how much he'll have to pay himself with his voucher at the Marina Village where he's being relocated, where rents are much more expensive.

Christina, a single mom of four including a special needs child, who was unhoused prior to living here, received a notice she would be required to move by Friday "due to construction plans in your current apartment."

She was provided with a public housing transfer to Essex Manor, which she initially wanted to avoid since it's far out in the North Valleys.

Due to credit issues, she was denied qualifying for the Marina Village or another location.

Christina also needs to register her kids to go to a new school. She will miss her neighbors who were friendly to her. "As a single parent, I should have got something close to here, like anything," she said.

On the bright side, she's been told her rent will be dropped to zero and "the electricity allotment is a lot higher, $175 compared to the $50 that I was getting here. Just trying to look at it from the positive light. But you know, I don't want to be all the way out there," she said.

Christina says she's still on the Housing Authority's list for a three-bedroom voucher, "so whenever my name pops up, God willing, I'll be ready."

Judith Williams, who helped Christina and others as they navigated the drawn out relocation process, just passed her inspection on her Hawk View unit.

There will be at least another step for her to get her security deposit money back as she's just been told she needed to bring the lease of the new apartment where she was relocated, the adjoining Springview by Vintage apartments.

Adding her mom to come live with her helped, due to her good credit, a requirement tenants weren't expecting would factor in so much for the relocation.

"We all were told that our credit wouldn't be a problem," Williams says. "I don't have the greatest credit, obviously, you know, or else I wouldn't be in public housing."

Her only complaint so far is being higher up, having to go up and down three stories.

Another tenant who also moved to Springview, Trista, a single mom of two, was still trying to figure out what the portion of her new rent is. "How is my portion of the rent still supposed to be $496 when it's just me and my 2 girls and I have no source of income right now and we are supposed to be getting something that's similar to what we had at hawk view?" she asked in an email, fearing she would have to move again. At Hawk View, her portion of the rent was just $27.

Trista previously went through the local Step2 Recovery program and recently got a car to be more mobile for job opportunities.

Ashley, who was unhoused in her thirties, is angry at where she was relocated, the Reno Vista apartments, both in terms of the higher costs she'll have to pay as well and inferior living conditions. She's back here to talk to others about their own relocation experiences.

"It's a pretty shitty apartment, to be honest with you," she says of the apartment where she was relocated. "It's got cockroaches, which we don't have here."

She arrived at Hawk View four years ago, thrilled at the opportunity to live here. Now, she's despondent.

Her portion of rent she says has gone up from a base of $21 to $356 with added fees for utilities, water, trash, sewer, washer and dryer and insurance. Her son who lives with her is working part-time at the Boys and Girls Club, but she feels that's not enough to cover what they will need to pay.

"As of right now. I don't have any plans," she says. Like others, she feels the Reno Housing Authority and the relocation company promised an easy, seamless process, where tenants would be satisfied with their new housing.

"I did everything on my own. I had to go through the application process. I had to pay for that. I had to go through their credit checks and everything else," she explains.

Ashley, who was homeless for two years, and suffers from schizoaffective disorder, initially went through a Northern Nevada Adult Mental Health program before getting a place in Sparks and then into subsidized housing. She now regrets having gone in the direction of using a housing voucher during this relocation process.

"This is public housing. You would assume that public housing would be a lot worse to live in than you would an apartment like that. But no, that's not the case, I miss this place. I miss my home. This place is like a community."

She says she believes a few units on shifting clay soil could have been fixed, rather than demolishing the entire complex which was built in the early 1980s.

"I'm just kind of worried after hearing what these guys were saying about, like, extra costs and stuff," William said of his looming move after Ashley was interviewed.

The last days at the Hawk View apartments have been difficult, with people trying to break in to the laundry and dryer area recently to steal money, electricity and gas being cut in different sections, and unhoused people camping within the compound.

Reno Housing Authority says the new housing here will be rebuilt better and with double the size of units. Tenants who used to live here, like Ashley, say they fear other comfortable public housing units will also be demolished as part of growing public private partnerships to house those most in need in our community, creating difficult transitions and imperiling those who had recently gotten out of homelessness like herself.

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Evacuees Thankful to Get Relief at Northwest Reno Library

Our summer photographer Kia Rastar went by the Northwest Reno Library earlier this week at 2325 Robb Dr. where he took portraits of fire evacuees there as well as residents facing power outages and Red Cross staff helping with the process.

Evacuations have now been lifted and residents can return to the Verdi area. Last night, NV Energy said it had restored power to 4,500 customers, with only 1,800 still without power.

“I was living at a motel when the fire started and the smoke came over to us,” Dominick (in center photo), 34, said. “What happened is that we were evacuated and then now we are over here, we are in the library, and they said we can get a cot for tonight.”

“Me and my fiancee were in the motel and the power went out and I smelled smoke, and so we were just trying to get out of it” Princess (middle right), 33 said. She says they were able to get food at a food bank and were trying to figure out their next steps, including taking care of their service puppy dog.

Sarah, 24, (middle left) had been closely monitoring power updates and whether her home was in the evacuation zone. She spent a night at home without power, woke up and went to work. “At this point, our power is still out so I’m here back from work. I am in the library because there is no Internet at home and also I can’t get our garage door to open with the clicker.”

Sarah was reaching out to friends to find a place to sleep.

“We are here because we didn't have power,” Mahmoud (upper left) said. “We spent last night at our home and today we came here… Except for the lack of power, we don't have any other problem in our house, so we will go back home tonight,” he said.

A 62-year-old father (bottom right) who had spent the previous night using candles was at the library to pick up his wife and kids, who were doing homework for their online classes. They were going to eat out before returning home. “This is a really nice place for them to spend their time,” he said.

Our Town Reno reporting and photos by Kia Rastar

The Escalated Wild Horse Showdown due to Sunny Hills Ranchos South Reno Construction

A showdown recently escalated between different wild horse advocates, residents of southeast Reno, government officials and the Damonte Ranch developer Sunny Hills Ranchos over the fate of two dozen captured horses and access to water for other horses.

While volunteers had been trying to relocate horses who kept going inside a current construction zone, they were angry that boulders were blocking a gate to keep them from going back in, resulting in the Nevada Department of Agriculture to do a removal themselves last week.

The boulders were initially placed so that while vehicles couldn’t go in and out, horses who frequent South Meadows and Rio Wrangler Parkways, could get to a main water source. However, this put them back in danger if they were trapped inside the construction area.

The developers have been assuring advocates and the City of Reno they are trying to figure out how to make sure horses can still access a water source at Steamboat Creek. However, that access was recently further complicated by new developer-built pedestrian gates.

With the horses still going into the construction zone, the Nevada Department of Agriculture decided to act, surprising advocates who have been keen on keeping the lines of communications open at all times. 

“The Nevada Department of Agriculture took action based upon language in the cooperative agreement with Wild Horse Connection to remove the horses from the site to protect them from the dangers of an active construction zone, including heavy machinery, sharp objects and trenching,”a spokeswoman said. 

"Only horses on the development property are being removed. Any horses fenced outside the property will remain on the Virginia Range,” an NDA statement added. 

One group, American Wild Horse Conservation, has been working on reducing horse numbers in the area with a darting program to avoid any roundups such as the one which took place last week. 

The NDA says 24 gathered horses were moved to the Northern Nevada Correctional Institution to be put up for adoption.  

“The horses were transferred to Northern Nevada Correctional Center where they will be advertised per Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 569 to confirm there are no other legal owners of any of the horses gathered and will then be made available for adoption. Horses will be microchipped and identified to ensure they are not returned to the range and for future documentation and proof of ownership. More information on how to adopt one of these horses will be available at agri.nv.gov  This process will occur over the next 60 days,” the NDA indicated in a statement. 

Advocates fear that could be mean they could eventually be slaughtered by so-called “kill buyers”, even though that’s illegal.

Sunny Hills released this statement to the media: "The Sunny Hills property is currently under construction to build a bridge over Steamboat Creek, extend South Meadows Parkway and extend and construct a waterline under Rio Wrangler…  We understand the State is very concerned about the health and safety of any feral horses located in an active construction zone and intend to relocate them to a new safe location with plenty of food and water. Sunny Hills has always prioritized the health and safety of the feral horses and are grateful they will be removed from the dangers of the current construction activity."

Following the roundup, a protest was held in Carson City asking Governor Joe Lombardo to quickly intervene in the matter, so that the horses could be instead relocated to a different part of the range and to avoid this fate for more horses.  

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Flash-Flood Victimized Hidden Valley Residents Face Herculean Task to Recover

Dale Doerr poses in front of a ditch at the south end of the Hidden Valley Park, which for a while became a level field of rocks. Photo by Laurel Busch shared with Our Town Reno

Piles of rocks, debris, sandbags, destroyed landscaping, fences, decks, yards and crawl spaces buried in mud, a closed regional park and brownish ponds everywhere are constant reminders for Hidden Valley residents of the pernicious July 21st flash floods.

The mud and rock slides followed 1.3 inches of rain being dumped in the area in just three quarters of an hour.  Yearly, by comparison, Reno averages just a little under 7.5 inches of rainfall.

 At a community meeting last week, dozens of residents shared their struggles, many frustrated and angry, with some blaming the county for not properly maintaining ditches and culverts in the park above the neighborhood.  Others said they should have gotten some sort of advance warning for this freak occurrence.  

Photos above by Mark Maynard of current conditions in different parts of Hidden Valley shared with Our Town Reno

"We are prepared for these things to happen. They're unfortunate when they happen. This was localized to a small community. I think every single one of those homeowners that was impacted, this is an emergency to them, and so we took that very seriously," Assistant County Manager Dave Solaro responded after hearing some of the complaints.

In terms of the general area, Washoe County says Community Services Department crews deployed after the flooding, working 12-hour shifts, cleared about 16-thousand cubic yards of debris or about 600 truckloads.

Photo above shared with Our Town Reno by Laurel Busch.

“We know that it will take time to repair all of the damage, but our number one priority is safety and accessibility, and we are grateful that there were no injuries in this flood event,” CSD Director Eric Crump said.  

The regional park where over 10-thousand cubic yards of mud and debris have been removed is scheduled to reopen in stages, with limited park access first, possibly this coming week, followed with the dog park, tennis courts, playgrounds and bathrooms.

Above photos sent to Our Town Reno by Laurel Busch showing the impact of last month’s flash flooding in different parts of Hidden Valley.

Laurel Busch, who went around the neighborhood and took pictures for Our Town Reno, while collecting testimonies, says the worst hit street appears to have been Mia Vista Drive.  

Many of the homeowners in this area are elderly and on fixed incomes, she says, without any flood insurance, facing huge tabs to repair the damage their homes endured and not knowing where to turn for financial assistance.  

The mud dries into a solid substance that cannot be shoveled without re-wetting it, she indicated, making it all feel like a Herculean task for Hidden Valley to feel and look like normal again.  

Our Town Reno report August 2024, with reporting and photos by Laurel Bush and additional photography by Mark Maynard

Joud, an Artist from Gaza Now in Reno, Trying to Save His Brother and Mother

At a recent sunset Family Soup Mutual Aid community gathering at the Believe Plaza, Joud, an artist from Gaza, was exchanging smiles with neighbors who had just tasted his freshly-made dolmas.  

Only nine months since his arrival here in northern Nevada, Joud already volunteers, got his green card, has a job at the local Nevada Fine Arts supply store, and has given painting classes while helping produce a radio series on hospice care.  

It hasn’t been easy for the 28-year-old, far from it, and part of his difficult relocation now feels thwarted by the current tragedy taking place in Gaza.

His journey away from his home which started three years ago took him through torturous times in Egypt, Turkey, Dubai, Malaysia and Ecuador before making it to Reno.

Underneath his quick adaptation to northern Nevada, there’s his burning drive to get his younger brother, 20, and mother out of Gaza as well.  “It's been horrific and I don't know if anyone can do anything, but we have to speak loud about what's happening there,” Joud says of the civilian hardships in Gaza for displaced survivors under escalated Israeli attacks and bombings since the October 7th Hamas-led incursions into southern Israel.

“And you have to know that our people there they don't have any voice so it should be us to speak about what's happening there and the starvation that they live in,” he adds disconsolate.

Joud has started a GoFundMe to raise money for their immediate survival and eventual departure.  People were being charged about $5,000 to enter Egypt before the Rafah crossing was closed several months ago after Israeli forces took it over, so it was expensive to do so, but doable.  

Joud is pictured giving a watercolor painting class. Shared with permission to use from Joseph Galata’s Facebook page.

His brother and mother are staying nearby the crossing with hundreds of thousands of others now and waiting for it to reopen. The GoFundMe has raised nearly $10,000 of a $30,000 goal: https://www.gofundme.com/f/rescue-a-gaza-teen-poet-and-his-mother.

“I am from Gaza but thankfully an American man rescued me and I am now living in United States,” Joud writes in the description. “If I can raise the money, when the time is possible, they can leave Gaza and then to Egypt and finally live with my sister in Turkey,” he says of his brother who wants to become a humanitarian filmmaker and his mother, both of them spending entire days to find food, sometimes getting just a few spoonfuls of rice.  

Joud in the podcast studio in the center of photo with Joseph Galata on the right. Shared with permission to use from Joseph Galata’s Facebook page.

Life for Joud and his family has turned dramatically in recent years and months.

In his early 20s, Joud was already a thriving artist and graphic designer, working for companies and as a lecturer at Gaza University.  

“He’s an excellent cook too,” Joseph Galata, who helped bring him to Reno said.  In turn, Joud calls Galata the “man who saved my life.”

Galata, who runs the Sierra Association of Foster Families, had grant funding for a children’s book on forgotten Nevada heroes and was looking for an artist for that project and other media endeavors he pursues.  After joining a social media arts group, he found Joud, and after he did three paintings as a test, he says it was “exactly what I wanted.”

Having lived in Israel, and learning about the “world of oppression,” and trauma for Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, Galata said “I knew he deserved to have an opportunity to be an artist.”

Above, pictures of paintings by Joud he shared with Our Town Reno.

Galata had previously been able to get his ex wife’s parents out of Iran, which was also a difficult process, so even though there were many challenges on Joud’s journey to Reno he says he’s immensely proud of how he’s kept going and how he’s made so much progress in so little time.

Back at the Believe statue downtown plaza, as night falls on a crowd of volunteers and unhoused residents having conversations and healthy food, more and more people taste his delicious dolmas and notice his smiling, magnetic personality.  

“This is in our culture to help our neighbors,” Joud says starting to feel at home here. “This is something that I would like to share with the people here in Reno, Nevada, and the United States.”

He then messages photos of some of his piercing art portraits (shown above) along with the link to his family’s GoFundMe and a video in which his little brother appears. He concludes with a folded praying hands emoji. 

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Uncertain Future of Bonanza Inn Now in the Hands of Jacobs Entertainment

Jacobs Entertainment says it’s trying to ascertain the status and condition of the quickly rotting Bonanza Inn after a drawn out process to acquire it through probate auction earlier this year was recently completed.  

"Our intention remains to create quality housing which will include affordable workforce units at Bonanza Inn,” Jeff Jacobs, the CEO of Jacobs Entertainment, told media earlier this month.

It took until the end of July for the J Resort parent company to complete its acquisition.

During the auction, after at one point saying it was pulling out,  Jacobs then had the highest last minute bid of $3,005,000 to narrowly surpass a previous $3 million bid by Marmot Properties.  

The Reno Housing Authority previously had its eye on the Bonanza Inn to turn it into low-income housing, but last year the city of Reno abruptly backed out of a previously touted agreement to fund that conversion.

 “The city council has invested quite a bit in housing affordability over the last few cycles, and the RHA received a tremendous amount of funding from the state – which gives the city an opportunity to consider other strategic investments,” former City Manager Doug Thornley wrote.

The property at 215 W 4th Street which encompasses 21,000 square feet and had 58 units was built in 1968. It was shut down in 2022 following multiple city code violations.

Jacobs Entertainment has demolished many of the motels it bought out during an ongoing buying spree of properties in the 4th street and downtown areas, but did reconvert one into the Renova Flats, where studios are listed at $1050, and one bedrooms at $1200. Many of the other motels, which served as a last resort before and after homelessness for lower income residents, were bulldozed and turned into parking lots.

Our Town Reno reporting August 2024

What's That Construction Project? UNR's New Business Building

Despite general doubts as to the future solvency of the higher learning in person university model, the University of Nevada, Reno and its surrounding area has been booming in recent years in terms of construction, with new parking, apartments and now a $250 million plus business five-story building, halfway to completion.  

The private developer Edgemoor, university officials and Clark Construction have combined forces on this controversial so-called Gateway District project on land at the southern tip of the main campus. It used to include historical homes, several of which were relocated at high costs, others demolished, and the formerly beloved Bibo Coffee, also bulldozed. 

The yet to be complete building, called the UNR Mathewson Gateway College of Business Building, will include collaborative spaces. a 300-seat auditorium, a social space, technology labs, optimized teaching spaces and an outdoor space and plaza for food trucks and student events.

In terms of finances, it has come about as a result of public-private partnership funding, with Edgemoor taking most of the upfront costs in exchange for a 30-year UNR lease of about $10 million per year.

The structural phase took about a year to complete, with the watertight phase up next to build out walls and the building’s roof.  Completion is scheduled for next summer, for a possible opening in the 2025 fall semester.  

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Rose, a Local, Trying to Help a Displaced Family in the Devastated Gaza Strip

Rather than attending protests, Rose, a local northern Nevada ELA instructor, has been writing regular letters to the U.S. administration, local officials and to contacts within the Gaza Strip, including one particular family, trying to help as best they can and stop in their own words the “horror.” 

“I think a lot of us are just able to see directly how much damage and pain people are in. It's so visible, especially on social media. And it just felt with us having such a direct connection with the United States providing the military weapons … that you have to do something,” Rose explained to Our Town Reno during a recent interview.

Rose keeps informed about all the ongoing tragic news unfolding in Gaza through local journalists there still active on Instagram, including Mahmoud Al-Awadia, Majdi Fathi, Bisan Owda and Ahmed Maqadema.

The family Rose is trying to help consists of Eman Houssin, 35, who is active on Instagram as well @eman.houssin, her husband Muhammad, 40, her children Tasneem, who goes by Toto, 16, a K-Pop fan with dreams of becoming a lawyer, Taim, 10, who wants to become a pilot, Tia, 4, who loves swimming, her two sisters Sarah, 21, a talented singer, Banan, 17 who was prevented from graduating from high school and her parents Abd, a math afficionado, and Ibtisam, a social butterfly, both in their 60s.

Their family home in north Gaza was obliterated (above before and after) during Israel’s counter attack hostilities, which have killed nearly 40,000 people, mostly civilians, and driven most of the enclave’s 2.3 million residents from their homes. The intensely escalated Israeli attacks immediately followed the Hamas led incursions into southern Israel on October 7th, which resulted in 1,200 people killed and about 250 others abducted.  

“Our house … unfortunately got completely destroyed,” Eman writes. “We lost a very special place that is full of sweet memories of more than 24 years of our lives, everything has vanished, form our favorite books and rooms to our comfy little beds to our favorite clothes and many many special and cherished items, everything has vanished like it never existed."

Rose had been in contact with Eman even before the intensified war, with interests in her food blog.  “After October 7th, the imagery started shifting to what her immediate experience was,” they say, with the family now stuck in a displaced camp in central Gaza. 

Communications have become difficult. “There's not a lot of Internet access,” Rose explains. “They have to go to hubs where there is Internet access. And so it's always certain times of the day that she has it available and can get there. Also, they don't have any consistent way to charge their phones out there. And so they actually have to send it out to places that have like solar powered batteries at the moment.” 

Rose has been updating a flyer they circulate about the family, dropping it off around northern Nevada, from car windshields to mail boxes. It includes a link to the family’s GoFundMe (in screenshot above)  gofund.me/fb65f434

They’ve also been sending it to news organizations, elected officials, both local and national, and once a week since the beginning of July directly to the White House.  

A July update to the GoFundMe indicated: “We are waiting for the Rafah Crossing to be back operational again so I can start to evacuate my family to Egypt where they can start a new life away from danger and the unbearable life that most of the Gazans are living. Your support is critical to reach the target that will secure a safe exit and the essentials for my family to start rebuilding what this war has taken away but it will not take the will of life.”

A YouTube video (above in screenshot and in this link) features Taim standing in a muddy field in front of a large white tent, saying “we are living a very miserable life here, we are living in tents now. The situation here is unbelievable and unbearable. No words can describe what we are living now.”

He describes long lines to use a common bathroom, drinking dirty water, and not having enough food to eat.

Rose says the family’s children have gotten sick repeatedly, including one getting hepatitis and another a bad skin infection.  The youngest ones experience constant panic attacks, fearing every loud noise could be a deadly explosion.  They say the family hasn’t been able to buy propane to run a consistent fire, to be able to boil water.   

Rose said the money sent via the GoFundMe works for some digital and card purchases within the Gaza Strip but that the overall total is meant for the entire family’s departure.   

However, as Rose points out, the Rafah crossing into Egypt has been closed since May. Previously, Israel had permitted tens of thousands of Gaza residents to leave through Rafah. Many dual nationals got out, some with assistance from their other country, while others paid expensive fees to cross.  Eman’s brothers left Gaza years ago, one relative is in Greece, and the family would desperately like to reunite with them.  

“I wish if we all could escape this nightmare and to start a new life together away from this traumatic place,” Eman writes.  

Asked why they spend so much time to try and help this family, Rose says “there's something to be said about just giving some people back their humanity by being willing to talk to them and being willing to hear their story and even just to hear them be upset and be sad. Like I've had voicemails from Eman just crying about how hard it's been and how she's trying to be brave for her children.”

If others want to help another individual or family, Rose warns of being careful and avoiding potential scammers. 

“I would say the main thing for me is that if it's very sudden and there is inconsistent information coming out from them, or if they're just repeating or sending the same kind of photoshopped looking image over and over like that, it's going to be a red flag.”

They suggest the Operation Olive Branch (in screenshot above) which can be found on Instagram to contact Palestinians in need.  

“It can feel really hopeless when you see all this information and when you think, well, I'm over here, you know, across the world and I can't do much,” they concluded, “but I don't think that's ever true. I think you can find ways to contribute, even if it's small, you know, even if it's just raising awareness, even if it's creating art or even if it's, you know, reposting things that you see online.”

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

County Looks to Fill Hundreds of Poll Worker Positions

Washoe County is looking to hire 800 poll workers, including bilingual ones, to work the upcoming 2024 elections, for two dozen early voting sites and over 50 November 5th Election Day locations.

“This is going to be a historical election. I think we're going to break records here in Washoe County of actually how many people do come out and vote," the Deputy Registrar of Voters for Washoe County, Andrew McDonald said this week, underlining the need.

McDonald is confident the positions will be filled.  "We've got a lot of excitement around becoming a poll worker. Unfortunately, our nation is divided. So people are very into wanting to help and just be part of the historical process," the County official said, while also wanting to reassure those feeling the job could come with high tensions.

"Poll workers are protected. I want to make sure that people understand that we take safety very seriously here. Here in the building, we have sheriffs, we have guards," McDonald said.

To apply for the paid positions, you need to be a United States citizen registered to vote in Nevada.  There are also positions for 16 and above high school students to be election worker trainees. 

Early voting will be over 14 days, with poll work from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. paid in the 16 to 18 dollars an hour range, with a paid one day training session. 

For Election Day workers, there is an additional election eve pre setup training sessions and stipends for their work ranging from $235 to $275.  The County is trying to have one bilingual worker at each polling location. 

On its website, Washoe County lists different positions, from managers to assistant managers, intake specialists, ballot clerks, greeters, ballot runners, supply runners, roving troubleshooters and manning the poll worker help line.  

Details and link to applications here: https://www.washoecounty.gov/voters/get-involved/election_workers/electionworker_positions.php

Our Town Reno reporting, August 2024

Hot August Nights Makes U-Turn to Keep Final Reno Parade

After several news reports including ours indicated the parade had been cancelled, Hot August Nights said they were deciding to have it after all.

In an email Wednesday night, Landon Miller from the communications team at the City of Reno wrote that “upon further review of the adopted fee schedule, it was determined that meter bag fees do not apply to special events. This fee will be removed from current special event permits and refunded to those events who have already paid it.  In regards to Hot August Nights, this adjustment will reduce their permit fees by $19,152.”  

“Hot August Nights is giving big props to Mayor [Hillary] Schieve and the City of Reno for proactively reaching out and helping to develop a solution that truly demonstrates to our 6,000 registered car participants, we want you here,” said Deny Dotson, executive director for Hot August Nights. “Our participants felt that they were going to miss out and thanks to the Mayor and the city, they won’t. We are now calling on our registered car participants to demonstrate how much this means to you by joining in on the cruise on the final day of our event. And to the public we say, come on out. We look forward to seeing you there.”

Festivities will kick off Friday in Virginia City, followed by the Bonanza Casino Cruising for the Cure event Sunday, with week long showcases and competitions across northern Nevada, and concluding with the August 11th finale back to being a parade down Virginia Street.

A previous statement released to media indicated: “We plan to work with the City of Reno to safely produce the nation’s largest 10-day nostalgic car show. The decision to change the format from a parade to a rules of the road cruise ensures we continue to celebrate our classic car culture without any additional costs.”

According to previously announced City requirements, this event would need over 150 meters bagged, costing about $20,000, which had not previously been imposed on the Hot August Nights drive through parade.  

Even though the organization applied and received a sponsorship grant from the city which would have essentially waived this particular fee, organizers initially decided to go in a different direction to save some money, before reversing course.

“Hot August Nights was originally charged $19,152 dollars for bagging parking meters during its event. There are 152 meters that will be bagged at a cost of $18.00 per day. The costs include the meter bags themselves and the staff time to bag the meters.  Even though people may think this is a new fee, it's actually not. The City recently did a review and is focused on equal enforcement of the fees for all promoters in order to create equity,” Landon Miller from the city’s communications team wrote back to Our Town Reno earlier in the day.

“However, HAN applied for and received a $20,000 in-kind/sponsorship grant from the City for this year's event. This in-kind grant covers things like staff time, equipment, park rental fees, and sometimes RPD staff.  So yes, they were charged a $19,152 fee, but it was essentially waived,” he explained by email in more detail.

According to initial figures, holding the road cruise would have still cost organizers but about $7,000 less without the parade, with $88,147.01 for street closure equipment and staffing, $69,309.16 for Reno police staffing and $5,180.00 for the rental of ReTRac & City Plaza, minus the $20,000 grant.  

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024  

Reno City Council Moves Toward Banning Being Near Railroad Tracks

In photo from today, a man walks by his possessions right above the Union Pacific railroad tracks which run along Fourth Street, as Reno moves toward prohibiting encroachment, such as camping or littering, within 100 feet of the tracks.  

Agenda Item E1 at the City Council meeting tomorrow will introduce an “ordinance to amend Title 18, Chapter 8.10, of the Reno Municipal Code entitled “Offenses Against Property”, prohibiting trespassing upon railroad tracks; and other matters properly relating thereto.” 

“A person would be considered trespassing if they enter or remain within 100 feet of a railroad track without the permission of the owner of the land,” a city staff report indicates.

This includes city owned property where there are storm drains, signage, and fencing.

"I am afraid that if we don't start to really look at ways that we can protect people around that whole area - it is very, very dangerous,” Mayor Hillary Schieve said at a meeting last week when the new ordinance was requested.

If approved Wednesday as expected, Council will need to vote on its adoption at another future meeting

Advocates for the unhoused say this is another method to criminalize poverty, creating even more difficult holes to get out of for those without stable shelter.

Several activists are planning to speak up against this new proposed ordinance during public comment. 

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024

Sweeping New Regulation Codes Are on the Near Horizon for Reno Businesses

A local worker in a bar wrote us a message recently worried about new code enforcements being currently rewritten not just for street vendors as we posted about in a recent story, but for a wide range of businesses including bars, restaurants and city event planners. 

They pointed us to a City of Reno page called Business License Code Revision, with a planned update to City Council in August, more work on the draft proposal in September, and a presentation to the Council in October.

The city’s website indicates City Council directed staff to pursue a comprehensive rewrite of Reno Municipal Code Title 4 “Business License Code” and Title 5 “Privileged Licenses, Permits and Franchises.”

“They are trying to enforce these new codes which would require employees to have to apply and get a background check and a work permit if you work in those types of industries,” they wrote.

“Also there’s a red line in there that says any bar to be open would require you to have a paying employee scanning IDs every single day of the week you are open. Another clause says that any employee with a misdemeanor or felony within the last five years is unable to apply for this so called work permit… Another clause that says brewers or any sort of distiller is not allowed more then four one ounce samples of alcohol during their shift… The city has pretty much grabbed a bunch of stuff from all these other cities,” they added, not sounding pleased. 

Different chapters concern adult cabarets, alcoholic beverages, cannabis establishments, gaming, massage parlors and therapists, non-motorized vehicles for hire, pawnbrokers, lodging, secondhand dealers, sidewalk vendors, solicitors, canvassers, special events, tobacco and vehicle towing among others. 

Residents can still send emails to BLCode@reno.gov about this.  

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024

The Curious Case of the Washoe County Manager's Olympic Themed Video

A rereleased County video on Instagram about County Manager Eric Brown’s past as a top level UCLA sprinter was brought to our attention by local social media commenter Phil Tenneson, as it indicates Brown made the Olympics team in 1980 and also broke a world record, none of which we could confirm with extensive researching on the internet. 

The rereleased Instagram video is a shorter version of what was first posted three years ago, and then trimmed a little and posted again two years ago on the Washoe County YouTube. All of the videos seem to have slightly delayed audio.  

In these, Brown says “he had the benefit of representing our country back in 1980 as a member of the US Olympic team 4x100 meter relay,”  which Tenneson rightly points out there was no representation since the United States boycotted those Games held in Moscow.  

A History and Tradition of UCLA Men’s Track and Field document has him as among the world’s best in the 100 meters in 1979, and in the United States in 1979 and 1981, a year in which he clocked 10.37 to be a conference champion.

It has several pages about Bruins in the Olympics, including two for 1980 in Moscow with the asterisks **U.S. did not compete**.  However, the two are Willie Banks for triple jump and Mike Tully for pole vault and the list does not include Eric Brown.  

At what was still called the Olympic trials in June 1980, Brown did not make it to the 100 meters final, finishing fifth in a semifinal heat, after finishing third in a first round heat.  The athletes competing in the trials already knew they wouldn’t be going to the Olympics as the boycott was announced in March.  

The video then goes on with his narration, saying one of the first times he participated in a relay he said “we were running against the Russian national team,” in a “full stadium at Boston University.”

He said he was getting ready to run as the second leg, when a Russian athlete sabotaged his preparations and took the tape he had put down for his markings.  It’s a curious choice of wording as well as at the time of his sprinting career Russians usually identified as Soviets when competing.  

In the video, Brown says his determination led him to run one of the best relays of his life, and that his team “ended up actually breaking the world record that day for our age group in the 4x100 meter relay.”

On the internet, we were unable to find details of that meet or confirmation of that world record. The Washoe County Instagram post indicates he set “the world record while at UCLA.” 

Addressing Tenneson’s concerns, Bethany Drysdale wrote back to an Our Town Reno query on Facebook indicating: “Yes, he qualified for the Olympic team and had the honor to be on the team, which eventually did not compete in the Olympics because the U.S. boycotted that year. That does not take away from the accomplishment, and I think this is a very shallow, irrelevant attempt to undermine someone's accomplishment with semantics.”

Drysdale did not address the stated world record, even though Tenneson has repeatedly asked about that too. 

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024

GoFundMe Nears $90,000 for Children of Sparks Couple Found Dead in Mexico

A gofundme for the 12-year-old, 19-year-old and 21-year-old children of a Sparks couple found dead on July 14th in their hotel room in Cabo San Lucas is nearing its $100,000 goal, but the cause of their sudden death remains in dispute. 

As of Monday evening the donation total was at nearly $89,000.  

Nick and Lindsey Jordan were celebrating her 46th birthday with friends and work colleagues, but after not meeting with them one morning, police and staff steered the rest of the group away from their room.

Mexican medical records and a police report indicate the deaths were drug-related, according to their eldest son who has been trying to figure out what exactly happened. He says he’s been looking through these documents but that he believes there are many discrepancies. He says a U.S. independent autopsy isn’t being pursued as the fatalities are not being treated as suspicious.  

His mom, who listed herself as a former employee at Kimball Equipment Company, where her husband still worked, had posted photos publicly on Facebook during the trip including on July 12th with photos of a resort with pools hugging the ocean and tagged at the Sea of Cortez.  Someone commented “Don’t drink the water!!!” 

Others on social media are pointing to how in recent years several Americans were killed by carbon monoxide poisoning at hotels, resorts and Airbnbs.

“We are deeply moved by the incredible outpouring of love and support for Deven, Haley, and Sammy during this challenging time. Your generosity has been ove,whelming, and we cannot thank you enough for standing by the Jordan family,” Sheila Oliver last wrote in a GoFundMe update. 

“Thanks to your donations, we have made significant progress toward our goal. Your contributions have covered the funeral expenses, and the additional support is helping to provide stability for the children as they adjust to life without their parents. Deven, Haley, and Sammy are incredibly grateful for the love and support from each of you. Your kindness gives them strength and hope during this unimaginable time.”

The death has not been followed up by Cabo-based media, with just promotional pieces of late, such as the Cabo Sun reporting the area is among the safest tourist destinations in Mexico. 

The couple were known around local wrestling circles as their youngest was an avid wrestler, with Nevada Elite writing: “Nevada Elite has suffered a tremendous loss to our wrestling family. Nick and Lindsay Jordan’s spunk always brought such a light into any room they entered. They were the most genuine people and if you got a chance to be around them, you’d know how special they were. The Jordans supported EVERYTHING for our club, always donating their time, talents and treasure.”

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024

Drag Queen Story Hour Off the Books at Washoe County Libraries

Our Center is asking Washoe County to reconsider the cancellation of future drag queen story hours at local libraries after Washoe County manager Eric Brown wrote to library staff that “risks posed to county employees have reached an unacceptable level” at such events.

The Washoe County Library System will no longer be holding the colorful story times which have become a target of some angry locals who would disrupt the events with shouting, displaying signs such as “Stop Sexualizing Our Children” and other intimidation tactics.

In an email sent out on Tuesday, Manager Brown indicated  that “on July 11th the Workplace Violence Committee (WVC) unanimously voted to recommend that Washoe County libraries cease hosting Pride events due to employee safety concerns.  Although there has been work by library staff and volunteers to make changes to the event plans over the past few years, including increasing the presence of security officers and de-escalation training for library employees, despite these efforts, the WVC believes the risk to County employees has become too great.  Library Director Scott has been advised of this recommendation and is expected to take the matter up with his Board of Trustees at the next Washoe County Library Board meeting.”

Our Center was organizing the events at different local libraries, with the next one planned for Sept. 8th at South Valleys already off the official calendar.

A June 15th edition at North Valleys allegedly included a librarian being injured by a protester trying to force himself inside the library where only adults accompanied by attendant kids were allowed. Some protesters started going inside with kids, and then held up signs to disrupt the story time itself.

The library system says it will continue working with Our Center and other LGBTQ+ groups despite this setback.

Our Town Reno reporting, July 2024

Cold Cases of Northern Nevada: The Lemon Valley Disappearances

One of the cold cases older locals remember the most is of Jennifer Lee Martin, 37 years ago. 

In the summer of 1987, at 11 years old, she left her home on Surge Street barefoot, wearing a grayish-purple sweatshirt dress, at around 3 p.m. to go to a 7-11 a few minutes away on Lemmon Drive, bought candy and a soda, and disappeared.

Her family have kept their same phone numbers, hoping one day she might call.  Authorities treated the disappearance as a possible abduction, but there were no solid leads, with just a suspicious driver in a Toyota at the time, which was never located afterwards.

Jennifer was described as not being someone who would go into a stranger’s car though.  Her family had recently moved to Reno from Florida, and they said she seemed to be doing well, was cautious and had no history of running away from home.

“We first moved to Reno in the 80s and lived in the trailer park that Jennifer Martin did,” Crystal Flippo-Roberts wrote Our Town Reno. 

“I remember my mom was so scared when she went missing. I was in grade school and I remember kids talking about her. Although I never met her, I think about her and pray she’s found alive one day. What is being done, if anything, to find missing kids?”

“I also lived in Lemmon Valley in the late 80s, in the little trailer park across from the 7/11 she went missing from,” O.M Dawson wrote.

Dawson pointed out that another child Anthony Franko, who was 10, had also disappeared from Lemmon Valley, several years prior on the morning of May 9, 1983, when he usually walked himself to Lemmon Valley Elementary school. Witnesses say they saw him in the morning walking along Fremont Way, apparently going in the opposite direction, wearing a red 49ers t-shirt, blue jeans, a hooded jacket and hiking boots, when he was seen leaning over and talking with someone in a small rusted out sports car. 

“The police treated most missing kids cases as runaways back then and they didn't really start looking for Anthony until a couple of days after he disappeared,” Dawson wrote us.

“Both of these cases have bothered me for decades. People don't just vanish into thin air.”

In the Franko case, children who knew him said they had seen him weeks after his disappearance, but they say he ran away when he saw them.  A month before his disappearance, he had run away from home and left a goodbye note after he was punished for bad grades, before returning several hours later. 

Last year, his mother Liza wrote him this letter: “Dear Tony, I have faith that you are still alive, but only God knows. I miss you dearly and my heart still aches after all of these years of not knowing where you are. I am trying my best and I am trying to find you. As long as I breathe, you will always be remembered & loved. I love you so much Tony.”

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released a new age progression photo to help. 

Both his mother and stepfather were ruled out as suspects after taking polygraph tests.  

Dawson has suspicions against the now dead Steven Smith, a former poker dealer at a local casino, who in 2001, after new DNA evidence, confessed to killing 6-year-old Lisa Marie Bonham in 1977. She had disappeared while walking to Idlewild Park.

Smith had been paroled just a year before killing Bonham after initially being sentenced to life in prison for molesting and assaulting multiple young girls in the Reno-Sparks area in 1969.   

At the time, his father said he held “the parole board as responsible for what he did as I hold him. They don't need to parole predators so they can destroy another family like they did ours.''

A defrocked priest, Stephen Kiesle, was a suspect in Martin’s case in the early 2000s. He had been previously arrested and charged in 1978 with the molestation of three young girls at the Santa Paula Catholic Church in Fremont.

According to the crimewire website his yard was searched in June 2002 as authorities searched for evidence in several missing persons cases involving young children, including Martin, Franko and others.

Kiesle’s vacation home in Truckee, Nevada, was excavated the same month as part of these investigations, He was found to be living very close from another young girl that went missing in 1988, Amber Swartz, who was only seven years old at the time. Another man confessed in 2007, a month before dying in prison, that he kidnapped and killed Swartz.

Last year, Kiesle was sentenced to six years and eight months in state prison after he killed a man while driving drunk in Walnut Creek, while being named in dozens of new child sex abuse lawsuits.

Our Town Reno reporting, Summer 2024