Former Sparks Mayor Geno Martini passes away

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) - Former Sparks Mayor Geno Martini has died.

A statement from the City of Sparks is mourning his passing, sharing words from Mayor Ed Lawson:

All of us here at the City of Sparks are mourning the passing of our beloved Mayor Geno Martini. (...)
“We greatly appreciate Mayor Martini for the amazing and valuable work he did over the years,” said Mayor Ed Lawson. “But more importantly, all of us here at the City loved and respected the man who could bring a smile to anyone’s face. Mayor Martini appreciated, loved, and respected City staff and the feeling was mutual. To me personally, he was a mentor who always gave me encouragement and perspective.”
In 2018, the City threw a farewell retirement bash for Mayor Martini that was attended by City employees and officials from throughout the region.
“It was our time to say goodbye to him professionally but now we say a final goodbye to a man who truly made a difference in our City,” Mayor Lawson said. “We will miss him terribly, and our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Ruth, and daughter Gina and her family.”
Julie Duewel, City of Sparks Community Relations Manager

Council member Donald Abbott shared his goodbyes on social media this morning, calling him “a living legend, mentor, and a dear friend.”

Tonight I said goodbye to a living legend, a mentor, and a dear friend, Geno Martini. ❤️

Geno is someone I looked up to all the years I've grown up in Sparks and is the definition of what it means to be #SparksProud. He grew up on his family's ranch in East Sparks, and attended pic.twitter.com/VH4r3oNnlf
— Donald Abbott (@DonaldForSparks) June 2, 2023

Martini’s daughter, Gina Martini-Gonzales, confirmed that her father passed away last night. She shared in a Facebook post, “I’m so glad he’s finally at peace after a rough couple of weeks. Thank you to everyone who came to visit these last few days.”

Martini was a Sparks native, starting on the city council in 1999 to fill the spot left when Tony Armstrong was elected mayor. When Mayor Armstrong passed away, he was elected to take over the role. Martini went on to serve longer than any other mayor in the city’s history, a record 13 and a half years. He left the office in 2018 to focus on his health after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s.

Geno Martini was instrumental in turning a former gravel pit into the Sparks Marina. He also played a key part in bringing the Legends Outlet Mall to the area. He left his mark on the Sparks community, enough so that the city named a road after him.

Former Mayor Martini was 77 years old.

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