Alexis Hill’s $250,000 Campaign
This flyer has been sent to Incline Village and Crystal Bay residents. Hill made this statement on a KOLO News 8 Interview. The residents behind the flyer ask, how is Commission Hill planning on paying for this shuttle service? And once at the lake will there be food and events, with money coming from where. They say, “the lake is expensive.”
Piron has been digging into the Commissioner Alexis Hill vs Marsha Berkbigler Community Forum sponsored by Senior Spectrum Magazine a few weeks ago.
Berkbigler has an uphill battle due to the contributions Hill has been able to raise. How did Hill get all that loot? That’s the million dollar question.
From Marsha Berkbigler’s Facebook page. She got volunteers waving signs and stetting up homemade signs on street corners.
A gentleman in the audience asked a question about how much money is spent at the Nevada Cares Campus, and while we don’t have time to go through the entire Washoe County Budget book, we sort of agree that Hill’s number is prosperous and clearly low. More than likely omitting a whole bunch of items being paid from other budget buckets.
Hill stated the CARES Campus has a approximately $14 million budget but our “insider” at Washoe County says, “not so fast Commissioner Hill” and points out, “that is only one piece of the budget which doesn’t include janitorial, bug extermination, Allied Security, meals, construction, vehicles, and the costs to relocate Homeless and Housing Service staff.
Let’s just consider the relocation of the Homeless and Housing Service staff, most recently moving to 350 South Center Street, completely redesigning that section with personal standup desks and new furniture for staff when they had previously received new furniture for their lush offices at 170 S. Virginia. That posh office lease expired, so HHS had to humped it across the street. The 170 S. Virginia furniture was only three years old. Washoe County why did the HHS team need new? We were told by a Human Services Agency employee the county will say “the furniture didn’t fit the space.”
The big question. Why aren’t the Homeless and Housing Service staff located at the Nevada CARES Campus, you know where we pay them to work with the homeless. The new Welcome Center at the CARES Campus carried a price tag of over $30 million dollars to increase client services. Only the bottom floor of the Welcome Center is where “guests” can meet with their caseworkers. Upstairs there is set-up for staff only, with glass walls, and new furniture. Basically ONLY 50% of the Welcome Center is accessible to the population being served. In the budget it simply says Housing and Homeless Services, no details, so Chair Hill us regular folks really can’t gleam from the Washoe County Budget how much money you truly are spending at the CARES Campus unless we hire a CPA.
A few other interesting tidbits from Commissioner Alexis Hill at the Community Forum:
Hill indicates the CARES Campus is on its way to being a national model. Odd, we’ve read San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, and others are moving away from the housing first model, because cities have realized that if they build it, people will come, especially if here is no accountability. “Guests” don’t need to make any progress, and their housing is paid for by the government. “Housing First” does not require residents to address their mental health, substance abuse, or actively engage in a case plan. The concept is, if you give someone a place to live, they are marked as “permanently housed” so Washoe County can report we have lowered the homeless population – but all the reasons that brought them to homelessness, is the same challenges that will reoccur if it’s not addressed, or more importantly, there is no accountability to change behavior and lifestyle.
All Commissioner Hill wants to do is house the homeless, not help them. Washoe County residents are being expected to use taxpayer dollars to house the homeless and the program has no expectations from the homeless.
Another Alexis Hill campaign mailer.
During the forum we were struck by Hill’s platform. Is Alexis Hill an advocate for her district and does she want to make Washoe County the best place to live? In digging through her policy and program decisions they don’t seem to be directed at helping residents in her district.
Another Alexis Hill campaign mailer.
Hill is taking money away from her district and using their tax dollars for her continued belief in investing in the homeless population. There is no substantial evidence that the CARES Campus is changing lives, as Hill indicates, other than, as Washoe County continually points out, they are housing people.
Another Alexis Hill campaign mailer.
Commissioner Hill says Washoe County have housed 700 people, and in addition, once Washoe County stops contributing financially, Hill has indicated that over 50% of those housed have SSI/SSDI so they will remain in their housing. How do we know? Is this an unduplicated count? No one will confirm or deny if it is at Washoe County. Hill and Washoe County will not show us how many of the 700 are still in stable, independent housing without government/county funded programs through HUD or other grants. It doesn’t shock us that residents are being housed if the county funds the housing. SSI/SSDI will not sustain a resident long term in housing due to the cost of housing and the FED’s need to remain in compliance, hence the resident has to have addressed their mental health, substance abuse, employment, etc. all things Washoe County does not require.
In addition, CARES Campus claims 700 people have been placed in permanent housing, and we wonder does that include out-of-state placements? Over 50% of those housed from the CARES Campus, we have been told by former employes, were placed out of state. There is no transparency in the data Washoe County provides, the data doesn’t show us where they exited to, a nursing home, assisted living, out of state, etc.
Picon has learned a great many of residents who were placed in the county assisted housing locally, returned to the CARES Campus. The information coming from former CARES Campus employees differs greatly from Commissioner Hill’s and Washoe County Manager Eric Brown’s data. The county only shares the data they want to, and then hid behind privacy for the CARES Campus ‘guests” making it impossible to truly learn the statistics.
Commissioner Hill said one of the reasons Washoe County purchased West Hill was due to there being no adolescent inpatient beds. We have learned that there are adolescent beds at Reno Behavioral Health, State of Nevada, and Willow Springs.
Commissioner Hill comments that the State of Nevada Legislature has enacted a law to allow foster youth the ability to continue to receive their stipend past 18. We think Hill was referring to the Extended Young Adult Support Services Program (EYASSP). Reading online the provisions of SB 380 allow Nevada an extension until July 1, 2025 to enact the program. This is a statewide initiative led by Senator Nguyen. Commissioner Hill had no involvement.
State Senator Nguyen May 8, 2024 Facebook post.
Commissioner Hill indicated Washoe County Foster Parent stipend was very low and Washoe County Commissioners added to the general fund to meet the need. Washoe County increased the foster parent rate by 5% to assist in 2022. However, the State of Nevada, who funds Washoe County’s foster parent maintenance payments, was increased by the State of Nevada, and the Legislature. The State of Nevada increased the rates for all foster parents, statewide with state general funds and federal dollars. Washoe County was not required to contribute. Did Hill double spend taxpayer dollars by allotting funds after the State of Nevada had?
Finally, Commissioner Hill commented during the community forum that there is an audit of the CARES Campus occurring to ensure efficiency of the program and to have checks and balances with government money. Washoe County doesn’t already have checks and balances in place? Hill indicated she is the alternate on the audit committee. Isn’t that a conflict? Chair Hill is deeply involved in the CARES Campus, thus how can she be on a committee to fairly audit the facility? Commissioner Hill has actually taken over an audit committee meeting or two along the way. We remember The Elections Group meeting where a presentation was supposed to have been made and Hill shut the meeting down, with residents never receiving a presentation from County Manager Brown.
Shouldn’t an outside company be hired to audit the CARES Campus? Just to be fair. Maybe Commissioner Hill could help Washoe County out with a few dollars from her campaign fund.