Midweek Brief: Thursday & Friday events
Today's meeting of the Financial Advisory Board, tonight's Community Forum with Councilmember Ebert, and my history talk tomorrow at the Nevada Museum of Art
Just a quick Brief today with news of some events occurring today and tomorrow.
THIS AFTERNOON, Thursday, May 15 at 3:30pm: City of Reno Financial Advisory Board meeting
As I mentioned in my last Brief, the Financial Advisory Board meets today (Thurs., May 15) at City Hall at 3:30pm. To watch/participate online, you can register here.
The agenda includes a financial report and budget update on Fiscal Year 2025 to date; discussion of the city’s current debt position, annual risk assessments of City departments, activities, and processes; the recommended budget and fee schedule for Fiscal Year 25/26; an audit regarding take home vehicles, and other audits.
You can access the full meeting packet here.
The City’s budget has received even more scrutiny this week (along with that of Washoe County), with the first installments of a planned six-part investigative series from This is Reno’s Kristen Hackbarth. Here are links to the first three articles:
‘Employees are our biggest expense’: A look at local government pay (part 1 of 6)
The region’s highest paid government employees (part 2 of 6)
The privilege and price of government benefits (part 3 of 6)
TONIGHT, Thursday, May 15 at 6:00pm: Community Forum with Ward 4 Councilmember Meghan Ebert
Announced after I published my May 12th Brief was another “Community Forum,” this one with Ward 4 Councilmember Meghan Ebert. It’s this evening, Thursday, May 15th at 6:00pm at the Reno Stead Airport and is an in-person-only meeting. According to the City of Reno, residents can learn about the following:
Peavine Peak Trails Business Park SPD (formerly known as Seneca Hills Business Park SPD)
High Desert Paving Storage Yard
Lemmon Valley Logistics Park
a Community Champion
TOMORROW, Friday, May 16 at 12 noon: My talk on “Black Reno in the 1930s”
If you’d like to see some of what I do when I’m not writing the Brief, I’d love for you to join me at the Nevada Museum of Art TOMORROW, Friday, May 16th from 12 noon to 1pm when I’ll be presenting an “Art Bite” called “Black Reno in the 1930s” at the Nevada Museum of Art at 160 West Liberty Street.
The talk is FREE for museum members and $15 for non-members (and includes admission to the galleries). It’s being presented in conjunction with the museum’s fantastic current exhibit “When Langston Hughes Came to Town.”
Here’s a brief description of the talk:
“When Langston Hughes visited Reno in 1934, the city had just a few hundred Black residents. The Black community had been growing steadily for six decades, as they established homes and businesses and built enduring social and religious institutions in the face of mounting racial prejudice and discrimination. Historian Alicia Barber will share new research about the Black community of 1930s Reno, made possible by a National Park Service Underrepresented Communities Grant received by the City of Reno in 2024.”
For more information and to register for the talk, click here. Hope to see you there!
Lastly, if you’d like to get a head start on next week’s City meetings, check out the Current and Upcoming meetings webpage for the latest agendas and materials, including those posted for the May 22 meeting of the Reno Planning Commission.
And if you didn’t yet read my last Brief, be sure to do that! More soon, friends.
What does "Community Engagement" mean to you?
The sudden “90-day hiatus” of more than a dozen City of Reno Boards and Commissions as of May 1 took us all by surprise. And the public explanation was minimal, consisting solely of a City memo that was picked up by some media (& me).
Be sure to check out my Citizen Guide for helpful resources and links to help anyone become more informed and engaged in issues related to urban development (& more) in Reno.
You can view this and prior newsletters on my Substack site, subscribe to receive each new edition in your email inbox, and follow the Brief (and contribute to the ongoing conversation) on X, Facebook & Instagram. If you feel inspired to contribute, you may purchase a paid subscription through Substack or contribute via Venmo at @Dr-Alicia-Barber or via check to Alicia Barber at P.O. Box 11955, Reno, NV 89510.