Opportunity Village gets donations, leads on temporary location after fire

The torrent of donations to Opportunity Village continued Friday in the wake of a fire that destroyed the charity's thrift store, meaning that there's plenty of replacement merchandise for what was lost in the blaze.

Now the organization just needs a store.

"We're getting a lot of leads," said Steve Miller, special events manager for Opportunity Village. "The best-case scenario would be donated space," but that type of offer hasn't materialized yet.

It needs 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of space, including a loading dock and room to process donations.

The site also needs to be near bus service since many of the charity's client-employees use public transportation.

One of the closed Rite Aid locations around the valley would make a good temporary home, according to Miller .

Supporters of the organization have suggested, via Facebook, locations near Sahara Avenue and Decatur Boulevard, Sunset Station in Henderson and Rancho Drive and Cheyenne Avenue.

The store burned July 11, the same day that an NV Energy substation exploded across the street, breaking windows in nearby buildings and causing a natural gas leak.

The fire's cause is still being investigated, said Las Vegas Fire Department spokesman Tim Szymanski.

Meanwhile, Opportunity Village has collected more than 20 trailers of donations, from furniture to clothing to used electronics and sporting goods.

It usually has one or two trucks collecting donations on a daily basis. On Friday, there were four.

One person usually staffs the call center, but now there are four or five on duty to handle the influx of calls.

"Now that we've got a good amount of donations, once we find a space we can open up and be ready for business immediately," Miller said.

That's important for the largely self-funded organization. The thrift store, which helps train those with intellectual disabilities for retail jobs, averages $3,000 to $5,000 in sales a day. When the monthly First Friday events roll around, the average daily revenue balloons to $13,000.

The corner of Main Street and Coolidge Avenue downtown has been the thrift store's home for decades, and the plan is for the store to remain there -- most likely in a new building, Miller said.

"We're still waiting on word from the inspectors and the insurance company," he said. "There was one wall that was of particular concern.

"That's the goal -- to rebuild on the same spot."

Contact reporter Alan Choate at achoate@reviewjournal.com or 702-229-6435.