Reno shelter under construction amid rising reports of domestic violence
April Corbin Girnus
(Nevada Current) Reported incidents of domestic violence have been on the rise in Washoe County over the past three years, underscoring the need to expand the availability of temporary housing for victims.
To address the need, the Domestic Violence Resource Center in Washoe County is in the process of quadrupling their shelter capacity, jumping from 25 beds to 100. The center temporarily relocated its existing 25 beds last fall and is now under construction on a new facility on Vassar Street in Reno.
DVRC Executive Director Kristen Kennedy told Reno City Council on Wednesday that the center has raised $30.7 million in private philanthropic funds to build the new facility, which broke ground in November and hopes to open in June 2027.
DVRC still has $714,000 left to fundraise.
“While our current facility has served us well for over 40 years, the truth is it was never designed to meet the scale or complexity of need that we see today,” Kennedy said.
The new 41,000-square-foot facility will include private bedrooms and bathrooms for those fleeing domestic violence. At the temporary facility, up to eight people share one small bathroom.
“You can imagine, if you’re going through trauma, having to share a room with somebody else, how difficult that is,” said Kennedy.
The new center will also have activity rooms for children and teens, a separate on-site shelter for men, a sensory garden, temporary pet kennels, and office space for providers of wraparound services like job training, counseling and financial coaching.
According to the DVRC, there were 3,898 incidents of domestic violence reported to law enforcement agencies in Washoe County in 2025 — 201 more than in 2024 and 167 more than in 2020, the previous highest year of reported incidents.
That number does not include the people who did not report their abuse to law enforcement but did reach out to DVRC for assistance.
“And then, of course, there are people who do neither,” Kennedy added. “What this shows is just the reality that we have a significant issue in our community.”
DVRC assisted 4,322 people during their last fiscal year and provided 14,760 overnight stays.
Reno City Council took no action after Kennedy’s informational presentation, but several council members praised the project and emphasized its importance to the community.
“To see that there’s this many cases of domestic violence is really sobering and so difficult to hear,” said Councilwoman Meghan Ebert. “It’s wonderful to hear there’s the expansion of beds, but we’re still so far behind in the needs for the community.”