Tribune Staff

The filing period for candidates running for elected office officially ended Friday at 5 p.m. The candidates for Sparks offices are listed below with a brief description each has provided on their goals for the City of Sparks.

Council Member

Ward 1

(Position currently held by John Mayer, termed out after this year)

Larry Wilson

I would like to see the SPARKLE put back in Sparks. Ward 1, for the most part, is in the older part of Sparks where there are a lot of rentals that could use some sprucing up. Code enforcement coupled with holding land lords accountable for the appearance of their properties would go a long way towards this end. I would like to see the Regional Transportation (RTC) board instigate bus routes that would get people to their work areas in a more timely fashion. Our older parks should be maintained in top form with more joint use parks developed with the Washoe County School District. Roads, new arterials and road resurfacing need to be addressed in many areas of Ward 1. I feel the Sparks senior volunteer program run by the Sparks Police Department needs to be enhanced. Partnerships with developers that fail to come to fruition need to be re-tooled. Having lived in Sparks for 52 years, Sparks is like my other family and I want to see it thrive.

Julia Ratti

I intend to build on the promise of Sparks, making sure we hold on to our focus on safe neighborhoods, a strong sense of community and building a healthy economy. Specifically, I will protect families by supporting police, fire and the courts; invest in parks, recreation and programs for kids, families and seniors; help create a downtown of which we can all be proud; work to protect our citizens and business community from flooding; and manage growth to balance development and infrastructure with our traditions of open space and a tight-knit community. I’m home grown — born, raised and educated in Sparks. I have been an active member of the community working with nonprofits as a volunteer and as a small-business owner. I look forward to working with the Council, city staff and residents to continue to make this a place we all want to live, work and play.

Council Member

Ward 3

Ron Smith: incumbent, running unopposed

I will continue to move Sparks forward with the Legends project and redevelopment. The branding of Sparks is a priority for me. We are involved in an aggressive branding program that will help us identify our weaknesses and our strengths from an outside point of view. This is a very exciting relationship that has been very successful throughout the country. We are continually looking at different special events that make Sparks a great place to live. As always, public safety will remain my top priority. This includes police and fire protection as well as the Living River Concept for flood protection.

Council Member Ward 5

Ron Schmitt: incumbent, running unopposed

My platform is to continue to develop the city of Sparks into a world-class city, a place where we all can work, live and play. I will continue working on both redevelopment projects, downtown and the Marina, as well as the Oddie Boulevard area. Many issues such as traffic and public safety needs continue to grab my attention. My main goal is to continue to create a Sparks that we all love to call home.

City Attorney

Chester Adams: incumbent

Sparks City Attorney Chet Adams began working in the City Attorney’s Office in 1991. Chet came to the City Attorney’s Office after working in the Civil Division for the Washoe County District Attorney’s Office under Mills Lane. Chet has since been both a defense lawyer for the city of Sparks and the Victim Advocate for abused victims. Chet became City Attorney in 1997 and still maintains a civil litigation caseload in accordance with his hands-on approach to defending and protecting the city’s treasury and the citizen’s tax dollars. Chet and his team of seven lawyers, a victim advocate and four support staff, promote an aggressive but compassionate attitude to the City Attorney’s Office, according to city spokesperson Adam Mayberry said.

(Chet Adams was unavailable for comment. His statement is provided by the city of Sparks’s public information office.)

City Attorney

Neil Grad

I have lived in Nevada going on 30 years. I have lived in Sparks for 24. I do a lot of volunteer work including having spent over 24 years volunteering for the library.

I work in the city attorney’s office and I want to give back to my city. Right now the council is leading the city into great improvements. The (Spanish Springs) Galleria and all those stores are wonderful. When I moved to Sparks we were a tiny little town of 40,000.

Now we are a city of about 90,000 and the legal advice coming out of the civil divisions of the city attorney’s office and the money being paid out because of the civil division is just an abomination. I think with my experience and knowing how to manage a budget we are going to be able to save hundreds of thousands of dollars and maybe put a couple more policemen on the street and recreate the trust that once existed between the city council and the city attorney’s office.

Sparks Municipal Court Judge-Dept 1

Barbara McCarthy: incumbent, running unopposed

The reason I am running again is because I still have a lot of passion for the work. I love the interaction with the citizens. I teach criminal law for the Sparks Citizens Academy. I also enjoy going out into the community and educating the community on the third branch of the government, which is sometimes forgotten. I am still enjoying my job and the feedback I get throughout the city tells me that I am doing a good job. The challenge to the job is a growing population and the budget cuts. There is a challenge to meet the needs of the growing population. The challenge is the growing population and the shrinking resources. For them to know that you will follow through with what you said is very important. I am grateful to the citizens of Sparks.