Area In Las Vegas Deemed ‘Too Dangerous’ For Local Business

If you don't spend a lot of time in the Downtown Las Vegas area, you might be under the impression it's gotten better than in past years. Locals are always hearing about the efforts to refresh and revitalize the area. Sounds like it's a different story for those who are there every day.

At least for one local business, that just shut its doors for good due to safety concerns, Fox5Vegas.com reported. The Hydrant Club was a dog training, boarding and social club. It was located on the corner of North 9th Street and Fremont Blvd. That is until December 31,  when owner Cathy Brooks closed the doors for good.

Brooks came out to Las Vegas ten years ago, with a lot of encouragement from Tony Hsieh to do so. Of course, Hsieh was a huge player in the effort to bring Downtown Las Vegas back to life. And before his untimely death, it looked like he was going to do even more than he already did to bring that dream to fruition.

Brooks was working in Silicon Valley at the time that Hsieh suggested she come out to Las Vegas. She was looking for something new at the time and Hsieh's idea fit the bill (Fox5Vegas). During her visit, she saw post-it notes all over the walls of Hsieh's apartment. All about his dreams for Downtown Vegas. It seemed very promising. Hsieh helped Brooks open The Hydrant Club back in 2011.

Now Brooks feels she has no other option but to relocate. She sited gun violence and harassment has part of her reasoning. Two people were shot just two blocks away from her business the last day she held classes. She also had an encounter with a group of drunk men who harassed her when she asked them to not throw their bikes in front of her property.

"The kinds of threats that really lead me to the decision that this neighborhood was no longer a safe place for a standalone small business were things like gun violence, things like large groups of unruly individuals", Brooks said (Fox5Vegas). For now, she doesn't know where her new location will be, but she will still offer her dog training services while she finds a new permanent home.

–Wendy Rush

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Every year, the World Happiness Report ranks countries by their happiness levels. In 2022, residents of 156 countries were asked to rank their lives on a scale from 0 to 10. In addition to the answers for the survey, the World Happiness Report also considers other factors. Namely those around social support, life expectancy, generosity and level of corruption in their lives.

For the fifth year in a row, the #1 happiest country in the world has been Finland. The first year they took that title was in 2018. The top ten happiest countries that year, in order of happiest, were Finland, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland, Netherlands, Canada, New Zealand, Sweden, and Australia.

So where did the United States rank? We came in at number eighteen. And that was dropping four spots from number fourteen the previous year. And this was BEFORE the pandemic, inflation and all the things we worry about these days. It's probably safe to say we're even more unhappy now. All things considered, it seems we can do some things differently as a country to improve our overall happiness level. Or, if we take a page out of Finland's book, it's more about what we can do as individuals to change our overall mindset.

So, in order to do better, we are turning to Frank Martela for tips. A contributor for cnbc.com and a Finnish psychologist, Martela has a good handle on the psychology behind happiness. In fact, he studies the fundamentals of happiness and has learned a thing or two along the way. Martela is also the author of a book about finding a meaningful existence.

Martela says he's asked often why the citizens of Finland are so satisfied with their lives. Is it wealth? Fame? Beauty? What exactly makes them so darn happy? Martela gives three tips for happiness...three things that the happiest country in the world never does. –Wendy Rush

Theodore Roosevelt said "Comparison is the thief of joy". And it's so true. When we compare ourselves to others, too often we come out last. It makes no sense to compare ourselves to other people who come from different backgrounds, have different skills and different opportunities in life.

Martela suggests to focus more on what makes you happy than what others think makes you successful. He says to set your own standards for happiness instead of letting someone else do it for you.

Research shows that nature has all kinds of benefits for our well-being. It can reduce stress and anger, improve your physical and mental health, reduce loneliness...the list goes on. Martela says that "according to a 2021 survey, 87% of Finns feel that nature is important to them because it provides them with peace of mind, energy and relaxation" (cnbc.com). And employees in Finland get four weeks of holiday during the summer. Which many use to reconnect to nature.

Martela suggests finding ways to bring nature into your daily life, even if it means buying a few plants for your house or office.

According to Martela, research shows that the more trust their is between community members, the more happiness is in that community. Which sounds exactly like any relationship! Finnish people hold the value of honesty in high regard and tend to trust each other more than in other countries.

Start with little acts of kindness to show your fellow community member that we're all in this together. Hold doors open, give up your seat on the bus, or just say "excuse me" when you walk in front of someone. Little things matter.