Opening of center for homeless is delayed

By Timothy Pratt (contact)

Monday, Oct. 18, 2004 | 10:56 a.m.

A one-stop center meant to help the homeless and other poor people will not open until late November, or two months behind schedule, said Dan Goulet, president of the United Way of Southern Nevada, the nonprofit organization behind the project.

Goulet said he hopes to have the Fertitta Community Assistance Center -- at the downtown campus of Catholic Charities -- open "by the holidays, a critical time for those in need, with lots of emotional and financial stress."

The center was due to open Sept. 30 but the project is based on donated labor and materials and some companies have withdrawn their support because of other commitments, Goulet said.

"That happens when you're relying on volunteers," he said. Goulet also said it was tough to ask construction companies for help, since most find themselves busy.

"The construction market is booming right now and it's hard for them to take people off the job," he said, adding that he is still seeking support to finish the project by Thanksgiving.

The center was intended to fill a gap left when the MASH Village Crisis Intervention Center closed in 2003. The MASH center was a one-stop collection of more than 40 public and private agencies at its peak. The new center's opening across the street from the old one was announced in June, and since then at least one agency has pulled out, citing the uncertainty of such a project.

Pat Duncan, chief of mental health for the Veterans Administration Southern Nevada Health Care System, said his agency decided to open an office in another building nearby because "we were unclear what the timeline would be ... or whether it would even be completed."

"There were so many unknowns, based on the volunteer nature of the project," he said.

Instead of at the Fertitta center, Duncan said his agency will soon offer health care for homeless veterans at another location near H Street and Owens Avenue. The United Way project is now left with five agencies, including welfare and Southern Nevada Adult Mental Health, two state agencies, as well as Clark County Social Service.

Maurice Silva, who directs a state team that helps the mentally ill who are not in hospitals or clinics, said he hopes the project is finished soon, since his group is temporarily housed in a county building and could be asked to leave at any time.

"If they (the county) said, 'We need the space,' we would have to look for another place -- we would have no choice," Silva said.

But Clark County Manager Thom Reilly remained optimistic about the project's finale, saying the county and state agencies had a commitment to its location, which he said helps deliver services to the homeless.

"The delay impacts the homeless population, but doesn't dampen our enthusiasm for the project," he said.