Editorial: Time for state to shape up

Friday, Oct. 4, 2002 | 5:01 a.m.

The last time anything went entirely right for the Nevada Veterans Nursing Home in Boulder City was five years ago, when the 1997 Legislature approved the funding for its construction. Since then, any good news about this skilled nursing facility has arisen amid a backdrop of trouble.

It was good news in 1999 when construction began, but the groundbreaking was tempered by the knowledge that it came only after two years of bitter wrangling over funding, design and location. It was good news on June 28 of this year, when the home was opened and dedicated to the memory of Air Force Capt. Michael Lewis Hyde, a decorated pilot from Boulder City killed when his plane was shot down in 1966 as he provided air support for ground troops during the Vietnam War. But again, the news was tempered by the fact that the opening was 18 months late, that construction had gone over-budget by $1 million, that staffing (because of the late opening) was a major issue and that many veterans objected to the home's interior design.

It was good news when the first veterans arrived and the home finally seemed poised to fulfill its mission. But then its director since 1999, Jon Sias, the man who had guided the home through untold obstacles as the state Public Works Board fought incessantly with the contractors, was inexplicably and suddenly fired by state Veterans Affairs Commissioner Chuck Fulkerson. In our view the firing was an outrage, as Sias had the support of local government leaders and veterans, and had provided steady vision during the construction phase so badly botched by the state. But at least there was an immediate interim director, Ray Heath. Now Heath has resigned because Fulkerson's office reneged on his salary agreement.

After five years of turmoil, there are only five veterans living in the 180-bed home. The state must immediately begin managing this facility properly, so that as more veterans arrive, they find a home, not a battlefield.