The Pahrump Regional Planning Commission voted unanimously Wednesday not to recommend eliminating a 1,500-foot minimum distance between check-cashing and payday loan businesses to the county commission.

The Nye County Commission asked the RPC to consider changing the county code after it rejected a request for a waiver for a payday loan operation at the Rent-a-Center back in January.

Rent-a-Center is located next door to Super Pawn in front of the Smith's Food and Drug shopping center on Highway 160.

Attorney Tony Celeste, representing the Rent-a-Center, suggested allowing an exception to the 1,500 foot minimum distance in shopping centers over 35,000 square feet, as is the case in some other municipalities. He said those payday loan and check-cashing businesses are already regulated by the state.

"Your planning staff did not come across any reason why there was a separation requirement specifically because there was no adverse effect to the public health, safety and welfare," Celeste said.

Celeste said it would be a benefit for Rent-a-Center customers who might be short a few bucks who can't wait for their next pay check and need a short-term loan.

But the planning commission, led by Nevada Tolladay, rejected any suggestions to soften the code and in fact wanted to add a 500-foot separation between such businesses and schools and residences.

Tolladay said he counted nine similar businesses in Pahrump, mostly along Highway 160 or the Frontage Road. He said planning commissions nationwide have become the front line for stopping the unrestricted proliferation of these type of businesses.

Tolladay took offense to a comment by resident Dan Simmons that the RPC needs to get out of the morality business.

"Moral simply means a belief between right and wrong. Surely you are not suggesting we would abandon such a thing," Tolladay said.

Simmons said loan companies weren't much worse than some banks. He said eliminating the requirement would be a way to keep Rent-a-Center in business.

RPC member Jacob Skinner said he remembered when Dollar Loan Center approached the board. It touted favorable interest rates, which turned out to be 200 percent, he said.

"If we just eliminate any sort of requirements here, it's just going to open up the floodgates for the proliferation of more of these type of businesses," Skinner said. "It's starting to look like we're getting to be a slum with more of these places down the center of town."

RPC member Carrick "Bat" Masterson said the county requires a minimum distance between bars and sexually-oriented businesses. He said payday loans and check cashing businesses should also have a separation requirement.

RPC member Dan Schinhofen said the separation distance should remain at 1,500 feet. Schinhofen opposed setting a quota allowing only so many check cashing and payday loan businesses for a given population, saying he didn't want to "demonize one particular type of business."

RPC chairman Mark Kimball said he favors allowing business to operate without a lot of controls, but said there's a national pattern of other planners regulating these type of businesses.

"I don't believe it's a hardship on the community to go another 1,500 feet to find a check," Kimball said.

RPC member Norma Jean Opatik said county planners and the town board often adopt ordinances from another town.

"Now in this case they want us to wipe it out," Opatik said of the distance requirement. "To throw the baby out with the bath water would be a grave mistake."

Vicky Parker, the Pahrump town liaison to the RPC, was the only one who voiced some support for the revision. She said the action was discriminatory to payday loan companies but voted anyway with the rest of the board to deny the change.

The only other public comment came from John Koenig, a regular participant at RPC and county commission meetings. Koenig said while the requirement doesn't affect the health and safety of residents, it does affect the welfare of a certain clientele.

"These are predatory people. They prey on people who need money quickly. Their interest rates are outrageous. By doing away with the 1,500-foot separation, you're going to have a proliferation of these places," Koenig said.