LVMPD Reality Based Training Center Receives
$500,000 Commitment from Las Vegas Sands through Sands Cares
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Foundation announces it has received $250,000 contribution, the first installment of a total $500,000 commitment, from Las Vegas Sands’ community engagement program – Sands Cares — for construction of phase one of the LVMPD Reality Based Training Center on the campus of the Joint Emergency Training Institute at 7370 E Carey Road in Las Vegas.
The Center’s first building is already operational and in active daily use by LVMPD officers, who are benefiting from a variety of training courses, including de-escalation tactics, active-shooter, mass-casualty incidents, and medical training that will help them “stop the bleed” in the field.
With the Sands Cares contribution, LVMPD Foundation has realized more than $25 million of its $35 million phase one fundraising goal which covers costs for the design and construction of the first building and the shell of the second building, an indoor tactical training village.
To complete the build-out of the indoor tactical training village and the purchase of high-tech equipment, the LVMPD Foundation is working to raise an additional $7 million after Congress appropriated $3 million for the project.
The LVMPD Reality Based Training Center is a master-planned project designed to provide law enforcement and first responders with the nation’s most sophisticated highly technical reality-based tactical training. It offers access to unprecedented training capabilities with a focus on de-escalation tactics, active shooter incidents, including those with mass casualties, as well as training for natural disasters, including the simulation of responses to crises like the current COVID-19 pandemic. Eventually, it is envisioned the Center will be used by law enforcement throughout the country.
The first phase of the Reality Based Training Center includes two buildings. The first building spans over 50,000 square feet and includes administrative offices, four classrooms with a capacity to train 240 officers, mat rooms, and simulators. The shell of the second building is constructed and is a 130,000 square-foot structure that will house a state-of-the-art indoor, climate-controlled tactical training village with simulated venues including a gas station and convenience store, casino and hotel rooms, cell phone store, doctor’s office, restaurant, retail store, CrossFit gym, school with science labs and classrooms, and a grocery store. The indoor tactical village is designed to accommodate training for active shooter situations in lifelike settings.
“Public safety is foundational to the wellbeing of our communities and a key priority for our commitment to making our local regions great places to live, work and visit,” said Ron Reese, senior vice president of global communications and corporate affairs, who spearheads corporate responsibility initiatives at Sands. “Through Sands Cares, we focus on helping build capacity and readying our communities for times of crises. The LVMPD Reality Based Training Center will train our local law enforcement – and ultimately those throughout the country – to be better prepared to protect our valley’s residents and its 42 million-plus visitors.”
“It is a privilege to lead the development of the new training center for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and other first responders,” says Tom Kovach, Executive Director of the LVMPD Foundation. “The Sands’ executive team understands that an investment in training is an investment in Southern Nevada’s future. We thank them for their generosity and commitment to public safety. A safe community is a thriving community given that public safety is foundational to ensuring a quality experience for tourists, as well as quality of life for residents.”
Planning for subsequent phases is underway with development timelines tied to additional fundraising.
About the LVMPD Foundation
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Foundation is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that raises funds to support and supplement Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department programs and initiatives. The LVMPD Foundation was established in 1999 and is dedicated to supporting LVMPD area commands, special units, equipment, training, and hundreds of community engagement programs and initiatives that build relationships between law enforcement and the communities they serve. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Officers are here to Protect and Serve our community, and together with law enforcement, we can help make our neighborhoods safer for all. Please join us in our important work by contributing at www.lvmpdfoundation.org
About Sands (NYSE: LVS)
Sands is the world’s preeminent developer and operator of world-class Integrated Resorts. Our iconic properties drive valuable leisure and business tourism and deliver significant economic benefits, sustained job creation, financial opportunities for local businesses and community investment to help make our host regions ideal places to live, work and visit. With headquarters in Las Vegas, Nevada, Sands’ portfolio of properties includes Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and The Venetian Macao, The Plaza and Four Seasons Hotel Macao, The Londoner Macao, The Parisian Macao and Sands Macao in Macao SAR, China, through majority ownership in Sands China Ltd. Sands is dedicated to being a leader in corporate responsibility, anchored by the core tenets of serving people, planet and communities. Our ESG leadership has led to inclusion on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for World and North America and recognition as one of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies. To learn more, visit www.sands.com.