LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Government and private-sector leaders from across the valley met Thursday to talk about an issue that locals find particularly vexing: the lack of affordable homes.
The all-day Regional Affordable Housing Forum, sponsored by the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority, was the third annual iteration of the event. It was held at the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health.
VIDEO: Steve Sebelius sums up what government and private-sector leaders discussed at the Regional Affordable Housing Forum
Mayors from across the valley discussed affordable housing in their jurisdictions, and shared their own housing stories, from a concrete-floored first apartment to a cinder block first home.
But they all agreed that housing is now out of reach for many of their constituents. "We need more, at every level, we need more," said Boulder City Mayor Dr. Joe Hardy.
Henderson Mayor Michelle Romero cited the Housing and Urban Development Department's average median income figures, saying families making between $61,000 and $80,000 are priced out of the housing market.
"There is not a house in this valley that you can afford on that pay," she said.
Las Vegas Mayor Shelley Berkley said her family's first home cost just $33,000, but despite its basic construction, it gave her family roots in the community.
"We need to elevate everybody so they feel valued and a part of the community," Berkley said.
All the valley's mayors said they support a land bill to get more federal land into local hands. And they all endorsed Gov. Joe Lombardo's housing bill, which would devote about $250 million to new housing initiatives.
Local control
But Berkley took issue with some bills proposed in the Legislature that would override local control in the name of building more affordable housing.
One bill, since amended, would have required local governments to adopt ordinances authorizing the building of casitas on people's existing lots. Another would mandate that local officials authorize apartments to be built on land that's zoned for commercial development.
Berkley put it simply — "We know better."
"The reality is, that's why you have elected officials at the local level, because we know our communities best, we know our neighborhoods best," Berkley told Channel 13 after the forum. "Those are all the challenges, but I think that they can be dealt with a little more effectively on the local level."
Dealing with homelessness
Another panel at the forum dealt with homelessness, a key symptom of the affordable housing issue.
Panelists included Kim Jefferies, the new president and CEO of the Campus for Hope, which was authorized by a 2023 bill that devoted $100 million in state money, matched by another $100 million raised by the private sector.
The goal of the campus is to get formerly homeless people the individual help they need and allow them to transition to affordable apartments or houses.
Jefferies said the campus isn't just another walk-in shelter; clients are vetted to determine their individual needs, which are then matched with help. Services include medical, dental and vision care, child care, job training, housing assistance and substance abuse treatment.
The campus also offers a place for pets, and it allows unmarried couples to stay together, unlike other shelters where men and women are separated.
But Jefferies said one of the most important missions of the campus is to help homeless people learn how to re-integrate into society.
"For people experiencing homelessness, they have lost all that sense of belonging," Jefferies said. "They literally belong nowhere because they don't have that home to go to that we, when we feel uncomfortable, can go and retreat to that space."
Jefferies formerly headed the Haven for Hope facility in San Antonio, Texas, where she said downtown homelessness fell by 77%, thanks to the Haven's efforts.
The Campus for Hope will work with existing facilities and groups — including the city's homeless courtyard shelter — to vet potential clients.
Moving around
Officials from Nevada's major transportation agencies met to talk about the link between affordable housing and public transportation.
M.J. Maynard, CEO of the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada, said the vast majority of bus passengers are people on their way to work.
It's critical, then, to build affordable housing as close as possible to bus routes or other forms of public transit, including developing or reusing parcels of land close to the urban core.
Building affordable housing in distant suburbs does little good, since there aren't as many bus routes in those areas, Maynard said.
David Damore, a UNLV professor who is the executive director of the Lincy Institute and Brookings Mountain West, said surveys show fewer people want to live in suburbs, and young people especially want to live close to amenities.
As part of the research on the 2050 Southern Nevada Strong plan, an inventory of parcels ripe for development found more than 82,000 acres available, Damore said.
One parcel cited as an example by Shani Coleman, director of community and economic development for Clark County, was the Commercial Center on Sahara Avenue near Maryland Parkway. That parcel could include housing, and is close to a major public transportation route, Coleman said.