April to end of June contribution and expense reports are in and incumbents running to stay on the Reno City Council, all three of them initially selected to the body as replacements, are being showered with casino cash from Alex Meruelo, the Cuban-American businessman who owns both the Grand Sierra Resort and the Las Vegas-based Sahara, giving $15,000 to each of them.
Frank Perez who squeaked by in second place for the Reno City Council Ward 1 runoff received over $17,000 in the April to June period, including $1,000 from charter school pushing Academica Nevada, and $2,500 from Robert Goldberg and $2,000 from Kenneth Duda.
His November opponent, already a council member following a replacement selection, Kathleen Taylor raked in over $52,000, including $10,000 from Sahara Las Vegas, $5,000 from Grand Sierra Resort, $5,000 from Hamilton Properties, $3,000 from Western NV Supply, $2,500 from Winter Street LLC, $2,5000 from Keystone MF LLC, and $1,000 from outgoing Republican Nevada Senate Minority Leader Heidi Gansert.
In the Ward 5 race, initially selected at-large council member Devon Reese received nearly $38,000, including $5,000 from GSR Holdings, $10,000 from Sahara, $1,000 from Friends of Steve Sisolak, $1,500 from the Reno Fire Fighters Association and $1,000 from the Reno Police Protective Association. His opponent Brian Cassidy received nearly $6,000 including $1,000 from Answerwest and multiple individual donations.
In the Ward 3 race, the also initially selected Miguel Martinez received nearly $58,000, including $10,000 from Sahara, $5,000 from GSR Holdings, $5,000 from Western Nevada Supply Co, $1,500 from Lewis Roca, $1,000 from Friends of Alexis Hill, and other large donations from realtors and developers.
His opponent, Denise Myer, received just $1,300, from four individual donors, including $600 from Peter Neumann.
