Travis FedschunBy Travis Fedschun -March 31, 2020

A temporary homeless shelter set up in a parking lot in Las Vegas has stirred controversy and attracted the attention of a former 2020 presidential candidate after images circulated of people sleeping on asphalt.

The city of Las Vegas said it opened an emergency homeless shelter in the parking lot of the Cashman Center after a man tested positive for coronavirus at another facility.

The Southern Nevada Health District said March 25 in a news release that a man who later tested positive for COVID-19 received help "while he was symptomatic" at the Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada and the Homeless Courtyard, both operated by the city of Las Vegas.
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The closure of the facility after the man tested positive left about 500 people with no overnight shelter. Officials created an open-air site in the parking lot Saturday at Chasman Center, operating from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m. daily through April 3. By then, Catholic Charities is expected to reopen.

People wait to be screened before entering an homeless shelter set up in a parking lot in Las Vegas on Saturday.
People wait to be screened before entering an homeless shelter set up in a parking lot in Las Vegas on Saturday. (Clark County Nevada)

After initially saying the site would be a "sea of blue mats" in the lot, allowing individuals to be at least 6 feet apart, images showed people sleeping in grid markings on asphalt.

People prepare places to sleep at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, in Las Vegas.
People prepare places to sleep at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Julian Castro, the former Obama housing secretary and San Antonio mayor who dropped out of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination in January, shared a photo on Twitter of the site.
"After criminalizing homelessness this year, Las Vegas is now packing people into concrete grids out of sight," Castro tweeted, adding, "There are 150K hotel rooms in Vegas going unused right now. How about public-private cooperation (resources) to temporarily house them there? And fund permanent housing!"

In November, Las Vegas officials passed a law making it a crime for homeless people to sleep on streets or sidewalks when beds are available at city-sanctioned shelters.

People prepare places to sleep in area marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, March 30, 2020, in Las Vegas.
People prepare places to sleep in area marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, March 30, 2020, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada blasted the Chasman site as being "completely unacceptable and inhumane."

People prepare to sleep in areas marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, March 30, 2020, in Las Vegas.
People prepare to sleep in areas marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday, March 30, 2020, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

"People deserve a dignified solution, medical screenings, access to healthcare, and an adequate place to sleep. People need to be inside and in conditions that allow them to appropriately distance themselves," ACLU of Nevada Policy Director Holly Welborn said in a statement to FOX5.

People prepare places to sleep in areas marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday in Las Vegas.
People prepare places to sleep in areas marked by painted boxes on the ground of a parking lot at a makeshift camp for the homeless Monday in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

"Erecting an emergency shelter that provides the same essential services as current shelters is an acceptable temporary option until public-private agreements are in place to shelter at-risk individuals in hotel rooms or other accommodations, but this is not that," Welborn added.

LAS VEGAS PARKING LOT TURNED INTO TEMPORARY HOMELESS SHELTER AFTER CORONAVIRUS CASE SHUTS FACILITY

In a series of tweets, the city said Monday that 500 people were left without a place to stay when the Homeless Courtyard Resource Center could not adequately follow social distancing guidelines.

Volunteers and workers set up a temporary homeless shelter in a parking lot in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Volunteers and workers set up a temporary homeless shelter in a parking lot in Las Vegas on Saturday. (Clark County Nevada)

Padded carpeting was initially included on the parking lot site, but then Las Vegas officials said it couldn't be "adequately sanitized."
Padding carpeting was initially included on the parking lot site, but then Las Vegas officials said it couldn't be "adequately sanitized."
Padding carpeting was initially included on the parking lot site, but then Las Vegas officials said it couldn't be "adequately sanitized." (Clark County Nevada

"We don’t have enough mats for everyone. We are trying to get more but are having a hard time," the city tweeted. "We’ll continue to provide this temporary respite, while practicing social distancing, for anyone who is suffering from homelessness. We look forward to Catholic Charities reopening soon."
Doctors and medical students from Touro University were evaluating those at the Cashman Center. David Riggleman, a spokesman for the city, told FOX5 if a person is symptomatic for COVID-19 or any illness, an ambulance takes them to the hospital but no one is forced to go.

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Riggleman added that the city is working on a plan to increase screening, as well as isolating or quarantining those who have symptoms or test positive.

The temporary homeless shelter was site was staffed with Touro University medical students and physician assistants who helped screen people entering the site when it opened on Saturday.
The temporary homeless shelter was site was staffed with Touro University medical students and physician assistants who helped screen people entering the site when it opened on Saturday. (Clark County Nevada)
Homeless populations are particularly susceptible to COVID-19, which can be spread through coughing and sneezing.

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Nevada has the third-highest rate of unsheltered people who are homeless in the U.S., behind California and Oregon. A study released in fall 2019 by safety resource website Security.org placed Las Vegas among the top 10 cities in the nation grappling with the ongoing homelessness crisis, with Sin City ranking seventh.

As of Tuesday, Nevada had 1,044 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 18 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.