‘They’ve been wonderful’: Clark County converts another motel to house those experiencing homelessness

Until this week, nearly two years had passed before Leonard Martinez was able to sleep on a bed or experience a hot shower.

Martinez, 61, is one of the first residents at Clark County’s “Navigation Center,” a motel converted into a temporary housing complex, which the county leased to house 70 adults at a time experiencing homelessness.

“If this works, we’ll have several of these around the valley,” Commissioner Tick Segerblom said. “It’s a much more humane way to deal with people who have long-term issues, whether it’s mental or physical.”

Segerblom said the center aims to divert some in the homeless population from the county jail or hospital, where many end up for minor vagrant-related offenses or illnesses.

Martinez, who has been chronically unhoused since 1989, said that severe panic attacks have prevented him from keeping any formal job his entire adult life.

On Wednesday, as heavy rain hammered his Summerlin encampment, he encountered a Las Vegas police officer who told him about the center, he said, noting that this was the first time he accepted public help.

Officers then drove him to the refurbished motel on Boulder Highway.

“I’ve had a wonderful experience,” he said.

“They’ve been wonderful,” he added about the staff who’ve given him clean clothes, meals and are helping him obtain identification documents, and health insurance so he can get his teeth and sun spots checked out.

The center, which also offers social services geared toward finding the residents longer-term housing, is being operated by WellCare, a county contractor. Each air-conditioned room has two beds and a bathroom.

Information about the contract’s cost wasn’t immediately available, but County Manager Kevin Schiller said that the project would help save hundreds of thousands of dollars in the long run.

County officials explained that it costs between $90 and $130 a day to house the people, compared to $250 at the Clark County Detention Center or thousands at UMC.

In total, the county has leased five motels, making available about 1,000 units. Schiller said there’s been a rise in families needing shelter due to pandemic-related woes and skyrocketing rents.

Motel sheltering is just the “front door” for eventual longer-term solutions, Schiller said.

During a day-long homeless census in 2022, Southern Nevada governments counted 5,645 people, and determined that there were 14,000 people who were unhoused “at some point during the year.” At the same time, the county estimated a shortage of more than 85,000 affordable homes for low-income residents.

This week, the federal government announced a plan to sell public land to local governments for as low as $100 an acre to develop affordable housing projects.

“It’s not going away,” Segerblom said about the issue. “The truth is that there’s a segment of society that’s been wiped out by circumstance and we can’t allow them — in the richest country in the world — to live in a wash in 115 degree weather.”

Ramirez, who was hesitant in seeking help because he snores, said he hopes this is the beginning of a new life, in which he ultimately dreams of moving to northern Michigan to farm.

They’re not trying to kill me,” he said about feeling safe. “They’re not saying, ‘shut up you’re snoring,’ and the food is excellent. So, no complaints.”

Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com. Follow @rickytwrites on Twitter.