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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Special Meeting on Short-Term Rental Regulations – May 5, 2026

City Council & Committees — Tuesday, May 5, 2026

BodyMesquite, Nevada

SessionCity Council & Committees

DateTuesday, May 5, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:47:53

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:01

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the City of Mesquite special meeting for short term rentals.

0:08

Um it is 502, and we're gonna get started Tuesday, May 5th, 2026.

0:13

Um, we're gonna start with our opening public comment.

0:15

So this public comment period is dedicated to things that are not on the agenda.

0:20

So if you have something that does not involve short term rentals that you would like to talk about, please come forward.

0:27

Okay, seeing none, we will start on item number two.

0:32

Um my first question is is we saw the presentations last week.

0:38

Um do we need to do presentations again?

0:44

Um Justin Simon, how are you guys feeling about that?

0:47

Um probably yes, because uh we got a new audience here, and uh I actually uh expanded a little bit on my presentation.

0:57

So yeah, so it can actually uh read better.

1:03

Uh I try to make uh people understand it easy.

1:07

So uh there was some misunderstanding when I said when I made the presentation, so I want to clarify too.

1:14

Okay.

1:15

Um do you want to go first or Justin?

1:17

Do you want to go first?

1:18

Just leave.

1:18

All right, Jessel.

1:20

Okay.

1:24

Hello, okay.

1:25

Can everybody hear me okay?

1:27

All right, so my presentation is just going over what the committee recommended.

1:31

Um, we go through it section by section and we break down any changes that were made.

1:35

So Title Two, Chapter 13, Section 1 is the title of the chapter.

1:39

There was no changes.

1:43

And title two, or I'm sorry, section two is the purpose of the chapter.

1:47

The committee did decide to add F and G to the end of that section, and it would read as F.

1:53

The purpose of this chapter is to establish a clear, objective, and enforceable authorization program for vacation home rentals, parentheses, short term rentals, to protect neighborhood quality of life, support tourism, and economic activity, ensure tax compliance, and provide an efficient administrative process that rewards compliant operators and removes repeat problem operators.

2:14

Section G says it is the intent of the city that vacation home rentals operate only when properly authorized, responsibly managed, and subject to meaningful enforcement.

2:25

The city's enforcement priorities are one threat to life safety, two, chronic nuisance activity, and three, repeated failure to respond to verified complaints.

2:34

Okay.

2:35

Section three is an applicability.

2:37

There were no changes.

2:39

Under definitions, section four, we did add the committee decided to add hosting platform, which is defined as a person who for a fee or other charge provides an internet website and online platform that facilitates the rental of a residential unit or a room within a residential unit by an owner or lessee of the residential room or unit within a residential unit for the purposes of transient lodging.

3:03

That is language that comes directly from AB 363.

3:14

Changed operator to licensed operator.

3:17

Definition remains the same still.

3:19

And then amend the vacation home rental license definition to remove language that conflicts with other areas of our code.

3:26

And the amended definition reads vacation home rental license, a license issued by the city that permits the use of a privately owned residential dwelling as a vacation rental unit pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.

3:40

Under section five, vacation home rental requirements, there were no changes.

3:45

Section six is distancing.

3:47

The committee felt it was best to leave this decision to council.

3:50

So it is reserved for your review and final decision.

3:55

Section seven is agency.

3:58

It was renumbered for the distancing reservation.

4:01

Any mention of local contact person was changed to read qualified local operator, but everything else is the same.

4:09

Zoning compliance.

4:16

Section nine application for a vacation home rental license was renumbered, obviously.

4:22

And then any mention of local contact was changed to qualified local operator.

4:26

In section B, there is language added that requires a notarized affidavit from the qualified local operator, stating that they accept the responsibility of responding to any and all issues as stated in the chapter.

4:38

The committee felt that was important to make sure that whoever's being listed on that application is aware that they are on it as the local the qualified local operator.

4:48

Section L was amended to require a valid certificate of occupancy from the city's building department.

4:53

And section M was re inserted to add the language originally moved from L.

5:00

So M reads other information, the development services director or a designee deems reasonably necessary to administer this chapter.

5:07

Continued language was removed from the end of the section, requiring the city that to that we provide a copy of the application to the general improvement district and the homeowners association.

5:19

Section 10 application renewal fees, it was renumbered, but no other changes.

5:24

11 room tax imposed.

5:27

Section was renumbered, no changes.

5:30

12 is the standard license condition and additional conditions.

5:34

In section one, the committee amended the chart to top out at 16 guests.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Short Term Rentals█████████████████████████████████████████████63%

Legal And Constitutional Issues█████████13%

Zoning████████11%

Community Engagement████6%

Procedural██3%

Pending Litigation█2%

Public Safety█1%

Public Engagement█1%

Summary of Proceedings

Special Meeting on Short-Term Rental Regulations – May 5, 2026

The Mesquite City Council held a special meeting on May 5, 2026, to discuss and provide direction on proposed amendments to the city's short-term rental (STR) regulations, based on recommendations from the STR Committee. After presentations, public comment, and council deliberation, the council voted to move forward with the committee's recommendations, excluding a spacing (distancing) requirement, and increasing the neighbor notification radius to 300 feet.

Public Comments & Testimony

Amy Gardner (committee member, J & Amy's Mesquite Getaways) requested adjusting the occupancy formula to two per bedroom plus living areas instead of the chart caps, and urged delaying decisions until the 2030 census.
Dominic Oliveto (resident) argued that rules are unenforceable, citing a noise complaint response delay.
Becky Peterson (resident) emphasized preserving community character, opposing commercial encroachment in residential neighborhoods.
Loretta Corp (resident, sandwiched by two STRs) described noise, light, and safety issues; pleaded for continued restrictions and opposed any wait for court rulings.
Michelle West (resident) noted STRs are needed for tourism and will be well-regulated.
Nick (resident) described persistent noise from nearby STRs preventing enjoyment of his yard.
John Rosen (resident) argued STRs are commercial uses and should be restricted to zones permitting commercial lodging; recommended zoning separation rather than distancing.
Paul (resident) emphasized that distancing is critical, that the committee deliberately left it undecided, and criticized a letter from a Las Vegas organization as intimidation.
Rick McIntyre (committee chair) supported the committee's recommendations, opposed distancing based on legal risks, and urged the council to follow the city attorney's advice.
Natalie Hafen (committee member) urged the council to focus on zoning, noting that STRs function as hotels in residential areas; she opposed distancing but called for strict adherence to zoning.
Vanessa (committee member) felt more work is needed, recommended a moratorium until all city departments and AB 363 implications are fully evaluated.
David Giebink (resident) suggested a compromise: allow STRs in HOAs that permit them, impose distancing in non-HOA areas.
Clark Strong (resident) described five STRs within 1,000 feet on his street, with noise and disruption; argued that waiting for lawsuits allows unchecked proliferation.
Janet Hanson (HOA resident) supported a property manager contact system and urged a decision.
Sherry Hollenbach (committee member) noted police data showing only 0.25% of calls involve STRs; she argued that complaints often stem from lifestyle preferences rather than actual violations.

Discussion Items

Jessel (Development Services) presented the STR Committee's recommended ordinance changes, including occupancy limits (max 16 guests), parking limits, elimination of landline requirement, and addition of a neighborhood information notice (100 ft radius, later changed to 300 ft).
Simon Kim (City Planner) provided a contrasting recommendation. He argued that STRs are commercial uses, not home occupations, and proposed allowing owner-occupied STRs as home occupations (up to 7 occupants) without spacing, and prohibiting investor-owned STRs in residential zones. He recommended 660 ft spacing for commercial-scale STRs, removal of proposed purpose statements F and G (support tourism, tax compliance) as they could be used against the city in lawsuits, and changing the qualified local operator duty from "addressed and/or resolved" to merely "resolved" within 60 minutes.
Councilmember Wandless supported the committee's recommendations but opposed spacing because it is being litigated; he cited property rights concerns. He suggested waiting for court outcomes.
Councilmember Ennis agreed with Wandless on spacing, but recommended increasing the neighbor notification to 300 ft instead of 100 ft. He emphasized enforcement.
Councilmember Fielding supported the committee's recommendations, including purpose statements F and G, opposed distancing, and agreed on 300 ft notification.
Councilmember Gallo (via phone) initially cut out but later echoed support for the committee's trust and the need for additional code enforcement.
City Attorney Adam advised that distancing is on a sliding scale of legal risk; lower distances carry less risk. He noted that the committee's other recommendations raised no legal concerns.

Key Outcomes

Motion (by Councilmember Ennis, seconded by Councilmember Wandless): Accept the STR Committee's recommendations as presented, with the following changes:
- Remove the spacing (distancing) requirement (deferred until further legal clarity).
- Increase the neighbor notification radius from 100 ft to 300 ft.
Vote: Motion passed unanimously (all present councilmembers voting in favor).
Next Steps: Staff will draft an ordinance incorporating the approved recommendations. The ordinance will be introduced at a future meeting for first reading, followed by a public hearing and final adoption.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the City of Mesquite special meeting for short term rentals. Um it is 502, and we're gonna get started Tuesday, May 5th, 2026. Um, we're gonna start with our opening public comment. So this public comment period is dedicated to things that are not on the agenda. So if you have something that does not involve short term rentals that you would like to talk about, please come forward. Okay, seeing none, we will start on item number two. Um my first question is is we saw the presentations last week. Um do we need to do presentations again? Um Justin Simon, how are you guys feeling about that? Um probably yes, because uh we got a new audience here, and uh I actually uh expanded a little bit on my presentation. So yeah, so it can actually uh read better. Uh I try to make uh people understand it easy. So uh there was some misunderstanding when I said when I made the presentation, so I want to clarify too. Okay. Um do you want to go first or Justin? Do you want to go first? Just leave. All right, Jessel. Okay. Hello, okay. Can everybody hear me okay? All right, so my presentation is just going over what the committee recommended. Um, we go through it section by section and we break down any changes that were made. So Title Two, Chapter 13, Section 1 is the title of the chapter. There was no changes. And title two, or I'm sorry, section two is the purpose of the chapter. The committee did decide to add F and G to the end of that section, and it would read as F. The purpose of this chapter is to establish a clear, objective, and enforceable authorization program for vacation home rentals, parentheses, short term rentals, to protect neighborhood quality of life, support tourism, and economic activity, ensure tax compliance, and provide an efficient administrative process that rewards compliant operators and removes repeat problem operators. Section G says it is the intent of the city that vacation home rentals operate only when properly authorized, responsibly managed, and subject to meaningful enforcement. The city's enforcement priorities are one threat to life safety, two, chronic nuisance activity, and three, repeated failure to respond to verified complaints. Okay. Section three is an applicability. There were no changes. Under definitions, section four, we did add the committee decided to add hosting platform, which is defined as a person who for a fee or other charge provides an internet website and online platform that facilitates the rental of a residential unit or a room within a residential unit by an owner or lessee of the residential room or unit within a residential unit for the purposes of transient lodging. That is language that comes directly from AB 363. Changed operator to licensed operator. Definition remains the same still. And then amend the vacation home rental license definition to remove language that conflicts with other areas of our code. And the amended definition reads vacation home rental license, a license issued by the city that permits the use of a privately owned residential dwelling as a vacation rental unit pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. Under section five, vacation home rental requirements, there were no changes. Section six is distancing. The committee felt it was best to leave this decision to council. So it is reserved for your review and final decision. Section seven is agency. It was renumbered for the distancing reservation. Any mention of local contact person was changed to read qualified local operator, but everything else is the same. Zoning compliance. Section nine application for a vacation home rental license was renumbered, obviously. And then any mention of local contact was changed to qualified local operator. In section B, there is language added that requires a notarized affidavit from the qualified local operator, stating that they accept the responsibility of responding to any and all issues as stated in the chapter.

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