Editorial: No place like home

Sunday, June 25, 2006 | 7:52 a.m.

North Las Vegas officials may place a six-month moratorium on new group homes for prison parolees because of complaints from residents who say their small neighborhood already has more than its share of such dwellings.

According to a recent story in the Las Vegas Sun, residents of Lawry Avenue say the 11 group homes in their neighborhood have changed the area's character. Some of the homes serve parolees, but others also serve people who are homeless and those who are mentally ill.

North Las Vegas officials aren't considering limits on homes for people who were previously homeless or on halfway houses that serve recovering addicts or those with mental illnesses. But they are looking at restrictions for facilities that serve released prisoners, to prevent high concentrations of them in any one neighborhood.

One group home director told the Sun that North Las Vegas has attracted many such facilities because its regulations aren't as strict as those set by Las Vegas or Clark County. Those two jurisdictions also are considering additional restrictions on group homes, which could exacerbate North Las Vegas' situation if city officials don't enact a moratorium and give themselves time to weigh the options.

Group homes provide a key service for people who are trying to get their lives back on track. For those who were homeless or who are struggling with addiction or mental illness, the location of such homes should be determined by their proximity to social and health services.

But parolees working their way back into the community need to live near transportation and jobs, which could occur anywhere in the valley. Jurisdictions should work together so that regulation of these homes is more consistent across the region. No one community should be burdened with having to provide the largest share of such services that benefit the entire Las Vegas Valley.