Fallon mayor says he will seek another term

Fallon Mayor Ken Tedford has announced he’s seeking another term to the city’s highest office.

Tedford was first elected in 1995. Before that, he served as a councilman.

Official filing will be March 4-15 with the primary election scheduled for June 11 and the general election Nov. 5.

Tedford, who grew up in Fallon and graduated from Churchill County High School and the University of Nevada, Reno, ran unopposed in his bid for re-election in 2019. The mayor is responsible for the day-to-day operation and oversight of Fallon’s government and its enterprises.

Tedford served on city council for eight years before his election as mayor. He is owner of Tedford Tire and Auto Service, a family-owned auto shop that has been serving Churchill County since 1947.

Since his first term as mayor and most recently during the past four years, Tedford said he’s proud of what the city council has accomplished. A major goal of Tedford and the city council is keeping residents safe. He points to the leadership of the Fallon Police Department led by Chief of Police Ron Wenger and the Fallon-Churchill Volunteer Fire Department, which was named in July as the Nevada State Firefighter’s Association Fire Department of the Year.

The fire department has maintained an Insurance Services Office 1 rating for almost 30 years. This top rating brings lower fire insurance rates for city residents who live either in the city or county.

Tedford said he and the city are strong supporters of the military which includes Naval Air Station Fallon, the Naval Aviation Warfare Development Center and the Nevada Army National Guard’s 609th Engineer Co.

Tedford turned his thoughts to the future.

“What we have done for many years is plan ahead, and we have had even growth,” he said.

During the past two years, the city has been improving and paving a number of streets including Whitaker Lane, Rancho Road and A, Broadway and Kaiser. The projects coincided with the Nevada Department of Transportation’s improvements and repaving on U.S. Highway 50 (Williams Avenue) and U.S. Highway 95 (North Maine and South Taylor streets).

During the past four years, Tedford and the city council successfully navigated Fallon through the coronavirus pandemic. The city, along with the Churchill, Mineral, Pershing and Eureka counties, established a partnership to form the Central Nevada Health District. The Nevada Board of Health created the health district on Dec. 2, 2022, as the third district approved in the state and the first to serve rural communities and counties.

The health district began implementing services in July including public health nursing, disease investigation and prevention, public health preparedness and environmental health. Tedford serves as the board’s chairman.

Tedford navigated the city’s response to potential flooding almost one year ago because of the heavy snowfall in the Sierra Nevada and the forecast of an unprecedented runoff. Both the city and county declared emergency declarations, and Gov. Joe Lombardo has declared emergencies for most of Nevada’s counties.

What concerned officials including those from the city of Fallon was the preparation for possible flooding, and for the Truckee Carson Irrigation District and the Bureau of Reclamation to monitor the river and the canal system water levels.

As a business owner, Tedford said he sees the importance and benefits of supporting the area’s merchants. He cited Cranberry Cottage moving to the historic, two-story bank building on Maine Street and the Central Nevada Health District and Churchill County Social Services relocating to the refurbished J.C. Penney store. Tedford said he’s pleased with the success of the Fallon Theatre, which is now run as a nonprofit.

“The Fallon Theatre was something I backed and support,” he said of the building.

The city council backed a Community Block Development Grant to support improvements to the building.

Tedford said Fallon is a family-orientated city, and he points to the annual Christmas tree lighting and holiday events. In December for the first time, the city offered ice skating.

“A lot happens in Fallon, and the Christmas tree lighting is a good example. People come from other towns for the tree lighting,” he said. “We have a lot more going on here than other communities our size.”

Tedford, who played on state championship teams for Churchill County High School as a student in the late 1960s and early 1970s, is a member of the Greenwave Hall of Fame.

Perhaps the biggest plum in promoting both the county and city has been the Rafter 3C Arena and the complex (the former fairgrounds). The arena opened in June 2023, and since that time, many events ranging from concerts to rodeo and roping events have attracted thousands of spectators.

The first major event at the Rafter 3C, however, brought the Nevada League of Cities to Fallon.

The mayor, the city council and his executive board hosted the Nevada League of Cities as representatives from around the state conducted a retreat.

Candidates Nights

Two Candidates Nights co-sponsored by the Lahontan Valley News, Fallon Post, Lahontan Valley Broadcasting and the Churchill County Republicans will be held in May and October prior to early voting. Candidates seeking local offices, school board, Assembly District 38 and the Board of Regents District 9 will be invited.