A recently listed Reno home at 1620 Harold Drive is raising eyebrows over what appears to be a dramatic four-month flip, advertised renovations, and unanswered questions about permits, zoning, and disclosure requirements.

The property, APN 002-261-07, was purchased on August 20, 2025, for $267,000, according to Washoe County document #5563119. The buyer was Shasta Properties LLC, a Nevada entity (E0499092017-3). The listed resident agent for Shasta Properties is Brandon Goles, who is also the listing agent for the property’s current sale.

Tonight’s City of Reno Ward 3 Neighborhood Advisory meeting includes a big agenda item: the proposed closing or repurposing of several Washoe County schools located in Ward 3.

One of the presenters? Washoe County School Board Trustee Beth Smith.

Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve spent the holiday season in New York City—was it part vacation, part brand promotion—repping her sunscreen business alongside her business partner—heck we don’t know but we enjoy the images . Big-city backdrop, big inflatable Spooge marketing props, and plenty of photo ops.

Whether that’s the image Reno voters want from their mayor is a fair question. Public office comes with public scrutiny, especially when personal business and public profile blur together.

So let’s clear this up.

I’m being told the Republicans aren’t supporting me because I print articles calling them out.

Correction: the real Republicans are. The ones who open their homes, host fundraisers, knock on doors, make calls, and grind through campaign season without a title or a Facebook following. They’re with me.

When silence isn’t an option: Devon Reese accidentally confirms he reads Mike’s Reno Report. Or he sure did about the loss of Harrah’s xx and downtown Boise.

It turns out Councilmember Devon Reese does read Mike’s Reno Report — or at least reads it closely enough to feel compelled to respond. Not with answers, mind you. Just vibes, deflection, and a carefully worded non-response that somehow managed to say everything while explaining nothing.

Beefy’s Burger Joint says it plainly: the building needs major repairs — plumbing, flooring, and essential maintenance that simply can’t wait. Because of it, they’ve had to temporarily close their doors. For a neighborhood spot with loyal customers, that’s heartbreaking.

We so enjoy trolling social media posts and frankly can’t believe what elected officials put up online. Our favorites are Reno Councilmember Devon Reese and Sparks Mayor Ed Lawson, but Washoe County Commissioner Mike Clark is moving up.

We saw Commissioner Mike Clark’s post celebrating that Eddie Lorton ignored him and Larry Chesney (Picon’s Publisher and candidate for Washoe County Commission District 5) at Carole Fineberg’s goodbye luncheon.

So who watched the Reno City Council Meeting - we did.

And our take away …

Councilmember Kathleen Taylor finally snapped about downtown Reno — and honestly, it was the most enthusiasm we’ve seen on the council dais since someone mentioned their free catered lunch arrived.

Picon was delighted to see Mayor Hillary Schieve and her Spooge-sunscreen business partner splashing their product around on Wicked to push their latest skincare hustle.

Sorry we didn’t plan on another snarky story about Reno Mayoral candidates, but this is just too good to pass up. We couldn’t believe our eyes.

Some people spend Thanksgiving watching football. Others watch parades.
But here at Picon, we apparently watch Die Hard and then immediately think of local politics—because honestly, the similarities are uncanny.

Shaun Mullin, ladies and gentlemen, is officially the fly in Devon Reese’s ointment. The Hans Gruber to Devon’s corporate-holiday-party meltdown. The man shows up in a comment thread and suddenly our mayoral hopeful—who collects ethics complaints like tourists collect tiki mugs—cannot help himself. He has to respond. Every. Single. Time.

We couldn’t help but notice those matching shirts the Reno City Council members wore at the Veterans Day Parade — very coordinated, very official-looking. Cool City of Reno swag.

Here’s our question: did taxpayers pick up the tab for those?

We couldn’t help but smile today when a few speakers during public comment — including some UNR students and a Midtown representative — took to the mic to thank Councilmembers Miguel Martinez, Brandi Anderson, and Devon Reese for their “generous donations” to their organizations.

More than a year has passed since the Community Homelessness Advisory Board (CHAB) last met — the very board tasked with overseeing Washoe County’s most pressing humanitarian crisis. Chaired by Commissioner Alexis Hill, CHAB has gone silent while encampments spread and frustration grows.

At the most recent Washoe County Commission meeting, residents finally said what many have whispered: Why hasn’t Chair Hill called a CHAB meeting in over a year?

We learned a new legal term: vexatious litigant. According to the courts, it’s someone who files lawsuits to harass or burden others rather than seek justice. Interesting, right?

That phrase came to mind when we received a campaign fundraising email from Reno City Councilmember and 2026 mayoral hopeful Devon Reese — curiously timed just as multiple media outlets are reporting on the civil case tying together Michael Leonard (the plaintiff) and several local notables: Alex Velto (2024 Assembly candidate, Reno Planning Commissioner, and attorney), Conor McQuivey (Renoites podcast host and Washoe County employee), and of course Reese himself, Velto’s law partner.

You’ve got to hand it to the City of Reno — no one torpedoes property values faster.

Take 410 Reno Avenue, for example. The homeowner attended the so-called “neighborhood meeting” on July 30, hosted by the Reno Housing Authority. It was there he learned he’d soon be living next to a three-story, 45-unit “affordable housing” project. (Translation: kiss your quiet single-story street goodbye.)

After Reese’s Academy Award performance on Nevada Newsmakers the other day … you know the tee-up to please come to my fundraiser because i’m a ‘man of the people’ and not a ‘vexatious litigant” kind of guy.

Reno City Councilmember Devon Reese’s high-dollar fundraiser tonight at The Elm Estate — because nothing says “man of the people” quite like one of Reno’s priciest venues.

Ah yes, another City of Reno survey — because when in doubt, survey it out. The city’s population has climbed to roughly 281,537 residents, up from 264,165 in 2020 — a 6.25% jump.

So with nearly 280,000 people calling Reno home, one might think the city would listen to them without another taxpayer-funded “what do you think?” poll. But no, Reno loves a survey like it loves a ribbon-cutting — plenty of photo ops, not much follow-up.

Out of 281,537 residents, a grand total of 3,247 responded — barely 1.1% of the population. But sure, let’s call that a “success.”

If you’re not following Shaun Mullin on social media—especially Nextdoor—you’re missing out on some of the sharpest satire Reno has seen since… well, since Reno thought the Lear Theater was a good idea. Mullin has made an art form out of skewering the Reno City Council, a collection of politicians so thin-skinned they’d probably break out in hives if someone drew them a stick figure cartoon.

Hold on tight, Reno. City Councilman Devon Reese is suddenly in the business of apologies — and we’re supposed to buy it. He offered up a half-hearted “sorry” over the Lear Theatre flap, but let’s be real: this isn’t remorse, it’s rehearsal. Reese isn’t apologizing to fix his behavior — he’s auditioning for the role of Nice Guy Mayor 2026.

Dozens of residents showed up, pleaded, and practically begged: please don’t let neighborhood accessory dwelling units (ADUs) become short-term rentals. The council, after all, said ADUs were supposed to be about affordable housing. Affordable, for whom? Certainly not for the folks footing the bill to build one.

But last Wednesday, in a dazzling display of selective hearing, the Reno City Council did a full 180 and voted to let ADUs morph into mini-Hyatts. So much for keeping neighborhoods livable — apparently lobbyists with Airbnb tote bags get better seating than residents with concerns.