Home will get a free face-lift

Daniela Mohor

Friday, Dec. 7, 2001 | 4:20 a.m.

When Marcie Hill received a phone call last month informing her that her whole house would be renovated for free, the 88-year-old North Las Vegas resident thought it was a scam.

"I couldn't believe it," she said, still incredulous weeks later. "They say they'd do it all in one day. I don't know how they can ... I'm happy."

On Dec. 15 Hill will become the first person in Las Vegas to benefit from "Restore America," a national program sponsored by Paul Davis Restoration, a loss mitigation and insurance restoration company based in Jacksonville, Fla., with offices in Las Vegas.

Through a collaboration with more than a dozen firms, every year "Restore America" provides time, labor and materials to repair the house of someone who cannot afford to do it, such as Hill.

Hill was referred to Paul Davis Restoration by Catholic Charities, which helps her through its Meals on Wheels program.

The woman had hoped to have her modest three-bedroom house fixed for a long time. But the Supplemental Security Income she receives from the state didn't allow her to pay for the many repairs her place needs, her great-grandson Ken Hill said.

Like many homes in her neighborhood, her house started sinking a few years ago, he said. As a result, cracks in the ground and a gap between the front door and the floor have appeared. To keep the cold from entering her living room, the woman fills the gap with a towel.

The roof of the house isn't in good shape either. It leaks when it rains. So do the pipes when the washing machine is running, Marcie Hill said.

"I wanted it fixed but I couldn't," she said of the plumbing problem. "It was too much."

In a matter of a week, however, her little house at the edge of the desert will look very different.

Paul Davis Restoration will send a crew of 20 to 30 people to revamp the house.

They will redo the roof, paint the outside, fix the leaks, rebuild the bedrooms' walls and put in new carpet. They will renovate the bathroom and refurbish the paneling in the hallway. They will also repair a falling pole in the driveway, clean the back yard and put desert landscaping in the front yard.

If for Hill such improvements are almost too good to be true, for the owner of the Las Vegas franchise of Paul Davis Restoration, they are just another way to serve the community.

The program was launched in the company's Florida office last year.

"We always wanted to be more involved in the community, so when our franchise made us aware of this program, we really liked it," said Tom Lee, owner of the Las Vegas office.

Hill's family looks forward to the changes as well. The improvements, they say, will not only make the house healthier. They will make Hill less ashamed of the place she lives in and boost her social life.

"She is going to enjoy it, it's going to make her happier," said Ken Hill, who, with his wife and child, lives with his great-grandmother. "She'll probably invite her friends over more often."