Working families, children and seniors needing assistance now may access onsite services with the opening of the Boulder Highway Collaborative Campus. This nonprofit collaboration is the first campus-style service partnership of its kind in Nevada and includes Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada (BGCSNV), Lutheran Social Services of Nevada (LSSN), and Nevada HAND.
Beneficiaries include not only the residents of Nevada HAND’s new 264 Boulder Pines Family Apartment homes, but also families living near the Boulder Highway campus, who will have access to the new Boys & Girls Clubs facility, as well as the Comprehensive Safety Net Center and Food Pantry operated by Lutheran Social Services of Nevada. Residents and the Boulder community were joined at the grand opening celebration by Clark County Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani (Chris G); CJ Manthe, Director of the Nevada State Department of Business & Industry; Joseph Lombardo, Clark County Sheriff; the CEO’s of the collaborative partners; and other community and financial partners.
“The Boulder Highway Collaborative Campus is a great example of a public/private partnership that addresses community needs on a broad scale, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” said Clark County Commissioner Chris Giunchigliani, whose district encompasses the area. “This resulted from needing a safe place for kids to play and a subsequent Boys & Girls Clubs and Nevada HAND discussion joined by Lutheran Social Services…a true collaboration. This collaboration, funded in part by Clark County’s HOME Program and a Community Development Block Grant, not only addresses our shortage of affordable workforce housing, but it also provides essential services for nearby neighborhoods and Southern Nevada families. I am confident that the Boulder Highway Campus will stand as a model for what comprehensive community building can be throughout our valley.”
“It’s great to be here with the many partners who have helped make this campus more than a home for our working families, and a resource for the neighborhood and entire community,” said Mike Mullin, founder and CEO of Nevada HAND, the state’s largest nonprofit dedicated to providing high quality affordable housing solutions and supportive services. “I’m grateful for our new educational, business and residential neighbors, such as the Mater Academy of Nevada and Arizona Charlies, who have welcomed us and are now joining in this unique community.”
The idea for the campus germinated from conversations about innovative collaborations at the CEO Exchange, an organization of CEO’s of Southern Nevada’s largest nonprofits, who work together to protect and strengthen the community’s safety net for thousands of residents.
“This unique facility allows us to reach young people just footsteps from their homes and throughout this neighborhood, and allows them a world-class club experience that assures success is within reach,” said Andy Bischel, CEO of BGCSNV. “And it makes it easier for us to fulfill the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada mission for them in enabling these people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens.”
“Lutheran Social Services of Nevada became the perfect complement for the Boulder Highway Campus upon learning the service provider was seeking a new home,” added Mullin.
“We are grateful to be part of this historic opportunity that offers clients a collocated approach to receiving services on one ‘campus,’” said Armena Mnatsakanyan, executive director of LSSN. “Together all of the agencies participating will be able to serve additional clients and in a more comprehensive manner.”
Clark County is a significant financial supporter of the Boulder Highway Collaborative Campus, with funding for the Boys & Girls Clubs’ and Lutheran Social Services’ buildings made possible largely by a $5.8 million grant through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Community Development Block Grant program (CDBG). Administered locally by Clark County, the federal grant is the largest single award to a nonprofit partnership through CDBG in Southern Nevada in its 40-year history. Clark County is also supporting Nevada HAND’s development with $3.3 million through the HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME).
In addition to HUD, other financial partners include Citi Community Development, Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, Raymond James Financial and NeighborWorks America.
In summary, the Boulder Highway Collaborative Campus is an innovative campus environment offering a range of amenities for residents and a number of Southern Nevada nonprofit groups collaborating to provide a range of onsite family and community services. “Partnerships include the Boys & Girls Club and Lutheran Social Services, and negotiations are currently underway to secure other excellent partners to enhance the value and opportunities to our residents and to the area surrounding our community,” added Mullin. Boulder Pines is conveniently located next door to Mater Academy of Nevada, a K-8 Title I Charter School.
Background
The new 10,000-square-foot Boys & Girls Clubs facility provides an estimated 200 youth, ages 5 to 18, participation opportunities in fun and engaging activities and programs supervised by trained staff in a safe, positive place when school is not in session. The new club include a game room, learning center, kitchen, cafeteria, arts and crafts room, tech center, and teen center. Club members also have access to tutors during the school year and nutritional meals year-round. BGCSNV runs tested and proven developmental programs that provide youth with opportunities to learn and grow into productive, caring, responsible citizens.
The 8,424-square-foot LSSN building serves as the nonprofit’s new comprehensive community safety net center. It provides critical services to the community including a grocery-style online food pantry and mental health, nutrition, employment, housing and other critical services in collaboration with three nonprofit agencies: The Just One Project, Multicultural Wellness West and Nevada Homeless Alliance.
The campus’ Boulder Pines Family Apartments is Nevada HAND’s 33rd community in Southern Nevada. It has 264 units with rents starting at $553 per month with income qualification. The 2, 3, and 4-bedroom apartments come with a washer and dryer, walk-in closet, energy-star appliances, granite countertops, and patio with storage, and range from 1,135 to 1,574 square feet of living space. Other amenities include a pool, playground, computer lab, fitness center, BBQ area, children’s library, covered parking, 24-hour emergency maintenance, and a resident service coordinator to help connect residents with community-wide and the on-site collaborative services.
HAND Construction Company, a board-controlled affiliate of Nevada HAND, Inc., built the new BGCSNV and LSSN buildings and apartments.
The Boulder Highway Collaborative Campus is located on Boulder Highway, just south of Desert Inn Road. It is adjacent to the existing Mater Academy of Nevada, a Title I Charter Elementary School, and near area community centers, shopping, employment opportunities, and bus routes.
For information about any of the partners, visit or call:
Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada – www.bgcsnv.org or 702-367-2582
Lutheran Social Services of Nevada – www.lssnv.org or 702-639-1730
Nevada HAND – www.nevadahand.org or call (702) 739-3345
About Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada
Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada is a nonprofit organization that operates 14 facilities and two summer outreach programs in Southern Nevada, and serves more than 20,000 youth in Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson, Southern Highlands and Summerlin. These Clubhouses offer children ages K-12th grade a variety of daily creative, fun and educational programs. Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Nevada works to enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to reach their full potential as productive, caring, responsible citizens. Keep up with BGCSNV events and news on Facebook and Twitter. For more information visit, www.bgcsnv.org or call 702-367-2582.
About Lutheran Social Services of Nevada
LSSN is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization that has been providing compassionate human services to low-income individuals, families with and without children, and seniors in urban-core areas of Southern Nevada for the past 21 years. Our mission is to express the love of Christ by serving and caring for people in need. Although Lutheran-based, LSSN is open and inclusive in the services we offer. We have an extensive non-discrimination policy, which applies to our employment policies and service delivery. LSSN is accredited by the United Way of Southern Nevada and by the State of Nevada. For more information, please call 702-639-1730 or visit www.lssnv.org. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
About Nevada HAND
Nevada HAND is the state’s largest nonprofit 501(c)(3) dedicated to the development, management and administration of high-quality homes and supportive services for seniors with fixed incomes and the working families who comprise the backbone of Southern Nevada’s economy. Mike Mullin founded Nevada HAND in 1993 as a nonprofit company, recognizing that by combining his private sector development expertise with underutilized federal resources and an entrepreneurial spirit he could be part of the affordable housing solution. Since then, Nevada HAND has grown into one of the largest and most respected local developers, builders and managers of well-conceived and well-crafted affordable housing that residents are proud to call home. The organization also provides its residents with onsite services related to wellness, school success, workforce development and financial learning, and community engagement, thereby creating opportunities for residents to live well, and for neighborhoods to thrive. More than 7,200 people throughout the Las Vegas metropolitan area live in 33 Nevada HAND communities including two of the only affordable assisted living facilities in Nevada providing 24-hour support to individuals needing a higher level of care. For information, visit www.nevadahand.org or call (702) 739-3345. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
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