WHAT DO YOU CALL A $62K INVESTMENT THAT GIVES YOU A $531K RETURN? ….FANTASTIC!!…… WAY TO GO JANA SEDDON!!

BUT…..STILL NO SIGNED TESLA AGREEMENT….SO THE BUDGET IS STILL $1.7 MILLION DOLLARS OVER

DID YOU KNOW THAT WATERING HORSES IN VC IS A MISDEMEANOR?

By Nicole Barde

Bardeblog.com

You can find the agenda packet HERE and County Manager Pat Whitten’s summary HERE. If you want to listen to the meeting you can find the recording HERE.

This was a very short meeting.

You can read the key items from Staff updates in Pat Whitten’s summary HERE.

Pat briefly discussed his efforts to get Tesla to sign the $1.2 million dollar Government Services Agreement. There was one phone call and there is to be another meeting Thursday June 7^th. He feels confident that they will come to an agreement as to the terms of the Services Agreement.

SIDENOTE: I keep hearing from both Pat and Hugh Gallagher, Comptroller  in these meetings that Tesla HAS to sign the agreement because if they don’t then all work will effectively come to a standstill at the factory with no county resources to make plan change approvals or inspections on construction. The County Ordinance abating the fees associated with those inspections and approvals is also set to expire at the end of this month. And then we hear that the work will continue and the county will continue to bill them even if there is no signed contract.

I am not surprised at Tesla’s tactic since it is basic negotiation 101. They hold off signing until they get better terms….whatever they might be.

But the county is already on the hook for the resources ($1.2 Million)  , SB1 requires that Tesla meets its milestones to keep the abatements, if they can’t meet their milestones because Storey has done a “work stoppage” I wonder if GOED will get involved?

Interesting process to watch more as it develops.

But I digress….

Next Pat updated us on the progress being made on enforcement of the Ordinances. They are getting thru some of the backlog of old violations.

SIDENOTE: I spoke with a VC resident recently who now has a misdemeanor on his record for watering the horses in violation of a town ordinance. He had been warned before and this time got nicked.

While I fully understand the need to keep the horses out of harm’s way and not be a public nuisance, and I believe that one is accountable for one’s behavior, I find it appalling that this type of thing rises to the level of a misdemeanor and that it is so quick to be charged.

This happens to a “regular” citizen while the legality of having a multi-family trailer at the Mustang, ostensibly against the zoning ordinance, has been allowed to go on for years even after it is raised as an issue. This happens for a “non-regular” citizen.

And so it goes………..

Next up was the Board update and Commission Chair Marshall McBride noted:

Although it has been implied by a blogger, Chairman McBride advised there has not been a “no-bid” contract awarded for construction of the new Justice Center. This project goes out to bid in the future. (From Whitten update)

 He was referring to my May 15^th write up where I said:

SIDENOTE-Pat also mentioned Collins Construction. I didn’t get the whole comment but I think that he said that they were going to do the construction. IF so….I didn’t see any bids go out. IF this is a no-bid contract then why?

I stand corrected.  Good to know that there will be a process…..We’ll have to wait to see who gets it.

Commissioner Jack McGuffey reported on some items from his NACO meeting…net-net no real news….things move slowly. He noted that there is a movement afoot to address the “affordable housing” issue in our neighboring counties. The TRIC growth had put a strain on resources and infrastructure including rising housing costs. There are several ideas being floated including a “flex fee”.

SIDENOTE- Last legislative session there was a bill introduced by a Washoe County legislator to essentially assess Storey County for the costs associated with Reno and Washoe having to build out the infrastructure to accommodate the growth at TRIC. I.e.….they have to house all the employees, build water/sewer, schools, fire stations and police capacity…..and want some of the river of money that is pouring from TRIC into our swimming pools. That didn’t make it thru at that time.

Now with yet more growth and more strain they will try again to get some of the massive tax revenue (NOT) that we get from TRIC to offset their expenses. Apparently they haven’t seen our budget!

There were only a couple of agenda items but one that I want to highlight. In Whitten’s summary he states:

Approved Tax Management Associates, Inc. contract addendum and extension.

SIDENOTE -Wow. That totally understates the magnitude of what this means. The County has extended a contract with TMA to continue to do personal property audits at the companies out at TRIC. The contract with them is for $61,500………………….the audits that they are doing is yielding $531K in additional personal property billings….revenue to the county we were not getting….way to go Assessor Jana Seddon!!!!