A Stimulating Concept of Solidarity Journalism and what we do at Our Town Reno

There’s occasionally concerns from some of our readers about what we do at Our Town Reno, even going so far as wishful policing, over what journalism should or shouldn’t be, or what it is or isn’t, or how it should be written.

We don’t see social media as a threat, we see it as boon, as it’s vastly diversified voices and perspectives, however chaotic that might be. That’s why we’ve always placed ourselves at the intersection of social media and journalism.

We’ve always liked the George Orwell line that “journalism is printing something that someone does not want printed. Everything else is public relations.”

You won’t see us promoting a medical device as so many television stations do, with their “health reports” actually paid advertisements. You won’t see us cowering to the powerful and the wealthy in hopes of a future grant, or be wary about writing about a particular business, because none advertise with us.

As a volunteer collective, most of our stories come from reader tips, questions and alerts, even if some in the community get angry at the questions even being asked.

We also promote the work of up and coming student journalists, local photographers and opinion writers.

Our articles are often short, to better fit on our affiliated character limited social media including Biggest Little Streets on Instagram, where we also do street photography, to document an ever evolving Reno.

We prefer big picture realism than getting lost in the weeds of minutiae.

We enjoy presenting micro stories.

A lot of panoramic distant view journalism is mostly background information which can be written by AI. Conversely, going too deep in details can lose the reader as to what a story might mean for where our city is headed or came from.

Our social media posts often have a voice, and a particular writing style, because why not? There are a few grammar Nazis out there, always on the lookout. It’s often a petty way to disagree, as we all know mistakes are human, and mistakes don’t define you. Mistakes refine you, as the saying goes.

One commenter recently wrote we were mostly negative, but that simply isn’t true if you look at the body of our work.

One of the four categories on our website is called Keep Reno Rad, which is usually a highlight of a local starting a new homegrown business or a showcase of a promising artist.

The three other categories on our website are News and Features, Ideas for Progress and our Citizen’s Forum.

A kinder reader recently sympathized with all the hate we receive in comments. We explained it comes with presenting new information, remembering all the death threats we received after indicating Kyle Rittenhouse was in the area furnishing a home and buying a vehicle, based on a verified reader tip.

A concept we read about recently is called Solidarity Journalism, which we found stimulating.

We also like the term mutual aid journalism, whereby our stories promote those practicing mutual aid, while also encouraging those we write about to be helped by neighbors reading about them.

A recent article by Anita Varma on the NiemanLab media newsletter defined solidarity as “a commitment to people’s basic dignity that translates into action.”

She writes “specifically, when reporting in solidarity, journalists use newsworthiness criteria, sourcing tactics, and framing styles that are distinct from those typically used by mainstream media.”

We started this initiative specifically when we noticed local media weren’t paying much attention to motels being torn down and even less attention to former motel residents. Tenants’ struggles are news to us, as are their protests and attempts to organize.

When we report on residents getting kicked out of a Reno Housing Authority compound or from the Lakemill Lodge, we keep reporting about them until they are housed again.

According to a definition on the Center for Media Engagement at the University of Texas at Austin “solidarity in journalism means that journalists stand for basic human dignity and against suffering, and is practiced through newsworthiness judgments, sourcing, and framing that center the lived experiences of people subjected to unjust conditions. The decision to report – or not report – on these conditions inherently leaves neutrality behind.”

Our Town Reno Substack, January 14, 2025

Is Jacobs Entertainment Losing its High Stakes Bet on Reno?

In a press release announcing the Neon Line District six years ago, after several years of buying off and razing down multiple downtown motels, while accumulating City of Reno deferrals and credits with promises but no deadlines, it was indicated this would be a $1 billion “mixed-use development” in downtown Reno “encompassing 20 city blocks.”

CEO Jeffrey Jacobs gloated, saying this was the bookend to his illustrious business career, perhaps trying to rival his late father, the former owner of the Cleveland Indians.

Headlines such as one on the Mansion Global website played on the same iteration: “Developer Bets $1 Billion on Reno.”

One reader who has been combing through the numbers closely feels that it could be a losing bet. They point to financial shortfalls, huge bond interest owed starting in 2029, worsening reviews of the J Resort, the threat of a class action lawsuit due to a recent data breach, and sliding gaming revenues, all detailed in extensive emails sent to Our Town Reno.

Already, residents are bemoaning the lack of new accessible housing as part of this expensive project, accentuating a crisis for locals on fixed income, with low wages or bad credit.  

The subheadline to the Mansion Global piece indicated Jacobs Entertainment was planning 2,000 new units, mostly apartments, for the Biggest Little City.  

So far, it has converted the former Crest Inn motel into the 46 units at Renova Flats, with its rocket in the front, and it just completed building the 245 North Arlington Luxury Apartments, with just 60 units. 

There’s also a deal in the works with the Reno Housing Authority to swap the Sarrazin Arms Apartments on Third Street for a housing development on Second Street.  

However you cut it, that’s a far cry from 2,000 units.  Lots of the former motels which were bought and destroyed for this project were a first or last resort out of homelessness for the credit underclass.  Most are dirt now or usually empty, sprawling parking lots, occasionally used for Hot August Nights, motorcycle gatherings and a few other events.  

Late in 2024, the latest cheerleading headlines in local media had Jacobs Entertainment announcing a $130 million expansion for the J Resort, the rebranded and cleaned up former Sands Regency, which Jacobs bought in 2017. These are usually just repackaged updates of previously stated goals.

This spending would be for festival grounds, over 10 acres between North Arlington and Ralston, to go with its already existing nearby Glow Plaza.  It’s promising over 40 events every summer and a sculpture by Richard Erdman. 

Other planned additions include several large banquet halls with an area dedicated to Jacobs’ own collection of costly European sports cars.

The reader combing through the numbers said it seems Jacobs is burning through money though, having paid $200,000 per unit to create the Renova by their estimation and then $300,000 per unit at 245 N Arlington.  

The reader added they will be interested to see if the new Arlington units get rented out at currently listed prices, from studios at $1,500 to two bedrooms at $2,400 with downtown still seen as unsafe, and the neighboring festival grounds, undoubtedly a bother to some.  Still, these initially listed prices are above Reno averages for similar sizes.  

According to documents found on Cbonds.com, in recent years, Jacobs Entertainment has cycled through multiple bond financing activities, with the most recent a $500 million 6.75% bond issue from 2024 due on February 15, 2029. This amounts to over $33 million in annual interest, no chump change.

This makes the reader who wished to remain anonymous feel a bankruptcy could be a possibility, unless there is major refinancing.

Lining up financial details into columns including comparisons with other casinos, they don’t see the company’s other gaming properties in Nevada and elsewhere, or its small waterfront district in Cleveland, making up for all the Neon Line spending.  

“It is unusual for such bonds to have a 5 year term as Casinos usually need more time to build cash reserves to pay them off. Other casinos issued 7 - 10 year terms. Jacobs will need to build cash to pay off the bonds, or try to refinance,” the reader wrote to us.  

According to media reports, last year, S&P Global Ratings affirmed Jacobs Entertainment's credit rating at "B" for both local currency and foreign currency long-term, while Moody's Investors Service revised its outlook on Jacobs Entertainment to negative and affirmed its credit rating at "B2" for long-term local currency.

The reader indicated that according to their tabulations Jacobs spent $100 million to buy or option more than 90 properties including the Sands Regency, while spending $300 million on the casino’s renovation.  

Since then, pricing has been going up at the J Resort, which could, according to the reader, price out the more working class customer base that used to frequent the Sands Regency.  The fancy looking J Resort website calls itself Reno’s hottest new resort, casino and hotel.  

We looked at a random room with a one king bed for a weekend in early February which came up as $110 per night. 

“I had breakfast once at the new Hanna's Table and while it was clean and the food was decent it was expensive and boring,” the reader wrote. A menu on their website has Steak and Eggs going for $26 and an omelet for $16.  

The reader said many locals who are price sensitive for rooms and food inside casinos including themselves miss the “old funky place.” 

Negative reviews on Yelp and elsewhere have been piling up in recent months such as this one from July: “I'm sure it's a nice hotel but the deceptive billing practices are unethical. The $47 special looked perfect when I got off a plane with a head cold, until I hit submit and got charged $132. I called within 3 minutes and said I wanted to reverse the charge, and was told the fees and no cancellation policy was clear "in a dropdown" - which is difficult to spot when you're busy being congratulated for getting a great rate.

I will NEVER make the mistake of booking at the J or any of its associated properties again and will not be staying there. Even the so called customer service made the aggressive pitch that they could give me a small discount or I could cancel and get nothing.”

Other recent reviews have complained about rude staff, dirty rooms, unavailable amenities, missing room essentials, broken elevators, limited dining options, noise from ongoing construction, concerns about safety, misleading promotions, errors in reservations and a lack of rewards for frequent players, among many such gripes.

Adding to all these concerns, Jacobs Entertainment was recently victimized by a cybersecurity data breach in September 2024 that compromised thousands of individuals, with an unauthorized individual gaining access to their network, social security numbers and other sensitive information.  Multiple law firms are investigating the matter, meaning a money sucking class-action lawsuit could be forthcoming.  

This is all comes as Nevada gaming had a downward slide at the end of 2024.  

“I assess that Jacobs is speculative and risk-taking and I doubt that they have the money to finish the J Resort and certainly not the rest of the properties with the cash that they have,” the reader wrote to us in their note attached to their numbers crunching. “They will need to issue more bonds or get joint venture investors and/or take the revenue from the other properties. In any case, they are highly leveraged and counting on future revenue that is uncertain.”

In earlier media reports, Jacobs hinted he wanted to create a “district” so appealing that other developers would like to build on the land he had bought.  The reader doesn’t see any partners though.

“If Jacobs fails Reno will be left with empty lots to clean up and a financial disaster due to the future tax revenue not being realized,” the reader wrote to us in one of their alarming emails in recent weeks.  

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, January 2025

Why we use the words "unhoused neighbor"

We’ve been getting repeated comments, eye roll emojis and even angry emails over our use of the word unhoused, which we’ve been using for several years now, often associated with the word neighbor, when describing a local living without stable shelter.

When we first started this hyperlocal reporting initiative, we got negative comments for using the term homeless.  For many in advocacy circles, this is a stigmatizing, demeaning word, carrying heavy baggage.

If a person we interview living on the streets uses the word homeless to describe themselves we will leave it in their own quote, but we try to no longer use it ourselves.  

One our favorite expressions is home is where the heart is.  That means everyone has a home, somewhere, wherever and whatever that may be. Someone can consider Reno their home, or the banks of the Truckee River.

On that note, people often talk of trash left behind, but think for a minute or two of how much pollution and resource wasting affluent people cause. 

Other terms we’ve come across are people living on the streets, the unsheltered, the housing deprived, people lacking shelter, people experiencing homelessness, the houseless, individuals with chronic patterns of homelessness and even the roofless.

In other countries, the wording can go in other directions for describing neighbors who are unhoused.  In France it’s often Sans Domicile Fixe, which means without a fixed address. It then becomes the acronym for that, SDF, which has a clinical, administrative, dehumanizing tone.  

In Spanish, sometimes the word mendigo or panhandlers is equated with the condition of having no stable shelter, or it can be the desamparado, the defenseless and recourseless, or even the desvalido, the destitute.

In China, terms similar to vagrants, drifters or hobos are often used.

Unless convinced otherwise, we will stick mostly to unhoused for now, which points to the devastating structural lack of accessible housing in northern Nevada. 

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, January 2025

Where is Reno Heading in 2025?

A blurry view above Reno as it begins 2025 under grey skies.

There was a recent interesting Reno subreddit post asking if Reno is sputtering of late?

There are concerns the Biggest Little City is losing some of its gritty soul, and becoming a place catering to wealthy transplants resting on their laurels rather than the working class trying to rebound, or adventurers finding a new base.

More iconic places are closing down in Midtown, while many residents can't afford anything in some of their replacements.

Many motels have been wiped out and or coded out, leaving many former downtown and 4th street residents trying to get back on their feet, scrambling even more than before.

The Jacobs Entertainment 245 North Arlington, its first housing build in a sweep of commercial kitsch, occasional playground and dusty lots, has two bedroom apartments going for $2,400.

The former Harrah's remains in decaying limbo, despite the signs from the Downtown Reno Partnership promising a better tomorrow. But for who?

UNR has its own signs of representing a booming college town, while student and parking fees go up, near campus luxury housing, but with luxury just in the price.

Many students with several jobs struggle to get any studying or homework done properly.

The recent revival of the long dormant Reno Redevelopment Agency within a more opaque, less citizen involved structure, emphasizes a district based strategy. That has all the codes of gentrification, with the Brewery District for example representing "an area of significant opportunity for increased land value given the number of vacant and underutilized properties and the ubiquitous disrepair of occupied properties," a document indicated.

Opportunity for who, and what kind of value? Those are some of the questions facing all of us in 2025 as Reno hurtles onward toward a new Reno. How would you define it?

Our Town Reno, Citizen's Forum, January 1st 2025

The Hidden Costs of Cars and Suburbanization in Reno

The greater Reno area stands at a pivotal moment, facing the consequences of decades of car-centric urban planning and the unchecked expansion of single-family homes. I urge you to take a step back and critically assess the wider implications of these trends. Research from institutions like the National Safety Council and the Federal Highway Administration shows that cars—and the infrastructure built to support them—are not only harmful to the health, vitality, and traffic flow of our city, but are also tied to a troubling history of systemic racism and inequality. 

Consider the suburban ideal, epitomized by Levittown, the first American suburb. This development wasn’t just about creating homes; it was a deliberate strategy to segregate Black people and preserve white communities. Single-family zoning—a pillar of suburban development—systematically excluded minorities from the American dream of homeownership. Meanwhile, governments like California’s used eminent domain to bulldoze vibrant, diverse communities, often displacing people of color, to pave the way for highways that prioritized cars over human connection. These policies were not accidents but deliberate choices, and we are living with the consequences today. 

In Reno, these decisions manifest in an unhealthy obsession with automobiles and sprawling single-family developments. Our city has become an inhospitable place for pedestrians and cyclists. It’s no longer safe to walk or bike in many areas of downtown Reno, as streets are dominated by speeding vehicles and an infrastructure that prioritizes parking lots over parks, highways over human-scaled neighborhoods. This car-centric culture marginalizes anyone who doesn’t drive, disproportionately affecting low-income residents and perpetuating the environmental damage caused by excessive vehicle use.

Beyond safety and accessibility, this obsession with cars has shaped Reno’s identity in unhealthy ways. We’ve built our lives around sprawling developments that isolate residents from one another, eroding the sense of community that cities thrive upon. This prioritization of single-family homes and endless roads caters to the convenience of a few while making it increasingly difficult for Renoites to envision a different way of living. 

The path forward requires a dramatic shift in how we think about urban design. We need to challenge the notion that cars are the default mode of transportation and single-family homes are the only viable form of housing. We should demand policies that prioritize walkable, bikeable neighborhoods, public transit, and diverse housing options that foster community rather than division. 

Reno deserves better than this outdated narrative of car dependency and suburban sprawl. By acknowledging the historical injustices that brought us here and confronting the ways these patterns persist, we can start to rebuild a city that prioritizes people over vehicles, connection over isolation, and equity over exclusion. Let’s not let Reno become another casualty of America’s unhealthy obsession with automobiles. It’s time to change the narrative—and the landscape—of our city. 

Reference Material 

Heanue, Kevin, “Highway Capacity and Induced Travel: Issues, Evidence and Implications,” paper for TRB, Washington, DC: US DOT/FHWA, January 1997. 

National Safety Council. (n.d.). Deaths by transportation mode - injury facts. https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/home-and-community/safety-topics/deaths-by-transportatio n-mode/ 

Yeo J, Park S, Jang K. Effects of urban sprawl and vehicle miles traveled on traffic fatalities. Traffic Inj Prev. 2015;16(4):397-403. doi: 10.1080/15389588.2014.948616. Epub 2014 Dec 23. PMID: 25133315.

Submitted by Omar in December 2024 for Our Town Reno’s Citizen’s Forum

A Call for More Community Homelessness Advisory Board Meetings, With Plenty of Questions

Amid concerns about when the next Community Homelessness Advisory Board will take place, with only one this past year, Lisa Lee, a long time local advocate for the unhoused, wrote an email to County Commissioner Mike Clark, ccing media, this morning indicating “it has become clear that the local governmental bodies are not interested in solutions--only "admiring the problems." 

The last CHAB meeting, which are open to the public, scheduled for September 9th was canceled during the Davis Fire.  

According to the county’s website, “the need around homeless issues in our region has expanded and as a result…” the CHAB “is intended to serve as the lead entity and to provide recommendations and coordination regionally regarding homelessness….The board is tasked with providing input and making recommendations on homeless issues in the region.”

Current members are chair County Commissioner Alexis Hill, City of Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson, Reno and Sparks council members and Commissioner Clark.

Clark had previously written to media and advocates asking what he should ask of “Chair Hill so she might schedule a CHAB meeting.”

The last one was held May 13th, 2024.

In her email, Lee wrote: “The shelters continue to be full, with fewer exits to housing.

Mutual aid, community care, and the faith community have continued to fill the gaps in our community.

The emergency shelter system was once collaborative with mutual aid and faith-based organizations, and we all worked together to create change in our community.

The Record Street campus graciously hosted Amber and the We Care volunteers, numerous meal-serving groups (through RISE and Dine), and many other groups of people who were invested in helping our friends and neighbors experiencing homelessness.

Since the County took over and "Housing and Homeless Services" was initiated, we have witnessed [Homeless Services Coordinator] Catrina Peters and [Housing and Homeless Services Division Director] Dana Searcy exclude (more like exile) community groups//advocates and silo these services.

Moreover, what used to be a huge network of volunteers that conducted the PIT count has been so siloed due to these processes of exclusion that, for the first time, they're not even conducting the count.

I was on the PIT planning team for years and used to coordinate a fairly large group of people who were currently or had formerly experienced homelessness in conducting the count.

We all had a good rapport with our unsheltered community and knew where the more hidden and isolated camps were. That all ended when Washoe County took over the CoC [Continuum of Care]“

The nationwide PIT count for unsheltered individuals is only mandated once every two years and the County decided to bypass it this upcoming year, as numbers of the counted unhoused rose from 2023 to 2024 despite the Cares Campus opening in 2021.  

Amid a series of questions Lee then lists for Hill, she notes there were 13 CHAB meetings in 2020 which went down to seven in 2022, and three in 2023.

Some of the questions Lee included in her email are: 

• “How many deaths have occurred on the Cares Campus since May 2021 when it opened? How many sexual assaults have occurred? What is being done about employees at the campus selling drugs to guests? Who is providing harm reduction and overdose prevention services on campus?

• Why do we not have a medical respite for people experiencing homelessness who are being discharged from hospitals ("patient dumping")?

• Would Commissioner Hill stay at Cares? Would any of the members of CHAB feel comfortable spending a week there?”

Lee goes on to say that “supporting the work being done by mutual aid groups is a far more effective strategy. This has been most recently evidenced by Lily Baran and the local churches coordinating a compassionate response during the winter months,” referring to the Good Neighbors Warming Center.

“I am so exhausted from saying this so many times to governmental representatives that I have stopped taking time off work to speak at public meetings, but I will repeat it--housing ended my homelessness,” Lee concludes. “Housing ends homelessness. When we know better, we do better. Please convene the CHAB and schedule monthly public meetings again.”  

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, Dec. 24, 2024

What is Going on at Canyon Flats? A Disturbing Photo Series

The “premier student UNR apartments boast stylish interiors and a convenient location right next to the University of Nevada, Reno,” is how the Canyon Flats at 661 University Way describe themselves.

Google reviews are less friendly with only a 3.2 rating. Not bad, but not great.

Here’s one student who lives there wrote about it recently for Our Town Reno:

“This year, feces (most likely dog poop) was left for over 24 hours in a carpet hallway of the complex. Carpets throughout the complex are constantly stained with little improvement. 

The building occasionally carries a stench, both in the lobby and the hallway areas.

A fight in the complex left blood stains on the walls (as seen above and below)

On multiple occasions, when residents gathered outside of the building during fire alarms, a resident brandished a machete, concerning other residents.

The complex boasts the amenity of a secure bike room, only accessible by a key fob. However, residents have had their bicycles stolen from the secure room. 

Canyon Flats has per unit basis housing, similar to dormitory style housing. Each occupant of an apartment occupies their own unit and is on a lease for that unit, independent from their roommates.

The apartment offers rates that start as low as $649 for a unit in a 4 bedroom x 4 bath, but after fees, this number can quickly stack up. 

Canyon Flats is known as one of the cheaper options for off-campus housing for students. But with word getting around of high rates, unmaintained living standards, and a location across from the dingy Circus Circus make it unappealing to many students, not to mention the latest wall or carpet surprise they may find on their way out or in their room.

Shared with Our Town Reno, December 2024

New Mutual Aid Group Good Neighbors Warming Center Looks for Help to Help

A photo of a woman trying to find sun to warm up this afternoon in downtown Reno, Nevada, on Dec. 16.

Here's a message from a new local mutual aid initiative called Good Neighbors Warming Center looking for help to help our neighbors in need.

“Good Neighbors Warming Center is pleased to announce the opening of a warming center in Reno. Good Neighbors Warming Center will operate from December 17, 2024 until March 11, 2024. This warming center is in collaboration with St. Thomas Aquinas Cathedral, Reno First United Methodist Church, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Lutheran Church of the Good Shepard, Reno Initiative for Shelter & Equality (R.I.S.E), and good neighbors just like you!

            The Good Neighbors Warming Center will be open to women, families, and single dads with children.  The Good Neighbors Warming center seeks to provide a warm, indoor location open overnight for people experiencing exposure to the elements that are unwilling or unable to get into a shelter. Warming centers save lives by preventing injuries and deaths from exposure to the elements. They are designed to prevent hypothermia, frostbite, and other injuries that can occur when people are living and sleeping in extremely cold or below-freezing temperatures. Though there are several shelters in our area, during the Winter months they often remain full, leaving many to try to survive outside.

            The Good Neighbors Warming Center will rotate operations at four Reno churches on a weekly schedule. The Good Neighbors Warming Center will be staffed by R.I.S.E staff trauma-informed advocates, harm reduction specialists, faith communities, and good neighbors just like you! The Good Neighbors Warming Center will operate from 9pm- 6am daily at each location. The dates and location of the Good Neighbors Warming Center as listed below:

·      Site 1: St. Thomas Aquinas Cathedral

o   Dec. 17-23, Jan. 14-20, & Feb. 11-17

·      Site 2: Reno First United Methodist Church

o   Dec. 24-30, Jan. 21-27, & Feb. 18-24

·      Site 3: Trinity Episcopal Cathedral

o   Dec. 31-Jan. 6, Jan. 28-Feb. 3, & Feb. 25-Mar. 3

·      Site 4: Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd

o   Jan. 7-13, Feb. 4-10, & Mar. 4-10

*This schedule is subject to change.

            Those interested in providing physical donations such as menstural hygiene products, yoga mats, blankets, etc or those interested in getting involved should email: goodneighborsreno@gmail.com.”

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, December 16 2024

Greedy Landlords, FPI Management and Mobile Home Parks Remain Under Local Social Media Microscope

A recent Reno subreddit post which got over 239 up arrows and nearly 300 comments was called “It's time to fight back against rent prices and all the ridiculous add ons.”

“I’m no longer entertaining rentals which require fees, deposits etc. This includes pet fees, background check fees, credit score fees, application fees, processing fees, membership fees, HOA fees, holding fees,” the poster davanzomichael wrote.

“All anyone should have to pay for is the rent. And it should be affordable. Stop expecting renters to pay off your mortgage or help you immediately make your investment back.”

In the comments, bromego710 wrote “some of these places are just scams, too. I forget where I saw it, but basically, they had apartments listed for like $1500/month, but we're changing $25 for an application fee. so they would get 100+ applications every month, so they were making $2500+ buy keeping it empty and just continuing to let people ‘apply’”

Theghostofamagpie chimed in “to extend this conversation to Mobile Home parks, as someone living in one, (the nicest one in Reno called The Riverwalk) our space rent is inching up to around actual apartment rental pricing, at around $800 for just the space, most people are also adding in an extra mobile home rent cost/mortgage of $1000 ($1,800 total) or more. These parks are supposed to be the last bastion of affordable housing. Not only are space rents going up, but we are in a particular position of NEVER feeling secure in our housing even if we own our homes because we can be kicked out for lot rent, or private equity firms are buying these lots to raise rent as much as possible.”

Other recent social media posts have zeroed in on FPI Management, such as a Reno_Sparks subreddit entry called “FPI Management’s Unacceptable Treatment of Tenants – Enough is Enough.”

It describes a leak from a bathtub, which kept worsening, and which after more than eight months, resulted in a maintenance worker deciding to put thick tape to cover the crack as a sufficient solution.

“Enough is enough. We deserve better as tenants. If this company expects us to uphold our end of the lease, they should do the same,” the post by Previous-Spare6986 concluded.

Another Reno subreddit post from a few weeks ago titled “Stuck on the 5th floor” was accompanied by a photo of an enormous hole in an apartment front door. 

“I am a 72 yr old disabled (amputee) woman,” sactokat wrote. “For 3+ years I have lived at Vintage at Citi Vista, managed by FPI management. I live on the 5th floor. November 1st I gave my 30 day notice to move. On Sunday November 17, my neighbor texted me while I was at work that the Fire Department had kicked in my front door. I left work and took a cab home to discover that my a sprinkler had malfunctioned and water was soaking my 2nd bedroom. The end result was huge holes in the ceiling, insulation on all my belongings and boxes soaked that I had already packed for the move. The next day it happened again. This put a halt to my packing and I couldn’t enter the room because of huge fans that were left to dry it out. I was panicked because I had hired movers for November 26. I have no family or friends to help me, recently diagnosed with leukemia, it all seemed insurmountable. I thought it couldn’t get any worse but it did… 2 days later the elevators (2) in our building stopped working. They come on occasionally but not for long…”

“Ahhhh good old FPI management,” No-Emphasis7309 commented. “Crappy company all around. My apartment complex was just taken over by them and it has been nothing but problems…. I hate FPI and unfortunately they manage most income based apartments and rip them all off. Get in for a low rate and the[n] raise it after a year to crazy amounts.”

We have repeatedly contacted the Folsom-based company which coordinates residential property management services in over 20 states, but have not heard back.

Their management has come under scrutiny here repeatedly, by both media and officials, most recently for subpar conditions at the Vintage at the Crossings for residents 55 and over.

Reno City Housing Manager Cori Fisher and Reno staff even held meetings with FPI Management representatives to go over complaints there, from clogged vents to broken door knobs and trash buildup.  

With efforts for decent and sufficient housing affordability coming up short here and elsewhere, there was an Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez led attempt before the election for a massive social housing bill, the establishment of a new HUD division and a repeal of the Faircloth Amendment. The amendment which was a provision of the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 has since limited the number of public housing units that federal authorities can build.

According to the Housing Wire website, “the bill would have also given local communities more power to finance real estate acquisitions or convey property to existing public housing authorities or ‘mission-driven nonprofits, tenant- or resident-owned cooperatives, state or local governments, and community land trusts.’”

As Democratic candidate Kamala Harris tacked to the center in her campaign efforts, and former Republican President Donald Trump defeated her, any AOC type idea on a federal push for affordable housing seems like a pipe dream. The Trump team has echoed Reno’s Mayor Hillary Schieve in saying looser regulations on housing construction should be tried.

Maybe Nevada’s legislature can get to work in that direction and others, but with Governor Joe Lombardo’s veto tendencies, it seems anything sweeping and transformational will yet again go by the wayside. 

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, December 2024

Checking In on Unhoused Neighbors Surviving Colder Weather along the Truckee River

As the weather turns chillier, especially at nights, I recently set out with my partner Niki to see if anyone from the unhoused community would like to share their story, to learn more about their challenges.

Living in Reno’s downtown, we encounter unhoused neighbors often, and as winter approaches the conditions for them get brutal.

According to the Washoe County Coroner’s Office, nine people died of hypothermia in 2023. Environmental exposure continues to be one of the main challenges for the unhoused, but many of their ordeals go unnoticed.

With us, we brought some gift cards for pizza and hand warmers to share with people, regardless of if they wanted to be interviewed. With many unhoused camping along the Truckee, we started down the Riverwalk path, where we would find our first interviewee Joe.

Wrapped in a large coat and beanie, Joe stood on the corner with a cane and had asked us for change. We gave him what we had, and asked if he wanted to be interviewed and emphasized there was no pressure. He agreed, though in a soft voice.

Joe told us he’s had a very rough month. He said he’s been waiting for his trust fund to come through, and in the meanwhile has found out his “wife and kids are fake”. He also said he was an army veteran. Though the cold was bothering him, he said his biggest need at the moment was more cash. He seemed reluctant to go into greater details, so we didn’t press him on his statements. We thanked Joe for sharing, and for his service, and carried on.

Next, we met a woman sitting on the grass wrapped in blankets in the middle of Wingfield Park. Looking clearly distraught, Niki asked if she was okay.

The woman shared that she’s not usually on the streets, but was a victim of domestic violence and had run away from her husband. She broke down in tears and asked us for something warm.

We gave her the hand warmers, but she asked if we could get her something else like coffee or tea. We went to a nearby café and brought her a coffee. In our absence, a Reno downtown ambassador had walked over to her, and was walking away by the time we arrived. She shared with us the ambassador told her that she can get temporary housing by calling a hotline, and had given her the number.

We then walked to the Believe sign in the heart of downtown Reno. There, we found another woman who was also bundled in blankets. We asked if she’d like to share her story. At first she said yes and started to speak normally. She then began talking about a number of random topics, saying she was speaking to angels and warning us of demons. It was clear she was not in a state to be interviewed, so we gave her what we still had to give out, thanked her, and moved on.

At the Believe plaza, we had hoped to encounter the larger group that typically congregates there. However, it was barren.

After having a few more people on the river tell us they didn’t want to be recorded or interviewed, we called it a day. This type of reporting is very heavy, and you only want to interview people who are in the right mindset, condition, can give you meaningful, sober consent, and of course are willing to share their story.

Everyone’s story is important, and those of unhoused neighbors often go unheard, creating a missing link for a community which needs dire help.

Our Town Reno Citizen’s Forum by Dan Mariani, December 2024

Reader Warns of “Wildly Inaccurate” Gunshot Detection Being Paid For in Reno

A reader is pointing out to us that Reno is extremely misguided in spending money on the FLOCK Raven gunshot detection system, which will be used starting next year to alert police of gunshots fired within the downtown area.

Reno Police Chief Kathryn Nance has been quoted as saying the system has a 90% accuracy of giving a 90-foot radius of where a gun was fired within 60 seconds.  

In New York City, a similar gunshot-detection system designed by ShotSpotter to identify and locate gunfire in real time has been reported by the public defense office, the Brooklyn Defender Services, to have confirmed incidents of gunfire just 16% of the time over the past nine years of it being in use.

This means that according to that report more than 80% of deployments prompted by this technology in New York City over nearly a decade yielded no evidence of gunfire.  

Out of all the alerts received, the report indicated, just 0.9% led to the recovery of a firearm, and only 0.7% led to an arrest.

The report also says that by targeting certain neighborhoods this type of system leads to discrimination against particular groups, which in downtown Reno could be the unhoused. This comes as more officers are being deployed to City Plaza, where some unhoused neighbors like to congregate during the day.

The City of Reno is also paying FLOCK to set up 40 high-resolution camera systems with license plate readers, reportedly to be able to track down if any cars are fleeing downtown related to a shooting. 

The cost has been reported to be $450,000 over three years, with remaining American Rescue Plan Act funds being used.  

The reader wrote to us today: “Reno is uninformed and years behind the game. The money can be better spent.” Do you agree? 

Our Town Reno reporting, Dec. 6 2024

What do you think of the County Paying Zencity and Using its Products?

Recent County communications alluded to Washoe County using Zencity products to gage the community’s mood in terms of our libraries, following the ballot box defeat of WC-1 which would have extended automatically directing a portion of property taxes to their budget.

This made us wonder how much the County pays for Zencity services and why it’s been using their products.

The company founded in the mid 2010s by a former urban planner has headquarters in New York City and Tel Aviv, a hub for cyber surveillance companies.

Zencity provides social data mining tools to local governments, mostly summarizing and creating data visualization from public social media posts.  

It creates dashboards with for example the percentage of positive and negative sentiments on such and such a topic.  

In an email response, the Media and Communications Manager Bethany Drysdale wrote back to Our Town Reno indicating the county currently has a $71,000 per year contract with Zencity, with a partnership dating back to 2021.

“The contract includes both the monitoring of community sentiment broken down by district or by topic, regular insight reports on hot topics from the Zencity analysts, and a survey platform. While the contract is housed within the Manager’s Office, the platform is used to inform engagement across the county’s 24 departments. It is also available to county commissioners who want to use the tool to better connect with their constituents,” Drysdale explained. 

She said the county receives weekly reports for each of the county’s five districts, as well as reports on specific topics, such as one she included as an attachment about the horse zoning topic.  

Drysdale also included the results of what was called a Langue Access Plan Community survey, conducted from January to July with over three-thousand participants  “to find out exactly what the needs of the community are and how the community needs/wants to connect with us in other languages.”

There have been concerns from some county commissioners elsewhere in the country that the reports obtained through data mining can feel like modern day government eavesdropping and an invasion of people’s social media, even if publicly posted, or that Zencity reports favor the views of more vocal constituents with more time spent online writing, to the detriment of others.  

Many questions remain, so before we delve deeper ourselves, we were wondering what yours might be concerning our county’s use of Zencity products?  

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, December 2024

Why I Love Sticker Day at a Local Dutch Bros

What is your go to local promotion?

For Auna VillaReeves, it’s the first Wednesday of every month when Dutch Bros has its Sticker Day.

Read why below:

“I look forward to each sticker day and there is almost nothing that would stop me from going to Dutch Bros just to get one. I will plan my whole day around getting that sticker. I don’t even put the stickers on anything. I just love collecting them. I love all of the different designs that they come up with and I think that they are always cute. It also gives me a great excuse to spend money on getting a drink as well.

With every drink ordered, you receive one sticker to go with it as long as supplies last and the designs of the stickers are always different. Getting these stickers is one of my favorite things to do and no matter what I have going on that day, I make sure to take the time to go to Dutch Bros and get a sticker. 

On November 6, 2024, there were a numerous amount of people waiting in line to get not just a drink, but a sticker as well. A lot of them are like me and simply like to collect each sticker, but other people love to stick them to things like their water bottles, laptops, and cars.

Dutch Bros first opened in Oregon in 1992 and in 2000 the first franchise opened and began to spread to many locations across the country. They make many different drinks including freezes, smoothies, tea, and rebels along with regular coffee and there truly is something there for everyone.

In my opinion, the best drink to get is an iced rebel. It gives me that boost of caffeine I need and they have so many different flavors to pick from that I don’t think you can go wrong with ordering one. I go to Dutch Bros at least once a week as it is for one of these drinks. Getting a sticker at the beginning of each month is just a much appreciated bonus that never fails to improve my mood.

I look forward to those stickers and have at least thirty of them at this point as I’ve been collecting them for a while now and I will continue to do so for as long as Dutch Bros hands them out. I consider it to be a hobby of mine at this point and I will even drag friends with me to get those stickers and they look forward to it just as much as I do.

They also have their own charities that they donate money to. These charities include Dutch Luv, Drink One for Dane, and Buck for Kids. They are dedicated to helping others and personally, that is a corporation I am happy and proud to support.

Dutch will often have surprise sticker days each month as well, especially around the holidays. They don’t typically announce these stickers until the day they hand them out but I make sure to adjust my day so that I can get those stickers as well.”

Our Town Reno Citizen’s Forum Contribution, Dec. 4, 2024

A Final Fundraising Push for Our Town Reno on Giving Tuesday

Here, we like to break news when we can, as we believe it's important to bring awareness where you get your information.

That's why we put effort in our Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Threads, Reddit and BlueSky channels.

In that spirit it’s #givingtuesday tmrw so in case you are feeling generous for our hyperlocal, #humansofreno promotional, and reader based alert news initiative, we wanted to let you know of our tax deductible campaign where we have two days left via mightycause.com/story/ourtownreno in our hopes of reaching our $2,000 fundraising goal.

You can also find the link via the Donate page of the ourtownreno website.

Money raised goes towards our website’s upkeep and design, paying for the production and printing of our yearly zine, sending stipends to volunteer designers and street reporters and if we get enough, contracting a few local musicians to score our in progress documentary film work about local food justice programs.

You can also contribute via the ourtownreno Venmo. Even just $10 helps!

If it's not your thing to donate to such a project, we totally get it, as we know money is tight.

Thank you for all your follows, comments, photos, videos and alerts.

Our Town Reno, Dec. 2, 2024

An Evolving Relationship: Discovering Flaws while Still Being Thankful for Reno

Reno, Nevada, has always been a constant in my life. I remember Reno feeling so big as a child. I would look out into the city from the car window on I-580 and be shocked by its size. In all fairness, it was far bigger than my hometown of Manteca, California.

The casinos of GSR and Atlantis standing lonesome against the sky enthralled me. I even remember Downtown Reno feeling massive compared to any other place I had experienced. It felt like there was such a variety of things to do and places to eat in the city.

My grandparents moved to Susanville, California, in the early 2000s. I’ve always had a close relationship with them, always visiting them multiple times a year. Living in Central California for most of my life meant we’d cross through Reno to make it to Susanville.

Seeing the city after swaths of green and never-ending winding mountain roads, was like finding an oasis in the desert.

Stopping in Reno always felt like the main event of that long car ride. Whether that was grabbing food at my family’s favorite restaurant in town, El Paisano, or playing in the GSR arcade while my parents gambled. Reno felt so different and interesting compared to anywhere else I had experienced as a kid.

I think I’ve eaten at El Paisano more than any other restaurant in my life, specifically their location near Costco. My family would often stop here before we drove to Susanville. My Susanville family often eats here when they come to Reno for groceries.

Even though I was staying in Susanville once I arrived at my grandparents, taking the hour and ten-minute drive to Reno with them felt so exciting. Going into Reno to get groceries at Costco or Sam’s Club with my grandparents was always a highlight of my stay there. Perhaps it was the contrast between the small-town American values of my grandparents’ Northern California country life versus The Biggest Little City.

As a child, that title Reno holds proudly baffled me. I would think back then, “How could this place be little? It feels so much bigger than anywhere else I’ve seen.” My aunt would then explain that Reno was no larger than many of the smaller cities back home. I never fully understood what she was saying and Reno still felt larger than life.

It’s funny how my perception of Reno somehow stayed the same, even as I grew older and visited more places. While I started to understand Reno’s small population size in such a secluded area, the city didn’t stop fascinating me. There was something special about Reno.

When I moved here in August of 2022, I think that’s when I truly started to understand Reno as a city. I realized you could get to most places in the city within a 15-minute drive. I would buy groceries at Winco or one of the countless Walmarts. I would feel closer to my grandparents than ever by only being a short hour and 10-minute drive from them.

Little by little, with each mundane activity, I would feel closer to the city through its simplicity. Most importantly, I slowly discovered the community Reno has.

Each month I lived here, it slowly felt like everyone knew everyone. Small business and restaurant owners carried a sense of pride in their establishment being here. It almost felt like people I spoke to who lived here, especially for a long time, truly loved living here. They were genuinely happy to be in Reno.

That strong sense of community Reno shares is still what I admire most about this city. I’m grateful I’ve been able to experience a sliver of that, even as a California college transplant.

The buffet at Atlantis was one of my last dining-out meals before the Covid-19 lockdowns. I remember eating there with my grandparents just days before the world stopped. It was also one of the first meals at a restaurant after Covid-19 restrictions loosened up.

During that time of slowly falling in love with Reno, a part of me also began to see its flaws. While Reno’s size was incredibly convenient for getting around and created a small-knit community, it also created many downfalls. There was a lack of diversity I started to miss, especially coming from the melting pot of California. I started to miss the many ethnic food offerings I simply couldn’t find in Reno, especially certain Asian foods. This flaw is made clear by looking at the city’s racial demographics.

The apparent lack of things to do in the city began to take its toll on me. In the first few months, it felt like I had already done every activity any travel website or person recommended. The beauty and outdoor appeal of Reno are great, but the main critique I’ve always felt is that it feels so singular. The argument could be made that Reno is only designed for outdoor lovers but in my opinion, cities should have something available for everyone. Skiing or snowboarding nearby seemed to be everyone’s favorite pastime but I always thought, “If I’m not a snow sports person, what is there to do here?”

My frustrations with Reno came to a head when I started visiting Las Vegas because of a change to long distance in a personal romantic relationship. Reno and Vegas couldn’t feel more distant from each other, literally and figuratively. For me, Reno is defined by its harsh, cold, and bitter winters. On the other hand, Vegas is defined by its dry, hot, and extreme summers. The two most populous Nevada cities could not feel more different from each other.

I spent a lot of winter breaks and three-day weekends at GSR growing up. My siblings and I would bowl and play at the arcade while my parents gambled.

I had been to Vegas a few times as a kid but only experienced it from the tourist’s perspective, spending our family vacations mostly on The Strip. I’d say I hadn’t truly experienced Las Vegas as a city until I started visiting it frequently in January.

The more and more I experienced Las Vegas, it answered all my concerns about Reno. The size of Vegas compared to Reno was staggering, but it still felt calmer and less congested compared to California cities. The city offered so much more.

The sheer amount of different and fantastic Asian food offerings in Vegas astounded me. Vegas’s Chinatown made me wish Reno had something even remotely similar. It felt like there were endless things to do in Vegas. While Vegas also offered its own version of outdoor appeal, it didn’t define the city and seemed like anyone could live there.

With my love for Vegas growing, there was still a warmth I felt each time I saw The Row from my uncomfortable Spirit Airlines seat. It sounds incredibly cheesy, but Reno still felt like home, no matter how much room I saw for improvements in the city.

It’s been hard to gather my thoughts and feelings about Reno as I plan on graduating next semester and moving to Vegas after. As I near the end of my time here, Reno will always hold a special place in my heart.

I’m glad Reno’s sense of community bleeds into the rest of the state. There are a lot of preconceived notions about Nevada; I don’t think people mention or realize the community we share here enough. We’re a small but proud state. I’m fortunate that spirit will still be waiting for me in Vegas.

For all of Reno’s pitfalls, I think its uniqueness and community are why people love it here. I’m thankful I’ve been able to experience that sense of belonging, and I’ll deeply miss it when I leave.

Our Town Reno Citizen’s Forum by Elijah E Dulay

A Slackliner's Thankfulness for Reno

In this Citizen’s Forum entry, Sara Peck, @saradub42 on Instagram, a slackliner and skier. shares her love for outdoor adventures just waiting for us all around us in northern Nevada.  

“Many think of Reno as an easy place for a late night, the casinos and seemingly endless dive bars contribute to giving Reno a 24 hour town reputation, a place of indulgence. In the juxtaposition of the casino lights with the elegant mountain peaks, I like to think of them as two very different backdrops to indulge- to be at either a casino floor or a mountain peak is a sign of great privilege- one that many a Renoite has grown to love.  Diversity and beauty are one of the many reasons I love Reno. This story will talk about what it is like to indulge in the mountains, a certain outdoor hedonism so to speak, and why Reno is one of the best places in the world to sample all the Sierra has to offer.

The start time is 4:00 a.m., but we have a lot of ground to cover. We leave Reno before the sun is up, watching the sun start to illuminate the sky as we switch from pavement to dirt roads. The Sierra air is crisp for an October morning, but summer is still holding on and we plan for a warm afternoon. After triple checking our maps to ensure that the left turn really is in fact, a left turn, we finally make it to the parking area.

By 7:00 a.m., we start going down the switchbacks that seem to almost tip us off the mountain in the first mile. We admire the endless manzanita and looming sugar pines that accompany us on our journey. After an hour of hiking that our knees are certainly feeling, we make it down to the more technical part of the trail. It is washed out, and we must use the ropes left there to lower ourselves down the trail- with 40 pound hiking packs on. After some hesitation, maybe it is the early morning jitters, we make it down the wash out- arms pumped but happy to be over the rope section.

The excitement starts to grow as the sun hits the tops of the pines and we can start to hear the river and its raging waterfall below. We pick up the pace as summit fever starts to hit (maybe it is canyon fever now that we are 2000 feet below the parking spot?).  As we turn the last bend in the trail, we see it. There it is. The most pristine turquoise water flows over and cascades into a series of 60-100 foot waterfalls. A natural wonder. A gift from god. A place to test your limits. It means many things to different people but doesn’t lose its glory in the translation.  

We get out our slackline gear, promptly find placements for the anchors, and string up a short wiggly bridge. This is our indulgence. With nervous excitement, I stand up, over the freezing cold Sierra snowmelt and remind myself that this is pure indulgence, a luxury granted largely because of the accessibility and beauty of Reno, NV.”

Citizen’s Forum Contribution by Sara Peck

Organizers of Balloon Race Say Event Under Threat Due to Park's New Master Plan

Organizers of the 43-year running early September Great Reno Balloon Race are expressing concerns on a new Washoe County Master Plan for Rancho San Rafael Regional Park "which overlooks the needs of the GRBR event and its ability to safely host the annual event.”

A change.org petition which can be found with the title Petition to Protect The Great Reno Balloon Race already has over 2,000 signatures.

In a message forwarded to Our Town Reno, a statement on the @renoballoon Instagram page indicates that “despite GRBR’s repeated attempts to have its concerns addressed during the planning process, we are concerned our needs have not been adequately addressed. Reno has already lost iconic events like the Reno Air Races in recent years and, without public input, we might risk losing yet another hallmark event that boosts our local economy and brings families together for one of the few remaining free, community-centered celebrations. Please take a moment to review our statement and take some time to share your thoughts with the Washoe County Commissioners.”

According to the petition, the Master Plan would reduce public access and event space, would fail to maintain safe and adequate parking, and would lead to increased safety risks for pilots.

It concludes: “Despite GRBR’s repeated attempts to have its concerns addressed during the WC’s planning process, GRBR’s needs have not been adequately addressed. Currently, there is no alternative location for the GRBR event in Washoe County that replicates San Rafael Park’s unique conditions for a free hot air balloon event.”

Our Town Reno reporting, November 2024

Local Runner: "Beautiful Aesthetics But a Bad Overall Design of The Truckee River Trail"

Along the banks of the Truckee River sits the Truckee River Trail, which is a part of the Tahoe Pyramid Trail that starts from Lake Tahoe and ends at Pyramid Lake. The trail is full of runners, as it’s extremely helpful in preparing for both 5k races and longer events such as half marathons, while simultaneously having a great view of the Truckee River. However, several problems with the design of the trail lurk underneath. 

I’m one of the runners along the trail. During my time in college, I’ve taken up running not only as a hobby, but as a stress reliever that allows me to leave behind the hectic life I live on campus. I always run on one section of the trail, which starts at Mayberry Park and ends at the start of downtown Reno. 

Last year, in my sophomore year of college, I would usually get up at around 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning and drive over to the route. I would put on my On Cloud running shoes, holding my phone instead of using a running watch, trying to break my record for amount for miles in one session. I would do this three to four times a week and usually ran upwards of 20-25 miles per week. 

For me, the best aspects of the trail have always been its quietness and view of nature. While there are runners and people walking their pets, the trail still manages to be quiet and allows runners to focus on their training. 

Tthe views of nature may be the most appealing aspect. Hearing the roars of the Truckee Rivers as you’re passing by is one of the best feelings. Complementing the river is the vegetation surrounding it, especially in autumn, as runners are able to observe the red, orange, and yellow trees, which are a staple of Reno this time of year. 

I give lots of credit to these two aspects of the trail. Since I discovered it last year, it’s truly acted as an escape for me, allowing me to temporarily focus on looking at the scenery around me and trying to run for as long as possible. 

Conversely, I’ve had my negative experiences with the trail, especially with the signs. The emergency sign behind Mayberry Park was my first confusing experience. In particular, the sign discourages people from going any further along the trail westward, despite the fact it’s the only way to continue. Therefore, when I first started to run on the trail, I had to turn around after about a minute of running. 

To compound with that, I also believe there’s a lack of sign placements in between the section of the trail between Dorokstar and Crissie Caughlin park. During that section, there’s almost a mile with no signs, leaving runners unsure of where to go. When a sign does show up, there’s only one present at the bike lane, which is on the other side of the road, meaning that there’s no guide for pedestrians walking or runners. This aspect of the trail makes it extremely confusing, as one can easily get lost. 

Discarding the signs, I’ve also had a few problems with the design of the trail, which mainly concerns how unfriendly the trail is for runners. This problem is highlighted on a road next to Crissie Caughlin Park, where runners are directed to. 

Even though runners are directed here, the road is actually meant for cars. There’s also no bike or pedestrian lane, which means that runners have to run on an open road, which runs the risk of a car not paying attention.

This section is my least favorite part of the trail, as it’s not only unfriendly to runners, but there’s very little view of the Truckee River and instead you’re looking at houses. 

A little after this section, there’s another road present within the trail, which is situated in front of the Riverfront Condos. While I like the view present on the road, as it’s located right next to the Truckee River, a bump in the trail makes it easier for runners to suffer injuries if they take a wrong step. 

A bridge at the start of downtown Reno on Arlington Avenue. I always stop running at this section of the trail and turn around back toward Mayberry. 

I always make sure to stop at Arlington Avenue when running on the trail. Personally, I feel unsafe if I run any further. The problem doesn’t just involve downtown Reno, but it more has to do with the problem that I have with most American cities, which is that I don’t feel like they’re designed with pedestrians in mind. 

In particular, I feel like roads are designed with the prioritizing of cars, which makes these same roads more unsafe for pedestrians, hence why I always choose to turn around once I hit downtown Reno, as there’s more traffic in that area. 

If roads in Reno were designed with more thinking for pedestrians, then I most likely would run longer on the trail. I think the section of the trail covering Idlewild Park shows a perfect example of what that could be like. 

Giving pedestrians and runners their own clear places to do activities, with a shield from cars and other traffic is the best way forward and is more safe for both parties.

Despite all of these problems I have with the trail, I’m always going to be grateful for the relief it has granted me and will be running there in the future, albeit cautiously. 

Citizen’s Forum Contribution by Cameron Perkins

Jennifer Flynn, Recently Unhoused and Now a Librarian, Speaking up for Local Libraries

Of the many comments today to help local libraries after WC1 failed in the most recent election cycle, sunsetting the 1994 direct allocation of some property tax revenue, Jennifer Flynn’s stood out.

Flynn, a current library assistant at the downtown library, who was briefly unhoused coming out of the pandemic, living in a vehicle, was one of the commenters asking elected County Commissioners to prioritize the library in their upcoming budget decisions. 

The library already has an existing $12 million budget but previously relied on the extra, no longer automatic, now expiring $4.5 million or so it got for extra staff, its new book budget and its technology needs.

Here below are Flynn’s comments from earlier today:

“My name is Jennifer Flynn, and I'm a librarian at the Downtown Reno Library. When I got out of high school, I was deciding what I wanted to do with my career.

I told myself my number one goal was to help my community. I started with prelaw, realized I'd be a terrible lawyer. Then went to psychology, realized I'd be a terrible psychiatrist, and then landed on English with the intent to either become a teacher or a writer. The pandemic happened in 2020, and I was unable to continue my bachelor's degree. But I knew I still wanted to help people in any way I could.

I had volunteered at libraries when I was a teen when I lived in Virginia, and I … loved literature, so I set my sights on becoming a librarian. But there was so much more to libraries than literature. In 2022, there was a brief period of time where I was unhoused. I had nowhere to go. I had no job.

I was sleeping in my car or surfing on people's couches. And at that time, I still loved libraries, but I hadn't visited any of my local libraries. And if I had known the resources that they had, granted, would I [have] been housed right away? Probably not, but I would have [had] the resources I needed to get somewhere. 

We have community court on Wednesday mornings, that's available. There are lawyers that are there to help people with their disputes. We have the food bank that comes in. They provide food stamps. We have Diane, who is very popular. She hands out free phones for people. 

We have book [a] librarian. You can sit with a librarian for an hour. We can help you with your job applications, your resumes, all that sort of stuff. If I had known about these resources, I might not have been living in my car for a couple of months.

I probably would have found a place or at least the resources to start. And I could have enjoyed even the fun things about the library. We have all sorts of crafts, book clubs. We recently did a teen escape room that was a huge hit. And I would have had a place to be, and I could be there 100% for free.

There are so few spaces nowadays that you can just walk into, and you will not be judged, when you do not have to pay. 

We are here for every single member of our community whether you agree with what library stand for or not. And so I believe in our libraries with [my] heart and soul. Even if I lose my job, even if I'm no longer a librarian, I will continue to stand for what we fight for. Thank you for your time.”

Our Town Reno, Citizen’s Forum, Nov. 19, 2024

Toucan Charlie's at the Atlantis Declines Comment on Complaint from Angry Guest with Disability

I am a disabled US Navy veteran and on Veterans day - Nov 11th I attended the free meal honoring veterans at Toucan Charlie’s at the Atlantis. 

I went there with my elderly parents, and specifically my dad who is disabled with severe arthritis of his hip and knee. He walks with a walker or a cane.

Upon arrival, I was not surprised to see a huge line that was wrapping around half way through the restaurant. 

We have attended this restaurant before and previously, to the benefit of my dad, they had a handicapped/ADA dedicated lane to be seated.

This particular day however there was no visible signage showing that.  I patiently went up to one of the cashiers and asked if there was a handicapped lane/entrance, to which she instructed me to ask the gentleman wearing a suit at the entrance. As instructed, I walked back to where she pointed and started looking for anyone wearing a suit who maybe looked like they were working.  

I looked around for a while and realized who the person was (he was wearing a suit but had no employee name tag, everyone else was wearing a name tag). 

I politely told him that I was instructed to see him regarding where the ADA entrance line was.  He was polite at first but was very condescending and replied we don't have a dedicated handicapped line.

I pointed out my dad to him. My dad was standing patiently next to some gaming machines so he could sit down at them, because he can't stand for long.

I pointed out my dad with a cane in his hand and explained that he is handicapped and asked again where the handicapped line was per ADA rules. 

The man started getting very argumentative and condescendingly saying "hey you can go through here" (when we were in an area marked as the “higher tier like diamond status or something")  and sarcastically said that sure you can cut in front of all these people who have been waiting in the long line. 

I picked up on his sarcasm and said do you know what ADA is? He replied yes but the restaurant doesn't have to abide by that.

I did argue with him that how is it possible that the restaurant doesn't have to abide by that when all the ramps in the casino and handicap parking outside are because of ADA rules.

At this point another older lady came up to us asking the same question if there is a handicap line for her husband to be in. I told her in front of the man without a name tag that I was dealing with the same issue with this gentleman.

He proceeded to tell us again that there are other handicap people waiting in the regular line to which both the lady and I started arguing with him telling him how wrong that is and doesn't show like they care.

At this point the lady asked for his supervisor and said that we need to talk to them since the conversation was going nowhere. She was getting very upset at this point and siding with me about the issue. Mind you by this point I already asked him for the same and his name. 

He finally gave us his name only as "Chira.”

Chira got on his phone and was talking to someone which I presumed was his higher up telling on the phone to come there quickly as there is a problem. 

Within a few more minutes of arguing with us another gentleman came and both the lady and I told him of the issue. The gentleman was very nice and said that Chira is right that we don't have any policies to abide by for ADA but not to worry that he will get us seated right away.

Again I politely asked him how it is possible that they don't follow ADA and he said we just don't. I want to emphasize that this gentleman was very nice and polite and caring with us.

I asked for his name and he had a name tag on and he introduced himself as Ashram Bayatti which I also verified from his name tag.  Right away Ashram called over another manager and told her that to priority seat us because of handicapped individuals in our parties. This lady was very polite and caring also and I asked her name and verified on her name tag and it was Cynthia Navarro. 

Cynthia took over and got myself and my parents seated and then the other lady and her husband. I was happy with Ashram and Cynthia's wonderful customer service to us, showing that they cared. As for the original gentleman with no name tag "Chira", I was very upset and disappointed with how combative and argumentative he got with us. 

After our meal when I was walking out, it did seem to me that they did have a different line for the handicapped but I'm not 100% sure if that was the case. 

I was and still am upset about this experience even when I type up this story. I just want ADA advocates in our lovely city to look into this and get a statement from Toucan Charlie’s or the Atlantis on the record regarding the rights of handicapped.

(Note: Our Town Reno contacted Toucan Charlie’s, and a manager there said he had no comment when told about this experience.)

I in no means wanted to jump in front of everyone in line, I just wanted to be in the line where the handicap individuals were being assisted, only to find out there was nothing like that when I arrived.  My heart breaks for all the poor people in the long line that only if they knew their rights could've asked for the same courtesy.  Also for the staff to have education about ADA and the compassion to have monitored the line better and assist the visibly handicapped people.

Thank you again for reading my story.

I did a quick search and found this regarding ADA and restaurants:

ADA restaurant requirements include:

1. Communication: Ensure equal access for individuals with disabilities.

2. Parking Accessibility: Design and maintain parking lots for accessibility.

3. Entrance Ramps: Provide ramps for wheelchair access.

4. Accessible Doorways: Ensure doorways are accessible.

5. Dining Room Seating: Accommodate people with disabilities.

6. Accessible Restrooms: Provide accessible restrooms.

Additionally, under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), restaurants are prohibited from discriminating against individuals with disabilities.

Our Town Reno Citizen’s Forum, November 2024