Funds for shelter beds may be diverted

Thursday, Dec. 5, 2002 | 11:32 a.m.

The city of Las Vegas may divert some of the $200,000 budgeted annually for homeless services away from the funding of extra winter shelter beds because, according to a report issued Wednesday, there are 350 more beds available at homeless shelters this year.

"We may be shifting some of the funds to programs like the Crisis Intervention Center and the regional crisis triage center," Deputy City Manager Betsy Fretwell said.

She said the city plans no reduction in overall funding for the homeless.

The Crisis Intervention Center is a one-stop location for the homeless to obtain social services. It is run by Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada at the old MASH Village site at Main Street and Owens Avenue. The triage center would address the needs of alcoholics and the mentally ill who have clogged hospital emergency rooms.

The report was given to the City Council as an informational item so no vote was taken.

"There are 350 more beds available this year than last year -- this is something we feel is pretty significant," Fretwell said, noting that all of the beds for the homeless -- about 1,675 -- are in shelters that are located within the city limits.

Last year the city of Las Vegas approved $51,000 to open a huge tent at MASH Village a month earlier than in previous years, providing emergency shelter from November through March. About 250 men were sheltered in the tent at MASH, which closed in October because of financial reasons.

Catholic Charities this year opened its new complex, which is the main reason there are so many additional beds. Fretwell told the council that the goal of the MASH tent over the past three years was to meet the needs for the homeless until the new Catholic Charities complex came on line.

"It worked," she said. "It (the tent) did what we set out to achieve."

However, Catholic Charities has reported that only 164 of its beds are available for emergency shelter because more homeless people are in its recovery programs, which include a shelter bed. Catholic Charities says 380 people are in recovery programs this year compared to 150 last year.

Fretwell said the city currently provides $50,000 to operate the Crisis Intervention Center, which also is funded by the county, leftover money that was to have gone to MASH and grant money.

The $50,000 gift from Mayor Oscar Goodman's Bombay Sapphire Gin endorsement contract to the city to help the homeless is not part of the city's $200,000 annual allocation for homeless services, city officials said.

"We want to keep the CIC up and running because a number of people use the services," Fretwell said.

As for the triage center, the county and municipalities plan to chip in $1.27 million -- $645,000 from the city -- with equal shares coming from area hospitals and the state.

Earlier this year, the city's Chronic Public Inebriate Task Force urged the creation of the $3.8 million crisis triage center to better meet the needs of the chronically inebriated and mentally ill -- many of whom are homeless -- and reduce the crowds in hospital emergency rooms.

Various estimates have placed the valley's homeless population -- which includes not only the stereotypical street people but also those living in cars, shelters or with friends -- at 8,000 to 10,000.