OPINION/STREETALK

City manager should help recruit replacement

A Feb. 28 Reno Gazette Journal headline posed this question: “Should Reno city manager Sabra Newby recruit her replacement?” The short answer to that is yes, of course, she should.

Newby, who became Reno’s city manager in 2017 and recently announced that she intends to leave the post in July, probably shouldn’t be the sole decision-maker in the search—but she surely understands better than anyone what the job entails and whatever qualities the best candidates will need. She brought stability to the role after her predecessor’s scandal-laden tenure. It would be foolish not to include her in process.

Councilmember Jenny Brekhus advocated for excluding Newby from the recruitment and hiring process. She says that hiring a national recruitment firm—at an expense of about $60,000 to Reno taxpayers—would lend credibility to the search.

Brekhus is often the lone voice of dissent on Reno’s city council. It’s often great to have an obstinate skeptic on the council—especially when it comes time to resist big-money developers or other corporate interests. At other times, however, Brekhus’ default “nay” vote seems to unnecessarily harm city staff. This seems to be one of those latter occasions.

There’s bad blood between Brekhus and Newby, as evidenced by the fact that Newby made efforts to limit Brekhus’ interactions with staff. (See, “Difficult times,” editorial, Nov. 7, 2019.) Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve implied that Brekhus and her treatment of staff were a motivation for Newby to resign, although Newby’s resignation letter itself makes no such implications.

Sabra But here’s where Brekhus really Newby brought lost us: “If a city our size thinks we’re just going to put an ad in the stability to the newspaper for this, it makes us look role after her like a joke,” she said during the meeting. predecessor’s scandal-laden OK, now that’s just going too far. We, of course, understand that tenure. hiring for a job like city manager involves a degree of headhunting far beyond a simple classified ad, but outof-the-blue diss comments like that are a sure way to alienate us newspaper folks. Our paper depends on advertising revenue. It is not a joke. The council seems to have settled on a hybrid approach which will rely on internal staff input and consultation with a national recruiter. Nice to see some compromise. But it’s important that Newby, a competent civil servant who knows the job, has a lead role in hiring her own replacement. Ω

Is Coronavirus a real threat?

ASKED AT THE TRUCKEE RIVER WALK.

DANIEL VANDENBE RG

Taco Bell Employee I think it’s only a threat if we make it a threat. I’ve done personal research on it. I feel like everyone has because of how scary it is. … If we just keep calm and be aware of our surroundings and everything, it shouldn’t be, like, a big epidemic.

COLLEEN PETRINI

Retiree Yes. I think our president has downplayed it, and hopefully he’ll get it. Look at China. Look at Italy. You stock up and you prepare and everything, and if you don’t need it, good for you—and if you do, you got it.

JOSH RICHARDSON

Traveling musician I don’t know. Every couple of years there seems to be a new kind of something—like swine-flu or whatever. Every couple years there’s something to get everyone jumbled up and freaked out about something. This sounds like one of those.

CALISTA LACY

Student I mean, yeah. Didn’t somebody just die in Washington? We’re probably in danger. It’s in California. I would like it if our president didn’t say it was a hoax. Do you think my medical insurance covers Coronavirus?

MICHAEL MORENO

Business owner I feel like probably, but it could be something to just get people’s minds on another thing. It’s just another headline, you know. It’s just another thing that we’re just focused on.