LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Two Las Vegas residents officially filed a lawsuit to block the construction of a facility designed to help the unhoused community, Campus for Hope.
This is a story Channel 13 has been following for years.
A nearly 30-page lawsuit was just filed Monday night shortly after 5 p.m., and Channel 13 obtained a copy.
WATCH | Why some residents are against the project
It all circles around the Campus for Hope, a new transitional homeless facility that will be built on 26 acres of the current Southern Nevada Adult Mental Health Services center on Charleston Avenue near Jones Boulevard.
The lawsuit lists the City of Las Vegas, Clark County, State of Nevada, the Campus for Hope and Las Vegas City Councilman Brian Knudsen, who represents the area Ward 1, as defendants.
According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs claim the approval process lacked transparency, saying that there wasn't enough public notice. They're also concerned with so many homeless people living there.
The referral-based $200 million campus would have 900 beds for unhoused residents and give them services intended to get them off the street, but plaintiff Jim Root tells me the center would not fit in.
“That’s a lot for our community, so I’m hard pressed to see any way that I can agree with that size of a facility," said Root.
Root and Matthew Wambolt are both nearby residents to the future Campus for Hope site who are listed as the two plaintiffs on the lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit, they're concerned with property values dropping nearby, increased crime, and the unhoused community being close to local churches and schools.
The site is right next to the CSN Charleston Campus with Bonanza High School about a mile away, among others.
However, not everyone agrees that construction should be stopped. Daniel Anderson, a nearby resident of over 50 years, tells me he wants to see the center built.
“I’m thrilled that it’s coming, you know getting some of the people out of this heat and teaching them how to work," said Anderson.
I reached out to representatives for the State of Nevada and Campus For Hope. Representatives from Campus for Hope told me they couldn't comment because they didn't see the lawsuit before the end of the workday, which was filed at 5:11 p.m.
Campus for Hope CEO Kim Jefferies sat down with me in April shortly after she was announced as CEO to discuss the project. She says she understands the concerns many have, and says safety is paramount.
“Our security won’t have the authority to go off-premise, but local police will have that authority, so we’ll work closely with them," said Jefferies.
She says all unhoused people staying there will be referred by a county or city navigation center and ahve background checks completed. She envisions families and motivated people who want to improve their life, being there.
As for now, construction is still expected to begin in September, with plans to open the Campus for Hope in the spring or summer of 2027.
