Nevada Cares Campus

Location: Reno, Nevada
Land Size: 18.75 acres
Initial year of development: 2020

The Nevada Cares Campus is a comprehensive homeless services campus located on an 18.75-acre site near downtown Reno. The campus offers emergency shelter, transitional housing, hygiene facilities, and supportive services, with over 100,000 square feet dedicated to program and administrative space. Developed on cityowned land formerly used for municipal storage, the site was selected for its size, accessibility, and proximity to major transportation corridors and civic infrastructure.

Reno’s rising housing costs and increasing unsheltered homeless population created an urgent need for a centralized, scalable shelter model. The Nevada Cares Campus replaced the outdated Community Assistance Center, emphasizing a more integrated, human-centered approach to service delivery.

The Nevada Cares Campus is made possible by a $12 million dollar grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development1, as well as millions of dollars from private partners and foundations.

Image courtesy of Haven for Hope

Image courtesy of Washoe County

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Images courtesy of Washoe County

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Image courtesy of Falk Built

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Images courtesy of Washoe County

Site and Service Overview

The campus includes a central emergency shelter, hygiene center, navigation and intake facilities, modular administrative offices, and an outdoor dining pavilion. Trauma-informed site design emphasizes walkability, privacy, and community engagement, while planning efforts anticipate future phases of development, including permanent housing solutions and flexible community spaces.

Surrounding land uses include industrial sites, low-income residential neighborhoods, and proximity to public transit hubs. Medical and civic services, including hospitals and government offices, are located within a two-mile radius.

Key services offered on-site include emergency shelter, healthcare access, hygiene facilities, housing navigation, employment support, veterans services, legal aid, and basic needs provision.

Facilities Snapshot

  • Main Shelter: 46,000 sq ft flexible dormitory and service space.
  • Hygiene Center: 7,500 sq ft facility for showers, restrooms, laundry, and lockers.
  • Navigation Center: 12,000 sq ft intake and case management hub.
  • Dining Pavilion: 6,000 sq ft open-air meal service area with kitchen.
  • Administrative Offices: Modular spaces for campus operators and partner organizations.
  • Medical Clinic: On-site health, mental health, and triage services with telehealth capacity.

Outcomes and Impacts

Since opening, the Nevada Cares Campus has served over 5,000 individuals and successfully transitioned more than 600 individuals into housing. The project has helped reduce unsheltered encampments in downtown areas and continues to evolve through a long-term master planning process focused on expanding supportive housing and wraparound services.

The Nevada Cares Campus demonstrates a scalable, phased model for centralized homeless services, balancing immediate emergency needs with a framework for sustainable, long-term community impact.

Development Timeline

PHASE 1
2019–2020
Visioning and site selection.

PHASE 2
2020–2021
Emergency shelter development during the COVID-19 pandemic, funded by CARES Act and ARPA.

PHASE 3
2021–2023
Construction of the 46,000 sq ft shelter, hygiene facilities, and navigation center.

PHASE 4
2023–Present
Ongoing master planning focused on housing navigation, behavioral health, and permanent infrastructure.

Visit Nevada Cares Website