By Rachel Brandes
Moapa Valley Progress
Published September 17, 2008
The Moapa Town Advisory Board (MTAB), at its September 11 meeting, heard public input on a new tavern being proposed at the site of the old Calamity’s cafe. Board Chairwoman Ann Schrieber explained that she wanted “recommendations” from the community that could be proposed to the County Commission on the subject.
Many community members in attendance stated that they would rather not have this Tavern in their community at all. Residents wondered why project owner, Kent Slight, was not in attendance at the meeting to answer questions. In defense of the developer, Board Member Don Davis asked, “Would you want to come to a meeting to get beat up?”
Schrieber explained that the owner already holds a liquor license as he is also the owner of the Red Rooster Bar in Overton. “They do not have a business license yet,” she said. “It is currently before the county commission, after this meeting our suggestions will go straight to the commission.”
The group then discussed the layout of the Tavern. It was explained that the only bathrooms in the facility were through the bar portion of the establishment and that children would have a 5-foot path between the barstools and the wall to get to the one stall male/female restrooms. This did not set well with the audience who expressed their wishes for an additional set of restrooms to be required.
Schreiber said that the owner had expressed a willingness to add an additional exterior entrance to the restrooms. This would allow children to exit the establishment and walk through the parking lot to enter the restrooms from outside.
“So our kids have to walk through a parking lot full of drunk drivers to go to the restroom?” said one resident in attendance.
The issue of police presence in the neighborhood of the proposed tavern was questioned. Metro officers in attendance explained that an investigation into the need for more officers had been completed by the proper authorities. When asked if they would patrol the area more once the tavern opened, Metro officers said, “Although some business owners don’t appreciate police presence, we will do our job regardless.” They pointed out that the safety of the community was the main concern.
Davis explained that little could be done by the community about this proposed project. He pointed out that the only thing the Town Board could do at this point was to make suggestions. These suggestions would be limited in scope and could really not include whether or not the Tavern would be allowed to do business.
The general appearance of the establishment was also on the mind of the locals. The sign that can be seen from I-15 was discussed as well as landscaping requests.
“The community is trying to get better looking,” Davis said. “The building and its exterior should be brought up to county ordinance, the appearance should be a betterment.”
As the topic came to a conclusion the suggestions were all listed which would be forwarded to the county commission for consideration. The suggestions included: proper exterior lighting, adequate paved parking, ADA compliance, two sets of bathrooms (if in fact it was to be made into a family establishment), proposed hours of noon – 10 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to midnight on weekends, separation between the bar portion and restaurant portion.
