MASH Village pulling out of Vegas

Diana Sahagun

Friday, March 29, 2002 | 11:20 a.m.

The city's main homeless provider said this morning that it will pull out of Las Vegas because it hasn't found the financial support it needs.

The Rev. Joe Carroll announced that he gave the city six months' notice to find a new operator for MASH Village, saying he wanted to give Las Vegas enough time to find another operator before next winter.

"We needed to look at the total financial picture," said Carroll, director of San Diego-based Father Joe's MASH Villages. "We're basically subsidizing the operation in Las Vegas to the tune of $1 million a year, and we couldn't continue to do so without jeopardizing our operations in San Diego."

The surprising news comes at the height of the homeless issue in Las Vegas, and leaves questions as to who will fill the void. On Sunday, the city led a sweep of a homeless encampment, and critics say there are not enough beds for the homeless.

In the last two months, Carroll has been negotiating with the city for ownership of the shelter's land on Main Street. He had threatened to leave if he did not receive ownership of the land, but Sharon Segerblom, the city's neighborhood services director, said negotiations had been going along smoothly.

The City Council planned to discuss a final agreement next month.

"This is coming as a surprise to the city," Deputy City Manager Betsy Fretwell said. "It's unfortunate. They were providing a much-needed service in that area."

MASH Village, located at Main Street and Owens Avenue on what's known as the "homeless corridor," opened in 1995 and includes about 120 beds for single women and families. The total budget for the Las Vegas shelter and related services is about $4 million, Carroll said.

"We've got a terrific staff there, and they've put up with two years of battles with the city about the land there, and it's unfortunate that we have to make this decision at this time for economic reasons," Carroll said. "The reality is that our donations are down in Las Vegas. I'm disappointed that we haven't been able to engender the sort of support from the gaming industry that we would have liked.

"They support a lot of charities, but we just didn't make their list."

Ruth Bruland, executive director of Las Vegas MASH Village, said she was meeting with her staff of 70 this morning to inform them of Carroll's decision.

"We are going to continue to work our hearts out to serve this population, though I'm still not sure how," said Bruland.

MASH Village has assisted thousands of families, officials said. The center has transitional housing for 120 families, a heath clinic, and a 250-bed emergency winter shelter for single men. A resource center, which has jobs banks, and information on social services, has provided help to 18,000 people during the last year, officials said. Metro Police also have an office at the site.

Fretwell said she will put an item on the council's April 17 agenda to determine how to proceed.

Civil rights leaders said the announcement will exacerbate the already growing homeless problem.

"Obviously this means there are going to be fewer shelter spaces out there," said Allen Lichtenstein, attorney for the Nevada chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. "It's crucial that something is done out there sooner rather than later, and this just means that more people are going to be on the street."

Sheriff Jerry Keller was surprised to hear this morning that MASH Village was leaving town.

"The loss of MASH Village will affect all of us. The loss of any homeless services is a loss to the community," Keller said.