Helping the homeless is a good thing – but residents of a suburban neighborhood in Las Vegas say there’s been a lack of transparency and due process in a new project.
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In 2023, Nevada lawmakers approved $100 million in funding for Campus for Hope, a $200 million housing project meant to address homelessness in the city. The rest of the money is being provided by a nonprofit backed by the gaming industry.
The proposed site is the 6100 block of West Charleston Boulevard near Jones Boulevard, and two property owners who live about three blocks away have decided to fight it by filing a lawsuit. They say their quality of life, safety, and home values will be affected by the “arbitrary decision” to place the facility in the current location.
As 8 News Now reports, the suit, which was filed in Clark County District Court, alleges that state officials violated Nevada’s Open Meeting Law by greenlighting the project without giving residents proper notice or allowing members of the public to comment on it.
Last month, the governor even signed a bill to speed up construction of the project, says News 3.
"Why are they trying to push this $200 million project so secretly into the neighborhood?” said homeowner Matthew Wambolt, one of the plaintiffs in the case, to 8 News Now.
The plaintiffs argue the project creates an “incurable defect” in the location and seek to halt it until independent studies are conducted on the potential impact of the facility.
A "ceremonial groundbreaking" was recently held, according to 8 News Now, as protesters lined the perimeter. The report says, "Work on the building is starting in September, followed by construction next year."
Why residents aren’t happy
The plan is for Campus for Hope to be a 900-bed, 26-acre transitional housing facility. According to Nevada Current, the project will take up space on the Southern Nevada Adult Mental Health Services campus and there are fears that it will displace existing mental and behavioral health services.
According to the lawsuit, the facility raises safety concerns since it is less than a mile from the Linda Smith and Christopher Smith Family Campus, which serves children and adults with intellectual disabilities, and within a 2-mile radius of over 20 schools serving K-12 students.
“This project will dramatically alter the fundamental character of our neighborhood, transforming our quiet residential area into one marked by significantly increased congestion, activity, and potential crime,” it says. “Ultimately, we believe this project will substantially lower property values and negatively impact the quality of life for local residents."
It also says that the approval process for Campus for Hope was not transparent enough.
“Given the secretive nature of project approvals, the deliberate avoidance of community engagement, and the removal of normal oversight mechanisms … there is a distinct appearance of impropriety in the actions and backroom collaboration of certain state legislators and their large donors within the gaming industry are at play here,” says the lawsuit.
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"I have a question for the governor. The Strip, the casinos are giving hundreds of millions of dollars for this project. You’re going to move these people off the Strip to this area?” said homeowner Gail Johnson to 8 News Now.
Campus for Hope said it has “met all the state and local requirements for the construction of the facility,” in a statement to 8 News Now.
Boyd Katz, who works for a security company in the area, told the news station that it’s not that residents don’t want to help the homeless, they simply believe the project needs proper oversight.
"If we add a facility with that many beds here just like that it’s going to severely affect that area … not just the commercial area, but the residential neighborhood nearby," he said.
Who pays?
Another issue is who’s paying for the project.
“Local municipal authorities claim alternative locations were considered but have repeatedly refused to disclose any addresses, evaluation criteria, or comparative assessments that justify selecting our community as the ideal site," James Root, one of the plaintiffs in the suit, wrote in an affidavit. "Our city alone bears the responsibility for an estimated annual $15 million in operating expenses."
The Nevada Current reports once construction is complete, Campus for Hope will run on taxpayer dollars almost entirely, split between local governments and the state. It will be overseen by a board of directors that does not include state or municipal representatives.
With a total estimated $30 million a year in operational costs, this project could also result in a hefty tax burden on residents.
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