Due to a succession of robberies that have occurred there in the past month, the business plaza at 4760 Pahrump Valley Blvd. is beginning to look a little like a ghost town, with many of the windows or doors patched up with plywood.

Diane Sears, owner of Rusty's Lounge, has been burglarized three times in the last month, and she's certainly not alone. And she's certainly not happy about it.

The rash of break-ins, primarily through the businesses' glass front doors, began on the weekend of July 3.

Sears estimated the culprits took $1,500 worth of liquor "and grabbed whatever else they could."

Sears doesn't keep cash on the premises, and there are no external cameras.

That same holiday weekend, all three buildings of the Our Lady of the Valley Catholic Church were broken into, as was the post office on Kellogg Road and the My Thai Restaurant, also located on Pahrump Valley Boulevard.

July 29 Sears received a phone call from another business owner in the same plaza who told her the lounge had been broken into again.

"They break the front door in," Sears said. "I can't get glass in Pahrump, I have to order it."

Dave's Pizza and Subs, located in the same plaza, was also burglarized and forced to hoist its own plywood covering.

And Tuesday morning, Sears had the worst kind of déjá vu imaginable and, yet again, found her business had been broken and entered illegally.

In addition, a work and training center for the developmentally challenged had experienced the same fate.

Sears said she does not keep cash in the lounge, and although at the burglars had attempted to break into an (empty) safe, they were only successful in giving it a good bashing.

"This whole place is turning into plywood doors," Sears said.

Sears said she is frustrated with what she feels is a lack of active response from the Nye County Sheriff's Office.

With each break-in, she's spoken to a different officer, and the Nye County Sheriff's Office said it is actively investigating the crimes but remains hampered by staffing and funding levels.

"It comes down to staffing levels," Capt. Bill Becht said. "We haven't had a staff increase in years. This is the only business where you have an increase in customers and no increase in service representatives."

"Every other department has seen an increase in recent people," Sheriff Tony DeMeo said. "But with us they've cut prison meals, gas and other revenue we receive."

The sheriff added that although fuel prices have been consistently rising, his department has not received any increase in funding for gas.

"Every day I say to myself maybe we can do a little better if we had more people," DeMeo said.