CLARK COUNTY, Nev. (KTNV — The Clark County Commissioners are scheduled to hold a public hearing at its meeting Tuesday, to discuss an ordinance that could change the distance between liquor stores and churches and schools.
1,500 feet is roughly 0.28 miles, it's also the closest a Clark County liquor store can openly operate next to a school or church.
That distance could change on Tuesday to as little as 500 feet.
“The last thing I want to see as a pastor are these kids being tempted from our schools and our churches and seeing that availability," said Valley Vegas Church Campus Pastor Jerry Johnson.
Johnson and many in the congregation don't want to see the existing rules change.
“The Bible kind of reminds us that we don’t want to cause our brothers or sisters to stumble, and I could just see one of those kids stumbling just being the availability," Johnson said.
“They should definitely be further away, especially from schools," said the mom of a middle schooler and Valley Vegas churchgoer Erica Downing. "We don’t want kids to walk home from schools and just be able to go into a liquor store."
Sahara Liquor is the closest liquor store to this church. It's around 1,500 feet away and has a busy roadway between the two locations.
During the Clark County Commissioner meeting Tuesday, they will discuss this ordinance and hear from the public, but they could also vote on the topic.
Right now, according to Clark County Code Section 8.20.450, a liquor store cannot be within 1,500 feet of any entry of a school or where school is taking place, plus it cannot be within 1,500 of any church.
The only exception is if there is an "adequate barrier" between the liquor store and the church or school.
“Now an adequate barrier is essentially a 100 feet wide flood channel, a 15 freeway or the 215 freeway," said Clark County Commissioner William McCurdy II.
If there is an "adequate barrier" the current county code allows for Clark County to review the building petition even if it's closer than 1,500 feet, and they could still allow the liquor store to be constructed.
However, this new ordinance would change the 1,500-foot distance to 500 feet. This means if the commissioners vote "yes" as the ordinance stands, a liquor store would no longer need an "adequate barrier" in order to be built if it's more than 500 feet away from a school or church. It would still need that barrier if built closer than 500 feet.
The county would still need to look over the business petition regardless of the distance and vote on whether it should be built. A liquor store with a distance between 500 and 1,500 would not just automatically get the approval of the county if this ordinance is approved.
Commissioner McCurdy tells Channel 13, the new ordinance would allow for more business to come to Clark County.
He says the county has had to decline several businesses from building a liquor store in Clark County under the current code.
"We are in this position because there are applicants who are applying for this type of business within this distance restriction, but there is not a way for us to actually even hear the possibility of us waiving it [the adequate barrier requirement] because of the language," said McCurdy. "We're just here to, number 1) remove the definition and language around the adequate barrier, and number 2) provide the opportunity for the aspiring business owner and entrepreneur to have the ability to come to the board of county commissioners to ask for a waiver of that requirement because the adequate barrier language will be removed."
Once again, an adequate barrier is still needed if the liquor store is closer than 500 feet to a school or church, but it would not be necessary if built further away.
Barrier or not, most locals Channel 13 spoke with Sunday say liquor stores should not move closer, and there's no need for more.
"I think there are plenty of liquor stores already. There’s one pretty much on every corner," Downing said.
The public hearing is listed, as of Sunday night, as agenda item 42. This is the last public hearing the commissioners will hear.
The official public hearing time of the meeting starts at 10 a.m. Tuesday morning. Channel 13 will be there and will bring you those updates as soon as we get them.
