Reno City Council & Redevelopment Agency Board
Wednesday, May 18, 2022
What Happened
Reno City Council and Redevelopment Agency Board approved the fiscal year 2022-23 budget in a single meeting covering spending totaling approximately $915 million across all funds.
Key Decisions
APPROVED — FY 2022-23 City Budget ($915 million total; general fund $301 million; sewer fund $120 million) — vote count not recorded — establishes spending authority for all city operations and marks first balanced budget in over a decade
APPROVED — $60 million general obligation bond issuance (scheduled July 2022) — vote count not recorded — funds large capital projects; no general fund contribution needed for debt service this year
APPROVED — RDA #1 and RDA #2 Final Budgets for FY 2022-23 — vote count not recorded — provides operating authority for redevelopment agencies including debt service and parking garage operations
APPROVED — Fee schedule with CPI adjustments and building valuation changes — vote count not recorded — maintains current fee structure from consultant study with inflation and parks position adjustments
APPROVED — $10,000 increase to each council member's discretionary donation fund — vote count not recorded — consolidated from travel and training funds
Debated But Not Resolved
Chief Infrastructure Officer funding source — Councilmember questioned why position fully funded by sewer division ($100%) when it serves broader infrastructure needs; manager explained it addresses sewer-related projects over next 5-6 years while freeing Public Works capacity — no resolution
Historic Resource Consultant ($50,000) — Request came outside normal budget process; will be added as augmentation to current year budget funded by building enterprise fund rather than included in FY 2022-23 budget
Tree Inspector Position — Councilmember requested dedicated staff for tree ordinance enforcement; manager prefers testing landscape architect effectiveness first before adding position — deferred to next year
Parks Planner Position — Councilmember noted staff has been understaffed for years; manager ranked this lower than maintenance and tree workers — deferred to next year for strong consideration
City Ombudsperson Position — Remains unfilled after two recruitment attempts; councilmember requested job description memo and suggested considering contract work instead — continued
Cash balance and investment allocation — Councilmember requested information on where city cash is held and how investments align with policies — information to be provided in quarterly reports
What to Watch
$60,000,000 — General obligation bond for capital projects — bond proceeds
$50,000 — Historic resource consultant (augmentation to current year) — building enterprise fund
$30-34,000,000 — Sewer improvements — state revolving loan fund
$3,700,000 — New general fund positions across departments (dispatch, patrol, records, permits, planning, parks, arts, IT, communications) — general fund
Historic Resource Consultant augmentation — $50,000 will be pulled from building enterprise fund in current budget year; council should track whether position is filled and produces results before deciding on permanent placement
Tree Inspector and Parks Planner positions — Both deferred to next year; council indicated strong interest in tree enforcement and parks staffing, so anticipate these returning to budget discussions in spring 2023
City Ombudsperson recruitment — After one year and two failed recruitment attempts, position remains vacant; council considering contract alternative or budget redirection
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