LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The Las Vegas City Council approved plans to expand the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada on Wednesday.
According to the center, the expansion would involve building a second building adjacent to its main headquarters, which will be known as the Advocacy and Justice Complex. The complex will house the Resiliency and Justice Center, the Legal Aid Center Family Justice Project, and the Guardianship Advocacy Project.
The centers aim to provide representation for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, abuse of the elderly, people with disabilities, children facing guardianship, and more.
During the council meeting, city leaders approved the center’s land-use entitlement requests, which will allow the center to move forward with development.
The project is estimated to cost $30 million and is projected to be completed in August 2026. It will be located on 8th Street and Charleston on the site of the currently vacant former US Bank building.
Upon completion of construction, the complex will be the first statewide service campus where any Nevadan who has experienced the trauma of violent crime can find justice and begin to heal. The complex will also house a community response room, which will serve as the headquarters for services to victims of any mass violence incident.
The Resiliency and Justice Center was born out of the tragic mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on October 1, 2017.
In September 2023, the center received funding from Clark County, and its mission has expanded to serve all survivors of violent crime in Nevada, offering navigation with local and national resources, free legal help, assistance accessing compensation through the Victims of Crime Program, and connection to mental health services.
Clark County’s Office of Emergency Management activates the Resiliency & Justice Center to respond to any incident of mass violence in our community.
Barbara Buckley, Executive Director of Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada, remarked, “I am grateful to the Las Vegas City Council for their unanimous approval today. The Advocacy & Justice Complex will serve as the first victims’ rights center in our State and will provide justice and a place to heal for survivors of violent crime. I am also grateful to our community’s leaders and philanthropists who have already provided more than 90% of the funding for the Complex.”
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