Friday, Sept. 5, 2003 | 11:06 a.m.
Officials announced Thursday a local fund-raising effort and a low-interest loan program provided by the federal government to help victims of last month's flooding, but residents whose homes were damaged say it's too little and too late.
"The little bit we're doing now in the city is symbolic of a great community," Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman said at a news conference Thursday to announce $220,000 in donations already collected, and more to come. "At the end of the day, after this horrible experience, this will be a better place."
Later in the day, Las Vegas' congressional delegation and Gov. Kenny Guinn announced that the Small Business Administration would provide low-interest loans to rebuild homes and businesses damaged in the flooding Aug. 19. The SBA is expected to open an office in Las Vegas next week, and residents and businesses have 60 days to submit applications for loans at rates ranging from 2.562 to 6.199 percent.
Officials have said about 180 homes and 80 businesses were damaged to varying degrees.
Still displaced from her home on Floweridge Lane, near Alexander Road and Tenaya more than two weeks after the flood, Julienne Alaniz said she has heard a lot of talk but seen little action by the Red Cross, Clark County or Las Vegas.
"If there is a way that donations can come that could help us, that would be huge," Alaniz said. But she said she's not holding her breath.
"We've lost everything, and now we have to re-do," Alaniz said. "If supposedly donations are going to the Red Cross, where's the money?"
What money Alaniz has received has come from the Canyon Ridge Christian Church on Jones Boulevard and Lone Mountain Road, she said. In addition to appliances and construction materials, Alaniz said the church is paying for an apartment for her, her husband, and her two children while they work to restore their house to a livable condition.
Church volunteer Michele Smith, standing with Alaniz on the barren concrete floor of her now-empty house, said the church is stepping in while the bureaucrats wring their hands.
"We have two families on this street that are from the church, but we're helping seven," Smith said. "There's just nothing else out there for these people."
City officials said they're doing what they can. They're not allowed to give direct financial aid, and chose the Red Cross as the agency with the lowest overhead and the best record in providing emergency relief.
There is no estimate of how much it would cost to repair all of the homes and businesses to pre-flood conditions, but the Red Cross estimated the cost of providing food, clothing, shelter and securing houses totals at least $300,000. Spokesman Peter Macias said the Red Cross is largely a volunteer group, and noted that of the 83 workers responding to the Las Vegas flood, 60 were unpaid. Macias is a volunteer from Texas who used personal time from his job to help in Las Vegas, he said. Fernando Campos, who lives on Rainy River Drive near Gowan Road and Rainbow Boulevard, said he was amazed at how quickly the city cleared his street, but confused as to why it has been so slow to give aid to residents.
"They've just been saying they're going to help, but they're just coming around to see what's going on," he said. Campos said the Red Cross has helped his family clean up, but he isn't counting on any more assistance.
"I'll probably do (the rest of the work) on my own," he said.
Campos said he hadn't heard about the possibility of low-interest loans from the Small Business Administration, but that he may be interested if he finds out he's eligible.
But John Domenick, who lives on Floweridge, said he isn't enthusiastic about the offer.
"I hate to say this, but the bad thing with loans is, you've got to pay them back," Domenick said. "I would rather do things my way."
Alaniz's husband, Ruben Alaniz, said a loan was out of the question for his family.
"We'd be way overextended," he said. "It wouldn't help us a bit."
Shawn Vittner, whose house on the corner of Alexander and Torrey Pines was also damaged in the flood, agreed that the loans were not ideal as a form of aid.
"I'm pretty broke by this whole deal," he said. "Everybody that's getting hit by the flood is already broke. We can't afford 2 percent (interest)," he said.
"I don't want to owe nobody nothing," he added. "Not you, not the government. If somebody sends me a check for $2,000, no bones attached, then maybe I'll take it -- but it's not going to happen."
As for Goodman's plan to raise donations for the Red Cross, Domenick said he has a lot of questions he wants to ask before he gets optimistic.
"Who qualifies? How is the money distributed? Is it going to be a public process?" he asked.
Macias said it's important that people not misunderstand the process. Money collected for the Red Cross largely goes to services, not to direct donations of cash to residents, he said. People who need assistance can call the national Red Cross hotline at (800) 438-4636. Operators will create a file and send it back to the Las Vegas chapter for action, he said.
One of the things the Red Cross does is provide vouchers for materials -- for example, light construction necessities such as drywall -- that families can use. However, he said, "There is a limit to what we can provide. The limit is determined by national headquarters (in Washington, D.C.)."
Donations to the "LV flood relief" fund can be sent to Wells Fargo Bank, account number 3418307090.
The donors so far include casinos, developers, corporations and private individuals.
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