Council rejects senior-housing project proposal

Diana Sahagun

Thursday, Sept. 16, 1999 | 10:36 a.m.

Revitalization was on the minds of North Las Vegas City Council members Wednesday.

But not enough to bring a new, 2-acre senior housing complex to the city.

The council shot down a request by Catholic Charities to have the city donate 2 acres for a senior housing complex on Tonopah and Owens avenues and provide $300,000 in city funds toward the effort.

It's the second time Catholic Charities has come before the council this year asking for help to build a senior housing complex. And it's the second time the idea has been turned down, even in the midst of a housing shortage for seniors.

On Jan. 20 the council opposed a $4 million, low-income senior housing project at the corner of Martin Luther King Boulevard and Carey Avenue. Clark County had donated 2.2 acres to Catholic Charities to build a 48-unit housing project, but the council rejected the proposal after more than a dozen neighbors spoke out against the project.

While there was no apparent citizen opposition to the proposal at Wednesday's meeting, there were many concerns among council members.

The proposed site is about a half-mile from the Housing Authority, which also runs a senior apartment complex. The city owns a total of 6.7 acres of land, which is located in the city's redevelopment area.

"The land is in an area where the city is making a concerted effort to revitalize the older section," Dave Elnes, project director for Catholic Charities, said.

Elnes told the council members seniors are the fastest-growing segment of the population.

Councilman John Rhodes strongly backed the proposal, emphasizing the topic of revitalization, and "empowering the neighborhoods" to his constituents.

"Here we have an area that is neglected in regards to a housing project," he said. "This will bring about revitalization into an older community in North Las Vegas."

He emphasized that leveraging money for the project would spur even more development in an older area. His belief was that businesses would be attracted to the area once they see more growth.

Councilwoman Stephanie Smith disagreed, saying the focus should be on revitalizing existing neighborhoods instead of building new ones. She stressed that if the city is willing to spend $300,000 on the complex, it could be put to better use.

"(The council) has determined that our number one priority was revitalizing what's already there," she said. "North Las Vegas has a plethora of such housing. The money should be spent on the people who are already there."

As a matter of compromise, Rhodes made a motion to approve $100,000 in home funds to get the project started for the first year, and then re-evaluate the success. The motion was denied.

For Councilman William Robinson, it was a matter of dollars and cents.

"If we're not getting any property taxes from you, what are you giving to North Las Vegas?" he asked Elnes. "I'm not willing to give you 2 cents on this project."

For Councilwoman Shari Buck, who agreed that the city needs more senior housing, safety was an issue.

"My concern is that this is part of an area that is very high density and one of the highest crime areas in our city," she said. "To put more residents there where there's high transient population and crime, I have a fear and concern about that."

Elnes said his next step will be to look for other agencies for help.

"If the city doesn't have the capacity, we'll just have to look elsewhere."