Parks, Public Art, Plazas, Bridges & Books
City of Reno meetings, information, and news for the week of June 23, 2025
This week brings a slew of opportunities to remain engaged with our community, including sessions for getting information and providing input on how the City of Reno communicates with you; public art at the police headquarters; Park Districts; an update on the Sierra Street Bridge construction project; and more.
This week’s City meetings are listed on the Current and Upcoming Meetings webpage.
Please take a moment to check out the week’s events and catch up on the latest news.
Washoe County Summer Fan Drive - Free Fans for Seniors
The county’s annual summer fan drive is underway, providing new fans free of charge to senior citizens aged 60 and over. You can pick up or donate new fans (which must still be in the box) at 1155 E. Ninth Street, Building E, from 9am-3pm Monday through Friday. Call first to make sure fans are available. For more info, click here.
TUESDAY, June 24, 5:30-7:30pm: City of Reno Public Engagement Community Meeting
As I’ve written about before, the City of Reno is conducting a comprehensive review of its strategies for engaging with the public. Residents can provide input in a few ways, including the online survey I’ve mentioned before (through July 2).
The link to that survey, an overview of the entire review process, and dates for community meetings and “drop-ins” are all available at the following link: https://www.reno.gov/community/engage-reno/public-engagement-review-process
This Tuesday, June 24 from 5:30-7:30pm the City is holding an in-person community meeting at the Evelyn Mount Northeast Community Center at 1301 Valley Road.
There’s also a “community drop-in” opportunity on Thursday, June 26 from 3:30-5:30pm, also at the Evelyn Mount Center, plus more next week.
WEDNESDAY, June 25, 11am - 1pm: Community Engagement session for Public Safety Center Sculptures
A Community Engagement session will be held with the artists who’ll be creating the sculptural public art at the Public Safety Center (Reno Police Headquarters) at 911 Kuenzli Street on Wednesday, June 25 from 11am-1pm.
Artists John Fleming and Mark Reigelman will be on hand to explain their process to city staff and the public and engage in conversation to help inform the designs.
Here’s the schedule:
11:00am to 11:55am: Presentations by Kuenzli Sculpture and Plaza Sculpture lead artists followed by group Q&A in the Community Room
11:55am to 1:00pm: Conversations & Storytelling in the Outdoor Plaza with Artists
This is one of the City’s recent public art projects that has stirred some controversy—this one for having selected an artist (Mark Reigelman) without a proposed concept:
Reno City Council funds $375,000 for public art at new police station despite absent design (This is Reno 4/25/2025)
According to the City, that will be developed through this community process:
“As artists start developing concepts, it is important that community members share ideas and stories to ensure the final artworks are rooted in Reno. Join us to hear about the artist’s work, process, interests, and to discuss Reno's history and future. Attendees will have the opportunity to share stories and be a part of the conversation.”
As a professional oral and public historian, I love the idea of art inspired by shared stories. But there’s no inherent subject here yet, so if it’s truly wide open, then I guess you could come to share stories about the building, which housed the Reno Gazette-Journal from 1981-2020. Or about the Reno Police Department and/or your interactions with it. Or the deeper history of the site and its surrounding landscape. Or general stories about living in Reno. Or whatever else you feel like sharing.
Or perhaps you think the goal should be for the art in this space to evoke a feeling, like a sense of protection or welcome—or perhaps to reflect our diverse community.
I have a speaking engagement and can’t be there, but if you can and want to have some input into the public art installed at police headquarters, I hope some of you can. Hopefully this community engagement process can occur in multiple stages, to ensure the broadest possible level of participation as the concept is further refined (and if it does end up having a historical component, I hope they’ll involve a historian).
You’ll find more info on all the public art projects associated with the building here: https://www.reno.gov/community/arts-culture/public-art/public-safety-center
THURSDAY, June 26, 10am: Locomotion Plaza Opening
The grand opening for the newest version of the ReTRAC lid between N. Virginia and N. Sierra Streets (on the north side of Whitney Peak) is Thursday, June 26 at 10am.
Recent renovations to Locomotion Plaza include:
Six multi-functional shipping container buildings
Lighting, electrical, and fencing upgrades
New furniture and shade umbrellas
According to the City, “These renovations were funded through the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) program, authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act, and guided by recommendations from the The Future of Virginia Street Placemaking Plan.”
Looks like this infrastructure will be able to support a variety of special events when activated, but I’m not sure how often that will be or what that process will involve.
THURSDAY, June 26, 5pm: Concurrent hybrid meeting about the Park District Service Plan & other park topics
A concurrent meeting of the City of Reno’s Recreation & Parks Commission, the City of Sparks Park & Recreation Commission, and the Washoe County Open Space & Regional Parks Commission will be at Reno City Hall at 5pm on Thursday, June 26.
It has an agenda, which you can view here and an information packet, found here. You can also view/participate virtually by registering here. Topics will include:
The Park District Service Plan
The Stakeholder List for the Service Plan
Update on the Nevada Legislature pertaining to Parks and Recreation
Rails to Trails update
Parks Foundation Funding Partnerships
Here’s some recent press about the Park District idea, to catch you up:
Reno City Council approves contract to explore Park Service Plan (KOLO-8 6/4/25)
Push for new parks district in Washoe County gaining steam, but how would it be funded? (News4 6/20/2025)
OPINION: Improving park funding and infrastructure: It's not a walk in the park, but it's possible (Mariluz Garcia, RGJ 6/17/25)
THURSDAY, June 26, 4-7pm: Sierra Street Bridge public meeting (RTC Washoe)
RTC Washoe has progressed to the 60% design stage for the Sierra Street Bridge Project and is hosting its second public meeting for the project on Thursday, June 26 from 4-7pm at the McKinley Arts and Culture Center at 925 Riverside Drive. You can find the public meeting materials and more info online at SierraStreetBridge.com.
ONLINE SURVEY: Rebranding the Redevelopment Agency
I wrote about this last week so if you’d like to participate in this effort, read this.
NEXT MONDAY, June 30, 5:30pm: Community Forum with Ward 1 Councilmember Kathleen Taylor
This isn’t until next week, but if you want to mark your calendar, Ward 1 Councilmember Kathleen Taylor will hold a “Community Forum” on Monday, June 30 from 5:30-7:30pm at City Hall. There is no formal agenda, but announced topics include an update from RTC, the “Reno Revival Tentative Map,” and Q&A.
NEWS DIGEST: The Latest in Local Urban Development
Here’s a little round-up of some recent articles with ties to local development.
Police operation targets nuisance activity at Ace Motor Lodge (This is Reno 6/19/25)
New data collection methods reveal more about northern Nevada’s homeless population (This is Reno 6/22/25)
Nevada lawmakers didn’t do enough to address extreme heat, say advocates (Nevada Current 6/20/25)
The Data Center Boom in the Desert (MIT Technology Review 5/20/25). The AI race is transforming northwestern Nevada into one of the world's largest data-center markets—and sparking fears of water strains in the nation’s driest state.
THROUGH JULY 7: My book, Reno’s Big Gamble, is on sale!
The publisher of my book, Reno’s Big Gamble, Image and Reputation in the Biggest Little City, is having a 50% off sale through July 7. So if you’ve been waiting to pick up a copy, now’s your chance! Order $75 worth (maybe for your book club, which I’d be happy to attend!) and shipping is free. Just enter the promo code 24SUMMER25 at checkout via the University Press of Kansas, where you’ll find my book’s page here.
BY JULY 20: VOTING for the Reno News & Review 2025 Best of Northern Nevada
Lastly, it’s time again to vote for your favorite community, well, everything, in the annual Best of Northern Nevada contest from the Reno News & Review. I’m excited and honored to have been nominated this year for Best Local Author as well as Best Local Activist (both in the “Personalities” category), and I’d greatly appreciate your vote!
You can find the online ballot at https://vote.renonr.com/ and keep in mind that you have to vote in at least ten categories for your vote to count. Good luck to all the other wonderful candidates, and THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT.
That’s it for this week. Stay cool and safe, and please look out for each other.
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.