Three months after a homicide shook a quiet northwest Las Vegas Valley neighborhood, residents say HOA laws have hamstrung their ability to govern themselves and keep their community safe.
Ironwood Estates is an upscale community near Fort Apache Road and U.S. Highway 95. The homes, whose tax-appraised values average $500,000, are filled with neighborly people, for the most part, residents say. But the actions of a few irresponsible people, exacerbated by a killing last summer, have pushed some residents and the community’s HOA over the edge.
Just after 12:30 a.m July 28, Las Vegas police found 19-year-old Morland Richeyelder unresponsive with gunshot wounds. He had been shot at a house party attended by about 70 people, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Review-Journal received a series of letters from concerned homeowners, many of whom asked that their names be withheld out of fear of retribution.
“Our small community of 178 homes has hosted at least four brothels, a counterfeiting ring, a chop shop, a drug ring, a meth lab, an auto repair business, unlicensed pit bull breeders, homes being run as boarding houses, as well as houses being rented as short-term ‘party’ rentals,” wrote Larry Fuss, vice president of the HOA. “Even traffic is a problem.”
Fuss has lived in the Ironwood community for 11 years, serving on the HOA board about six years. Read more: http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/las-vegas/crime-spree-raises-hackles-vegas-hoa