In today’s chronicle, I aim to incite your curiosity and concern about the curious case of the Cares Campus. This is a place promoted as a success, a beacon of hope and progress for our community. Yet, beneath the words of our so-called leaders, it should have you questioning whether the county and cronies are laundering money and homeless numbers to further the never-ending stream of tax dollars that remain unaccounted for.

Why is this facility being championed? Why do we keep seeing inflated numbers of those they supposedly help and a persistent lack of transparency about where taxpayer dollars are being spent?

Let’s draw a comparison between the Cares Campus and another local facility, Our Place.

In a previous chronicle, we touched upon Our Place. This facility offers refuge for 138 women, 38 families, and 28 seniors, along with their animal companions, every day. That equates to around 318 people and their pets.

Cares Campus, on the other hand, initially claimed to house 250 people. Now they claim it can shelter 640 individuals. The veracity of these numbers, though, is questionable at best, given the institution’s track record.

According to the Request for Proposals (RFP) documents I’ve obtained, the annual cost to run Our Place is approximately $2.76 million.

In contrast, the operation of the elusive Cares Campus, where access and data transparency seem to be an elusive dream, comes up to an astounding $17 million per year – and that may not even cover all associated costs. To date, this institution has reportedly incurred $130 million in expenses.

(If I was to show you screenshots of all the Cares Campus funding, this post would likely be hundreds of pages long)

The Reno Initiative for Shelter and Equality (RISE) has reported that Our Place, a homeless shelter in Reno, Nevada, was established with a budget of $16 million. This project involved remodeling 11 buildings and major landscaping on the Northern Nevada Mental Health campus on Galletti Way in Sparks. This facility opened in June 2021 and can house up to 138 women, 38 families, and 28 seniors.

The funding for Our Place was sourced from various channels, including private donations, grants, and government funding. The Washoe County Human Services Agency provided $10 million, and the Nevada Division of State Lands provided a 25-year lease for the land. The remaining $6 million was raised by RISE through private donations and grants.

Our Place operates as a low-barrier shelter, having few restrictions on who can access its services. They offer a variety of support to help guests re-establish themselves, including job training, counseling, and housing assistance.

Now let’s take a moment to contrast this with the Cares Campus, with its annual cost of $17 million and capacity for 640 people, and Our Place, operating at $2.75 million per year while serving 318 people and their pets. The discrepancy here is hard to ignore.

To illustrate this point, look at these side-by-side images.

The Cares Campus, a concentration-style circus tent:

(Courtesy of This is Reno)

Our Place, a hospitable, welcoming environment:

(Pictures courtesy of Washoe County YouTube)

When you examine the stark differences between these two facilities, are you prepared to join me in asking Eric “BrownStain” Brown, “Hide’n” Hillary Schieve, and Alexis “Comrade Hill’Insky” Hill what the hell is going on here?

One can clearly see the discrepancy between what $130 million and $17 million per year buys versus $16 million and $2.75 million per year. The difference between a concentration camp circus tent and a home.

I tell you what, I’ve lived and stayed in far worse places growing up than Our Place. I’m surprised people aren’t leaving their rentals and trying to stay there! Hell, they even let your pets live with you!

Given what we know, why isn’t the county singing the praises of Our Place? Why do they continue to funnel money into the Cares Campus? What are they trying to hide? Perhaps the “real” numbers of individuals served each month versus the “reported” number of people served – a statistic that could be manipulated to inflate success rates.

Our Place provides shelter, equips its residents with essential tools, and is transparent about its operations.

The Cares Campus is a concentration camp-style circus tent that is the black hole of taxpayer dollars, loaded with crime and horrible living conditions. It’s clear to anyone with an IQ over 60 that something is afoul here.

The question remains: What is Cares Campus hiding? The answer is MONEY! Millions and millions and millions of dollars of it. Where exactly is all the funding going?

We must follow the money.

The time has come for County Manager Eric “BrownStain” Brown, Mayor “Hide’n” Hillary Schieve, and County Commissioner Alexis “Comrade Hill’Insky” Hill to face some tough questions. Who will step up to investigate this? We must insist on transparency and accountability in these matters. It’s time. Be peaceful and start asking tough questions and demand accountability.

Beadles

P.S.

Are you starting to see the picture of what’s really going on yet? Next, we’ll start showing you where some of the money is and isn’t going.