Mystery Duo Sets Up ‘Camp’ in $2 Billion Future Las Vegas Raiders Stadium Lot

Posted on: July 19, 2017, 03:00h. 

Last updated on: July 19, 2017, 02:34h.

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Expertise: Commercial Gaming.

The Las Vegas Raiders might need to evict two homeless people off the land they paid $77.5 million for earlier this year. The 62.6-acre plot will become the location of the NFL team’s $1.9 billion football stadium, but for now, the highly valued ground is reportedly the “residence” of a couple that presumably won’t be season ticket holders in the future.

Homeless camps Las Vegas Oakland
The future site of the Las Vegas Raiders stadium (left) still looks barren, while the homeless are virtually ubiquitous in Oakland (as with this encampment under the BART, right). (Image: Left/Brett Le Banc/Review-Journal, Right/Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)

Summer Camp

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the land between Russell Road and Hacienda Avenue is presently being occupied by a “homeless camp.” The media outlet reports that a small makeshift encampment built from wooden pallets, an old mattress, and a sheet covering sits below a billboard that overlooks Dean Martin Drive.

Located just west of Interstate 15 and south of Tropicana Avenue, the land will transform into a massive construction zone in January of 2018, assuming the FAA gives it clearance, and Clark County officials sign off on the go-ahead. The domed 65,000-seat football facility is expected to be finished by June of 2020, just in time for the fall NFL season.

Following the franchise’s first playoff appearance in 14 years, hopes are high in Oakland for the Raiders’ 2017-2018 season. The Westgate SuperBook has the team at 10-1 to win the Super Bowl, tied for the third-shortest odds of the NFL’s 32 teams.

Oakland Smirks

Las Vegas is plagued by homelessness, not surprisingly, given its somewhat skewed number of residents with alcohol, gambling, and drug problems. Although Oakland technically has a third more, based on overall population, Sin City actually has far more homeless per capita than the Raiders’ current home.

According to the most recent data supplied by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, Las Vegas and Clark County combined have about 6,200 homeless, while San Francisco and Oakland tally more than 9,700. The latter, of course, are also much larger metropolitan areas. Clark County, Nevada is home to 2.07 million, according to 2014 census date, versus 8.75 million for San Francisco/Oakland.

The Mercury News, a Bay Area media outlet, scoffed at the reported “homeless camp” at the Las Vegas Raiders site. The Review-Journal says it didn’t find any homeless persons during a recent visit, but said, “two people were there at least at one point last week.”

Mercury reporter Daniel Mano noted that “…those from East Bay might balk at the very idea that two people living on the site where the stadium is set to go counts as a legitimate encampment.”

The future Las Vegas Raiders stadium would be about 8,500 seats short in accommodating New York City’s homeless population, which is estimated at more than 73,500. Los Angeles and its surrounding county has the second most displaced individuals, with 43,850. Seattle is next (10,700), followed by San Francisco/Oakland, San Diego (8,700), and Washington, DC (8,350).