Garage sales may be regulated

Dan Kulin

Tuesday, May 31, 2005 | 11:11 a.m.

Las Vegas residents would be required to register their garage and yard sales with the city under a proposed ordinance going before the City Council in the coming weeks.

Residents are already limited to holding two garage or yard sales a year. But city officials said they have a hard time ensuring that limit is adhered to without a good way to track who is having yard/garage sales and when.

The twice-a-year limit, which has been in place for at least 10 years, and the proposed registration program are intended to prevent residents from running small businesses disguised as frequent yard sales.

"The idea is to prevent it from becoming a neighborhood swap meet," Val Steed, a deputy city attorney, said.

Councilman Michael Mack, who requested the proposed ordinance, said he's heard of some neighborhoods where people seem to hold garage sales every week.

"It's hard to enforce the limit without registration," City Neighborhood Services Director Orlando Sanchez said.

The proposed ordinance is scheduled to be read into the official record during the Wednesday council meeting. A final council vote on the matter could come as early as June 15, which will be Mack's last council meeting.

Sanchez said the program could be in place by July or August.

Elsewhere in the Las Vegas Valley, North Las Vegas already requires residents to register their garage and yard sales with the city.

The Las Vegas garage and yard sale registration would be free, as it is in North Las Vegas.

If approved, Las Vegas residents would be required to notify the city of a coming yard sale at least one day before holding the sale. The registration could be done over the phone, through the city's Web site, or in person, Sanchez said.

Failure to comply with the registration requirement, if it is approved, could result in a misdemeanor charge. However, city Neighborhood Response Manager Devin Smith said first-time offenders would be told they were breaking the law. If the resident continued to ignore the registration requirement, the city would follow up with warning letters, he said.