Living costs, inflation cited as challenges

“Full disclosure,” Jennifer Hedland, the community resource liaison (CRL) said as she began to present the city council with an annual report in its meeting this week.

“I’m nervous and I’m glad there are not a lot of people here tonight,” she said. There were only a handful of people in council chamber for the meeting other than the members of the city council and a few staffers.

“I was hoping that the fire department or EMS might be here in case I go into cardiac arrest,” she joked.

While this is the season for department heads to make their annual reports to the council, this situation is a bit different as Hedland, whose salary comes through the city via funds from the American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA), actually was hired by and works out of and for Boulder City Hospital.

Two years ago, the city put aside $400,000 in ARPA money to fund the position for four years. Per the restriction of the law, ARPA funds must be spent no later than Dec. 31, 2026. According to city staff and a comment made by Mayor Joe Hardy in the meeting, Hedland’s position is funded for two more years.

Hedland is a licensed social worker with a master’s degree in social work and nearly 20 years of experience as a healthcare case manager. And, while she is based at the hospital and health issues are addressed, they are not the biggest reason people seek out help.

The most common primary driver is issues of aging. But when you combine primary and secondary drivers, that 18% is swamped by housing, rental assistance and homelessness at a combined 54%.

According to her introduction, she works with local leaders, area providers, business, civic and social service organizations (including the BCPD and FD) and other governmental and non-governmental organizations to provide a safety net for community members in need. While people can self-refer to the program, most come via referrals from other groups such as the police and fire departments.

Unlike many larger jurisdictions, Boulder City does not have a bunch of government-funded resources. The three-step mission of the community resource liaison is to connect with people in need, assess their situation and finally help them navigate the services available to them, including Emergency Aid and Lend-a-Hand. Monthly outreach sessions are held in conjunction with BCPD to, “provide resources to those experiencing homelessness.”

Hedland listed 10 cases where she was able to connect residents with services. The first example was a senior resident of Boulder City who was having a hard time paying his mortgage. Hedland reported that she connected the man with the Nevada Affordable Housing Assistance Corporation who helped him with an outstanding $26,000 in arrears. She reported that the man was also uninsured and having health issues and that she got him hooked up with Medicaid and food stamps.

Other examples included other seniors with health issues and a domestic violence victim who was afraid of losing her housing and having to go with her children to a shelter in Las Vegas. According to Hedland, she was directed to resources and found employment which allowed her to remain housed with her children in Boulder City.

Homelessness was not mentioned until the final example.

“The CRL program has successfully housed people experiencing homelessness,” Hedland reported. “This could not have happened without the generosity of community members donating funds toward the apartment move-in deposit. Additionally, the unhoused are connected to other services through the assistance and help of Southern Nevada Homeless Outreach Team.”

In 2024, the CRL program interacted with 230 community members. To date, the program has connected more than 500 community members to resources.

Answering a question from Councilwoman Denise Ashurst about the No. 1 need she sees on a day-to-day basis, Hedland said, “I think the No. 1 challenge is the financial situation people are in currently. Just the inflation and prices of everything going up. It’s really a struggle for people paying rent and things like that.”