A Dream Drowns in the Desert: No Justice for Flooded Out Nevada Church Camp

Denver, ColoradoOctober 27, 2021 — A Nevada church camp’s David versus Goliath battle to prevent federal bureaucrats from periodically flooding the property with diversions of river water appears to be an all but lost cause, after a federal judge sided with federal experts who claimed the property-damaging diversions were historically and scientifically justified.

Pastor Victor and Annette Fuentes Are Fighting to Save Their Youth Camp from Federally-Directed Floods

Mountain States Legal Foundation, the Colorado-based public interest law firm representing the camp, is studying its legal options in response to what it described as a “disappointing and disheartening” ruling. But it said the case shows the immense and unfair advantage federal agencies enjoy when they set out to exert their will over frequently underfunded and outgunned average citizens.

The average citizens in this case are Pastor Victor Fuentes and his wife, Annette, who established the Patch of Heaven youth camp as a sanctuary and ministry for troubled Las Vegas youth, only to see it made nearly unusable by the flooding that resulted from federal water diversions. The feds claimed that the redirections of the water were meant to restore their “natural” stream flows, but an expert for the camp presented contradictory evidence. The judge saw things the government’s way and ruled that the church, in effect, was out of luck.        

The Patch of Heaven church camp was once an oasis in the desert. Nestled within the remote Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, several hours outside Las Vegas, the 40-acre parcel of land was a lush, peaceful place, containing a spring-fed stream that sustained grass, trees, and shrubs. It also fed water to a tranquil pond used primarily for baptisms. Pastor Fuentes, who as a younger man fled Communist Cuba across the shark-infested Straits of Florida, purchased the property in 2006, believing it would provide an ideal escape from “Sin City” for the largely-immigrant youth on which his ministry is focused.

All that changed in 2010, when the federal government, which had already bought or bullied most of the private property owners out of Ash Meadows, came in and decided that vague environmental concerns required diverting Patch of Heaven’s stream some 500 feet away, to land that conveniently is not private property. This turned Patch of Heaven into a dusty, dried-out shadow of its former self, which also saw periodic flooding thanks to misguided government efforts to redirect stream flows. Every heavy rain now causes substantial flooding on the Church’s property. With the threat of annual flooding, repairs are futile and a mini-Grand Canyon cuts through what was once lush wetlands.

Pastor Fuentes and his wife, Annette, are no strangers to adversity, however, and partnered with MSLF to take the government to court.

“Unfortunately, despite mountains of evidence, persuasive expert testimony, and the tireless efforts of MSLF attorneys and our pro-bono partners with the law firm Kirkland and Ellis, the United States Court of Federal Claims ruled against the Church yesterday,” said MSLF Attorney David McDonald. According to the Court’s opinion and order, it couldn’t be proven that the government’s actions were the direct cause of the catastrophic flooding, and thus the Church is owed no compensation whatsoever.

“This was a disappointing decision, no doubt about that,” added McDonald, “but the Fuentes are tough people, and this is far from the end of the fight. We’re as energized and ready to defend these people’s property rights as we’ve ever been, whatever form that takes.”

While they may have lost this round of the takings fight, MSLF attorneys are currently reviewing options for a potential appeal, and they are working through state government channels to secure recognition of the Church’s water rights. The fight to save Nevada’s Patch of Heaven church camp continues.

MSLF’s case summary page, along with all relevant filings and materials, can be found by following this link.