OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Mesquite Redevelopment Agency Meeting – July 7, 2026: Approval of $50,000 for Architectural Services

City Council & CommitteesTuesday, July 7, 2026
BodyMesquite, Nevada
SessionCity Council & Committees
DateTuesday, July 7, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 24:43

Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

Councilwoman Fielding as soon as you're ready.

0:04

And I would like to before I get going, announce that uh Councilman Parrish is excused, and he did let me know he was gonna be big on.

0:13

So let's please excuse him.

0:14

And I'm sorry I forgot to do that at tech.

0:17

Um, but yeah, he he let us know ahead of time.

0:20

Um also the city manager is stuck in traffic, and so she wasn't able to get called in.

0:28

So um opening public comment for our the Tuesday, June 7th, 2026.

0:37

Mosquite really redevelopment agency meeting.

0:44

Okay, seeing none, I'm gonna move on to 2.1s.

0:47

It's consideration or approval of the Tuesday, July 7th, 2026 redevelopment agency agenda.

0:53

Do we have a public comment on that?

0:55

Any questions from the board?

0:59

If not, can I get a motion?

1:02

Council uh board member Fielding.

1:05

Thank you, Chair.

1:06

Um, I will make a motion to accept the consent agenda.

1:10

Do I have a second?

1:11

I'll suck it.

1:12

Okay, call for the vote.

1:13

One, yes.

1:15

And I'm sorry.

1:16

Galloway.

1:18

Okay, motion passes.

1:19

Item 3.1 discussion and possible approval of redevelopment agency funding of approximately 50,000 for architectural and design services associated with the renovation and remodeling of the relief society house.

1:31

Mr.

1:32

Anderson.

1:32

Thank you, Chair, board members.

1:34

Um, the item before you today is as you remember, I was tasked with the renovation of the relief society house and the rock house.

1:44

Um as we looked at that, not only so we originally were looking at that being in phases, but it was uh with the city council's purview um to do that as one face.

1:57

And so to be able to bid that to where I have an apples to apples bid, I need to have um an architect come in and help me to generate plans that contractors can come and to bid this.

2:13

So this is simply a ballpark number that I was requesting the RDA board to approve, and then I can go and procure uh an architectural service for this.

2:27

So this is in no means the actual cost.

2:30

I'll bring the actual cost.

2:32

I mostly wanted to bring this to your attention to make sure I'm going down the right path of what is desired to bring on an architect to help because I need structural elements, the inside, the exterior, all of those um, so I can get those apples to apples bid.

2:55

So just to clarify, this 50,000 is in no means a contract that has already been worked out with an architect.

3:02

This is simply a ballpark number.

3:05

Once that um contract is received, I will bring that back to the RDA board for approval of that.

3:13

But this is more to get the ball rolling so that I can get them working on plans to redo the um relief society and the rock house.

3:23

And I'm happy to answer any questions.

3:25

Okay, board member wonless.

3:29

So this just says the release society house, but you're gonna be doing the rock house at the same time.

3:35

Well, so that's the kind of as we worked on this.

3:38

I think if I had an architect working on both of these elements, I don't know when the the council action was strictly with the relief society.

3:47

So that's also um I may ask for that uh we can do the plans together and then bring that or ask for a price separately, and then uh or combination with the architect, and then I could break those plans into two separate um projects, one for the relief society house, one for the rock house, because they they really are separate.

4:14

Um when you're looking at the elements that will go into the rock house, are a little bit different than what you're gonna be doing on the relief society house.

4:22

So this is kind of I'm asking for a little bit of direction in some ways, but just letting you know this is the path that I'm going down to get this taken care of.

4:34

So do you think it would be less expensive, the same more expensive if you had one architect come in, visit both at the same time, they're right next to each other, and do the plans for both at the same time rather than just do one and then have to come back and start all over and do it a second.

4:50

It would obviously whenever you're looking at these, even on small projects, because you still have upfront things that are all always included.

5:00

And so if I was able to do both of these, since we're gonna be doing these, you know, at least the relief society all at one time, it makes sense to have them look at the rock house as well, make that an entire one project, and then you know, we can do that.

5:16

It will save us money on having an architect do plans for both of these together rather than two plan sets separately.

5:23

I don't know how the rest of the council would feel, but I think it would make sense to have the architecture and the plants done on both of them, even if the build you do them separately.

5:34

So you do the reef side of the house first and build it out separately and then the rock house, but you'd have what you needed to go to bid on both of them at the same time.

5:43

And I think it would save the city some money.

5:45

And I can have them it it does save if they're working on both of those at the same time, and I can have them generate as two.

5:54

We did that with the justice facility when they were doing the evidence building and then the renovations.

6:00

So it was basically they were working on two parts of that, and then we combine those into one, but like through theoretically, could have worked the evidence building and then the justice facility after.

6:12

So it gives us some flexibility um to be able to do that.

6:16

But I do agree that if we're gonna do both of them, having an architect do both of those at the same time is going to save me money in the long run with that.

6:26

Board member Fielding.

6:28

Thank you, board chair.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Capital Improvement Planning█████████████████████████████████████████████56%
Historic Preservation█████████████████████████31%
Procedural██████████13%
Summary of Proceedings

Mesquite Redevelopment Agency Meeting – July 7, 2026

The Mesquite Redevelopment Agency (RDA) Board met on July 7, 2026, at 2:45 PM at Mesquite City Hall. The meeting focused on approving a consent agenda and discussing a funding request for architectural and design services related to the renovation of the Relief Society House and the Rock House. Councilman Parrish was excused, and the city manager was absent due to traffic. Public comments raised concerns about RDA rules, cost overruns, and historical preservation, while the board ultimately approved $50,000 for the services.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of the July 7, 2026 RDA Meeting Agenda: The board voted unanimously to accept the consent agenda. Motion by Councilwoman Fielding, seconded by an unnamed board member, passed without opposition.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Bill Mitchell (resident/business owner): Raised three points: (1) The RDA rules limit architectural funding to $30,000 and require two bids before approval, arguing the $50,000 request exceeds that limit. (2) Expressed concern that costs could escalate based on past projects (e.g., the Justice Department renovation costing $300,000 for architect monitoring). (3) Criticized the RDA’s outreach to business owners, claiming the program is poorly promoted and difficult to navigate. He later questioned the legality of the board’s approval.
  • George Galt (speaking as a tourism representative): Supported the project, emphasizing that doing both the Relief Society House and Rock House together would save money. Asked whether the architect would be qualified in historical properties. Also suggested naming the area (e.g., “Settler Square”) to boost tourism. Expressed confidence in the project’s alignment with tourism goals.
  • Chekhov Ford (resident): Asked whether the city owns the property (confirmed yes) and suggested consulting The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for restoration expertise, citing Nauvoo as an example. The city staff responded that the church has been contacted but considers this a regional, not national, historical site and is unlikely to assist.
  • Doug Hanshaw (resident): Questioned the total project cost and whether there is a cap. He noted that $50,000 is already allocated without a final estimate, and expressed concern about potential cost overruns. The chair and staff explained that the architect’s plans will provide a cost estimate, and the board will decide whether to proceed based on affordability.

Discussion Items

  • Item 3.1: Funding for Architectural and Design Services ($50,000)
    • Staff member Mr. Anderson (Travis) presented the request: The city needs architect-generated plans to obtain competitive bids for renovating the Relief Society House and the Rock House. The $50,000 is a ballpark figure; the actual contract will be brought back for approval. Discussion addressed whether to include both houses in one architect contract to save money. Board member Wonnacott (referred to as “Wonless” in transcript) suggested splitting the $50,000 into two $25,000 allocations for each house, but later agreed to approve as presented to avoid potential open meeting law issues. The board also clarified that the funding covers structural work only, not landscaping. Staff noted that architectural services are procured based on qualifications, not price, per Nevada law (NRS for professional services).

Key Outcomes

  • Approval of $50,000 for Architectural Services: The board voted to approve the item as presented – $50,000 for architectural and design services associated with the renovation and remodeling of the Relief Society House. Motion by Councilwoman Fielding, seconded by another board member, passed unanimously. The staff will proceed with the qualification-based selection process and bring back a contract for final approval.

Note: The meeting’s agenda and transcript date conflict (agenda says July 7, 2026; transcript incorrectly says “June 7th, 2026”). The correct date is July 7, 2026, as used in the agenda and minutes. Public commenter Bill Mitchell claimed the RDA rules cap architectural funding at $30,000, but the board did not address this discrepancy during the vote.

Meeting Transcript

Councilwoman Fielding as soon as you're ready. And I would like to before I get going, announce that uh Councilman Parrish is excused, and he did let me know he was gonna be big on. So let's please excuse him. And I'm sorry I forgot to do that at tech. Um, but yeah, he he let us know ahead of time. Um also the city manager is stuck in traffic, and so she wasn't able to get called in. So um opening public comment for our the Tuesday, June 7th, 2026. Mosquite really redevelopment agency meeting. Okay, seeing none, I'm gonna move on to 2.1s. It's consideration or approval of the Tuesday, July 7th, 2026 redevelopment agency agenda. Do we have a public comment on that? Any questions from the board? If not, can I get a motion? Council uh board member Fielding. Thank you, Chair. Um, I will make a motion to accept the consent agenda. Do I have a second? I'll suck it. Okay, call for the vote. One, yes. And I'm sorry. Galloway. Okay, motion passes. Item 3.1 discussion and possible approval of redevelopment agency funding of approximately 50,000 for architectural and design services associated with the renovation and remodeling of the relief society house. Mr. Anderson. Thank you, Chair, board members. Um, the item before you today is as you remember, I was tasked with the renovation of the relief society house and the rock house. Um as we looked at that, not only so we originally were looking at that being in phases, but it was uh with the city council's purview um to do that as one face. And so to be able to bid that to where I have an apples to apples bid, I need to have um an architect come in and help me to generate plans that contractors can come and to bid this. So this is simply a ballpark number that I was requesting the RDA board to approve, and then I can go and procure uh an architectural service for this. So this is in no means the actual cost. I'll bring the actual cost. I mostly wanted to bring this to your attention to make sure I'm going down the right path of what is desired to bring on an architect to help because I need structural elements, the inside, the exterior, all of those um, so I can get those apples to apples bid. So just to clarify, this 50,000 is in no means a contract that has already been worked out with an architect. This is simply a ballpark number. Once that um contract is received, I will bring that back to the RDA board for approval of that. But this is more to get the ball rolling so that I can get them working on plans to redo the um relief society and the rock house. And I'm happy to answer any questions. Okay, board member wonless. So this just says the release society house, but you're gonna be doing the rock house at the same time. Well, so that's the kind of as we worked on this. I think if I had an architect working on both of these elements, I don't know when the the council action was strictly with the relief society. So that's also um I may ask for that uh we can do the plans together and then bring that or ask for a price separately, and then uh or combination with the architect, and then I could break those plans into two separate um projects, one for the relief society house, one for the rock house, because they they really are separate. Um when you're looking at the elements that will go into the rock house, are a little bit different than what you're gonna be doing on the relief society house. So this is kind of I'm asking for a little bit of direction in some ways, but just letting you know this is the path that I'm going down to get this taken care of. So do you think it would be less expensive, the same more expensive if you had one architect come in, visit both at the same time, they're right next to each other, and do the plans for both at the same time rather than just do one and then have to come back and start all over and do it a second. It would obviously whenever you're looking at these, even on small projects, because you still have upfront things that are all always included. And so if I was able to do both of these, since we're gonna be doing these, you know, at least the relief society all at one time, it makes sense to have them look at the rock house as well, make that an entire one project, and then you know, we can do that. It will save us money on having an architect do plans for both of these together rather than two plan sets separately.

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