The Carson City Board of Supervisors meeting Thursday will begin with medals for heroic civilians before moving to the business of the day.
The meeting starts at 8:30 a.m. in the boardroom of the community center, 851 E. William St.
Carson City Fire Chief Sean Slamon is slated to present the Chief’s Medal of Commendation to Robert Berger and Lucas O’Brien for their help during a vehicle fire on College Parkway on Jan. 1.
Slamon also will present the Citizen’s Medal of Honor to Robert Russell for his help during a March 1 apartment fire.
“The Chief’s Medal of Commendation is the Carson City Fire Department’s second highest award for a civilian. The Citizen’s Medal of Honor is CCFD’s highest award for a civilian,” says a staff report.
The first medal is awarded to those “who render initial, spontaneous, and valuable aid or assistance at an incident to which CCFD is responding.”
“To qualify, that aid or assistance should result in reduced injury or loss to the party receiving aid,” says the report.
O’Brien and Berger were driving on College Parkway on Jan. 1 when they discovered a vehicle “that had hit a wall, rolled over, and landed on its wheels in the eastbound lanes.”
“The vehicle’s engine compartment burst into flames and two occupants were trapped inside with multiple trauma injuries,” says the report. “Mr. O'Brien and Mr. Berger immediately exited their vehicle and ran to the two trapped victims. Without the aid of tools they were able to force open the doors of the vehicle and rapidly extricate the two victims before the fire spread into the passenger compartment.”
CCFD responded to the scene, fighting the fire while treating the victims, who were transported to Renown in Reno.
“If not for the actions of Mr. O'Brien and Mr. Berger, the victims would have likely had burn and smoke inhalation injuries which could have resulted in a fatal outcome,” says the report.
The second medal, the Citizen’s Medal of Honor, “may be awarded to individuals who distinguish themselves by extraordinary bravery or heroism.”
The night of March 1, a gas explosion caused an apartment fire at 20 College Parkway, according to CCFD. Russell, a neighbor, heard the explosion and discovered the fire.
“Robert quickly recognized what had happened, ran back to the front of the apartment, identified which apartment was on fire, and located the fire extinguisher at the base of the stairs,” the report says. “Mr. Russell broke the glass with his fist, retrieved the fire extinguisher, and ascended the staircase to the affected apartment. Mr. Russell opened the door and made a conscious decision to enter an environment that was immediately dangerous to life or health with no protective equipment.”
CCFD said Russell located the victim in the rear bedroom of the apartment and used the extinguisher. The victim was on fire.
“During this, a neighbor saw the commotion, ran to the apartment, and carried the victim outside and into the front lawn. The second civilian rescuer's identity remains unknown currently,” the report says. “Mr. Russell acted beyond the normal call of duty; he had the time and ability to consciously weigh the risks of entering the structure and chose to do so anyway, saving the life of a victim in extraordinary danger.”
CCFD added that Russell’s actions also stopped forward progress of the fire and “prevented further damage to the building and possibly additional victims that may have become trapped due to increased fire behavior.”
In other action:
• As part of the consent agenda, supervisors will consider health, dental and vision insurance plans for city employees. In doing so, the city could drop Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield for Prominence Health.
According to the agenda, the new one-year contract with Prominence would be a 3.3 percent increase over current rates for the PPO and high deductible plans.
“The city's combined medical and prescription paid claims loss ratio is 96% this year as opposed to last year’s claims loss ratio of 93%. The loss ratio is driven by overall utilization trends and the presence of large claims,” says a staff report. “Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield initially proposed a 14.9% rate increase. When approached about renewal, and after negotiations Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield agreed to reduce the increase to 13% for the PPO plan and 13% for the high deductible plan. The city therefore requested quotes to explore other group insurance options through our broker.”
With a new contract, the city would accordingly change its contributions for those in the high deductible plan.
“In the past, the city has set the contribution amounts based on the cost difference between the costs of the PPO plan and the high deductible plan,” says the report. “Applying that calculation methodology to the proposed rates, the city’s monthly contributions would increase as follows: $216.64 to $223.80 (employee only); $330.38 to $341.29 (employee plus spouse); $316.14 to $326.57 (employee plus children); and $447.72 to $462.50 (employee plus family).”
With a paid claims loss ratio of 102 percent (meaning more claims paid than premiums collected), dental insurance rates with Renaissance Dental would also go up 5.99 percent for a one-year term.
Rates for Kansas City Life vision insurance would go up 2.51 percent for a two-year renewal.
• As part of the consent agenda, supervisors will weigh a grant submittal from the Carson City Sheriff’s Office asking the Nevada Division of Child and Family Services for $125,000 with no local match.
The grant, if awarded, would run July 1 through June 30, 2026, and would fund the family service unit in the Carson City Jail “including the provision of equipment, training and salary and benefits for the grant-funded family service case worker position,” according to the agenda.
Supervisors first approved the DCFS grant for a pilot program on Nov. 16, 2023, according to a staff report.
“While incarcerated, parents have the opportunity to participate in evidence-based parenting education classes and soft skills training to help them maintain and strengthen their relationships with their children,” says the report. “Upon release, the family service case worker continues working with these parents to address their reentry needs, guiding them toward services such as employment assistance, substance abuse treatment, mental health counseling, and family reunification programs.
“By providing these critical connections, the program supports successful reintegration and reduces recidivism rates, ultimately benefiting both the parents and their children.”
Children of incarcerated parents are a vulnerable population, the report states.
“The family service unit serviced 65 females, and 58 male parents since March 2024. The unit had 411 meetings with these parents in addition to providing services to 38 care giver families,” according to the report. “By securing this grant, we can ensure that parents and children receive the necessary assistance to rebuild relationships, access essential resources, and break the cycle of intergenerational involvement with the justice system through June 30, 2026.”
• As part of the regular action agenda, supervisors will consider relocation of easements to realign Railroad Drive that will eventually connect to East 5th Street for a housing project.
According to the agenda, this relocation would include reserving 30,494 square feet for a public access and utility easement and 9,375 square feet for a trail connection and public utility easement on city-owned land known as Linear Park, as well as a quitclaim deed to the city regarding an existing 30,542-square-foot private access easement.
The development property, zoned single family 6,000, is located east of the end of Railroad Drive within the Blackstone Ranch Specific Plan Area. The tentative subdivision map was approved by supervisors in 2019 and included 103 residential lots. The city’s property lies north of the existing segment of Railroad Drive and south of East 5th Street.
“All expenses related to the easements, deeds and associated due diligence will be the responsibility of the developer and no cost to the city,” says a staff report.
