Updates & Previews: Week of May 13, 2024
The latest on the City's proposed Housing Initiatives, new public surveys on Rancho San Rafael and RTC Washoe's Regional Transportation Plan, and more.
I hope you all had a lovely weekend! Just a quick Brief today with updates on the last City Council meeting, previews of the week ahead, a few new public surveys, and links to a bunch of recent local media reports related to housing and development.
On this week’s calendar of Current and Upcoming Meetings are the following:
Public Art Committee of the Arts & Culture Commission (5/13)
Ward 1 Neighborhood Advisory Board (5/13)
Senior Citizen Advisory Committee (5/14)
Ward 5 Neighborhood Advisory Board (5/14)
Joint Coordinating Committee for the Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility (5/15)
Urban Forestry Commission (5/15)
Reno Planning Commission (5/15)
Joint meeting of the Reno, Sparks, and Washoe County Parks Commissions (5/16)
Ward 4 Neighborhood Advisory Board (5/16)
Click on the meetings page to access all agendas, materials, and virtual meeting links.
As mentioned above, the Planning Commission meets on Wednesday, May 15 at 6:00 p.m. You’ll find that agenda here. A scheduled item (4.1) about a NV Energy Utility Corridor transmission line has been pulled off the agenda due to a noticing error, leaving one Public Hearing:
4.2 – Northern NV Public Health Behavioral and TB Clinic: A request for a conditional use permit for the operation and expansion of a healthcare facility providing acute and overnight care at 1240 East Ninth Street. That Staff Report is here.
Housing and Affordability Initiatives Update
As I previewed in my May 5 Brief (and have been following for months) City Council discussed some of the proposed Affordability and Housing Initiatives proposed by City staff, as well as the recommendations of the Planning Commission, at their May 8 meeting. The goal was to provide staff with direction to help them write up the ordinances that will be reviewed for approval in the months to come. You can view the City’s slides regarding this item here and the video here.
This item was covered thoroughly by This is Reno, and I encourage you to read Kelsey Penrose’s article, “City council continues review of housing ordinance changes.”
There was not only discussion of these proposed changes but many statements about public process and the City’s overall approach to planning that I’ll come back to in future posts. But in short, a City Council majority DID NOT support the following:
Allowing more categories of housing projects (including affordable housing) to proceed “by right” (without a conditional use permit/public review).
Allowing duplexes, triplexes or fourplexes in SF-3 and SF-5 zoning districts.
Allowing affordable projects to be built two stories higher and/or to be exempt from requirements for parking or minor/major deviations to setbacks.
As a result, none of the above initiatives will be pursued at this time.
In contrast, a City Council majority DID support the following:
Assigning a City staff liaison to all affordable housing projects during permit review. It was clarified that this would be existing staff, not a new position.
Some kind of “density bonus” for housing projects including for lower-income levels (City staff said they will come back with some specific ideas on that).
When it comes to the requirements laid out by AB 213 (which I discussed last time), Assistant Development Services Director Angela Fuss clarified something that many of us did not fully understand. You can watch the video here where she explains that all twelve strategies listed in AB 213 to promote affordable housing are already included verbatim in Reno’s Master Plan, and reporting on them already happens every year. So that isn’t new.
What is new is a requirement to enact an ordinance by July 1 that addresses two things:
an expedited process specific to affordable housing
incentives for the development of affordable housing
Assigning a City staff liaison to each affordable housing project, as supported by Council, would check off the requirement to expedite the process (which Angela Fuss said is already very fast). I believe the second could be fulfilled through augmenting density bonuses, but that should be clarified in the near future, as several Councilmembers also requested further explanation of what is mandated by AB 213.
City staff will now formulate the language of an ordinance that will return to Council for a first reading in June and—if approved—a second reading and final adoption in July. It does not have to return to the Planning Commission for any further input.
Kelsey Penrose of This is Reno also reported on a few more items from the meeting:
“City begins manager search process” (This is Reno, May 9, 2024)
“Truckee River Plan gets updated by city” (This is Reno, May 12, 2024).
Now on to a few online public surveys that recently opened.
What’s the Future of Rancho San Rafael Regional Park?
Washoe County Regional Parks and Open Space is currently updating its Park Master Plan for the 575-acre Rancho San Rafael Regional Park and has released a short three-minute survey to solicit resident input on its future. Visit the website here for further explanation and a link to the survey, which must be completed by May 31.
RTC Washoe Regional Transportation Plan Update
RTC Washoe is currently updating its Regional Transportation Plan, which outlines the transportation projects, programs, and services it has planned through 2050, and seeks resident input to help them accomplish the following:
Identify the transportation projects, programs and services that may be implemented through 2050.
Capture the community’s vision for the transportation system.
Function as the major tool for implementing long-range transportation planning.
Establish an implementation plan to achieve that vision.
The last update to this plan was approved in 2021, and it’s updated every four years “to account for the latest conditions and reflect the community’s current priorities.”
The main update website is here, and includes an overview, the current 2050 RTP document, and recent amendments. That page also links to the survey page, where you can find an explanatory video, the survey, and an interactive map where you can identify areas of concern to you.
Recent Press on Local Development and Housing Issues
Here are a few articles I’ve been reading over the past week. Please support local journalism with a subscription or generous donation!
“Reno Public Market addresses tenant turnover at food hall, retail space” (Jason Hidalgo, Reno Gazette-Journal, May 6, 2024)
“Jen Gurecki, Seeking the Community’s Empathy after Deciding to Close Shop at the Reno Public Market” (Our Town Reno, May 7, 2024)
“Homeless population hits record high in Washoe County, survey data shows” (Mark Robison, Reno Gazette-Journal, May 7, 2024)
“County homeless count shows a continued increase in those living without shelter” (Bob Conrad, This is Reno, May 8, 2024)
“Point in Time count shows increase in Washoe County homeless numbers” (Kevin Sheridan and Emily Benito, KOLO-8, May 8, 2024)
“Renovated Best Bet Motor Lodge reopens as boutique hotel in Midtown Reno” (Jason Hidalgo, Reno Gazette-Journal, May 10, 2024)
“Editorial: Lies, damned lies and Washoe County statistics” (Bob Conrad and Kristen Hackbarth, This is Reno, May 12, 2024)
“New home report: ‘2024 will be an ugly year’ for Reno-Sparks’ new housing market” (Jason Hidalgo, Reno Gazette-Journal, May 13, 2024)
That’s it for this week. Enjoy this beautiful weather!
Be sure to check out my Citizen Guide for helpful resources and links for anyone hoping to become more informed and engaged in issues related to urban development (& more) in Reno.
As always, 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 support my writing and research with a financial contribution, you can sign up for a paid subscription through my Substack site or contribute to my Venmo account at @Dr-Alicia-Barber or via check to Alicia Barber at P.O. Box 11955, Reno, NV 89510. Thanks so much for reading, and have a great week.