Churchill postpones action on brothels

Churchill County Commissioners voted 3-0 Wednesday to postpone action on the county's brothel ordinance so they have time to consider suggested revisions from the president of the Nevada Brothel Association.

Geoff Arnold addressed concerns with proposed draft amendments to the prostitution ordinance at a public hearing before commissioners. He addressed areas of the ordinance he believes should be revised or clarified, such as advertising, the permitted age of customers, a proposed fee for background checks of applicants, and restrictions on owners, managers and bartenders.

Arnold, who owns brothels in Wells and Battle Mountain, said he was pleased with the flexibility on quarterly fees that a brothel owner would be charged.

Civil Deputy District Attorney Rusty Jardine asked to delete a fee schedule in the proposed ordinance changes and allow county commissioners to set fees on a case-by-case basis. Earlier, he recommended raising quarterly fees from $1,500 to $15,000 for a brothel with up to five prostitutes.

"We attempted to impose a fee schedule that represented the entire sphere of regulatory action. We can't do that very well," he said Wednesday.

Arnold said every county employee working on revising Churchill County's ordinance has never been inside a brothel, limiting their knowledge of how those businesses operate.

"One of your objectives to get a good brothel ordinance is to get a good owner," he said, "so you don't have problems.

"I like to see brothels run in a discreet, tasteful and low-key manner that is not an embarrassment to neighbors or the community."

Bill Card's wife, Ruth, managed Salt Wells Villa brothel east of town between 1998 and 2003. He told commissioners Salt Wells didn't make a lot of money, but also didn't have problems that required calls to police.

"The clientele here in Churchill County was 85 percent military, a fantastic bunch of kids," Card said. "They'd come out and sit around the fireplace. There was no big income there because the boys didn't have much money.

"The number of sheriff's calls for fights or unruly conduct was zero."

Commissioners said they want more time to consider suggestions made by Arnold before adopting changes to the brothel ordinance.

"I appreciate your input because these are new areas for us," Commissioner Norm Frey told Arnold.

Chairwoman Gwen Washburn and Commissioner Lynn Pearce agreed.

"I do agree we should take some time and get it right the first time so we don't have to revisit it in six months or so," Washburn said.

Amendments to the ordinance will be considered at a future meeting.

Currently, there are no operating brothels in Churchill County. Salt Wells closed down more than a year ago after the owner ran into financial troubles. Lazy B has been shut for years.

In 1974, voters decided they wanted legal prostitution in Churchill County. The practice was challenged last year when a group calling itself the Coalition to End Prostitution in Churchill County gathered enough signatures for a ballot measure asking voters to repeal the brothel ordinance.

The effort failed when two-third of voters rejected a ban on legal prostitution.

Marlene Garcia can be contacted at mgarcia@lahontanvalleynews.com.