Nevada law restricted wineries from operating in Nevada’s two largest counties (by population) until 2015.  During the 2015 legislative session, Assembly Bill 4 was passed, granting Washoe and Clark Counties the ability to allow commercial wineries and tasting rooms, subject to certain restrictions, including regarding the amount of fruit that must be sourced from within Nevada.

The City of Sparks rewrote its zoning code (Title 20) in 2015 and additional amendments were approved in December of 2017.  As part of the 2015 edition, the City adopted “Winery” as a permitted use but restricted wineries to the A40 (Agriculture) and A5 (Agriculture) zoning districts based on the premise that the wineries would be growing the grapes used to make their wines. 

There is currently interest in locating a winery that would use grapes and/or grape juice produced off-site in the Victorian Square area. However, a winery is not a permitted use in the Downtown/Victorian Square Mixed-Use District.

In 2015 the City also added “Craft Distillery” and “Brewery” as permitted uses. These uses, which are functionally like a winery using grapes or juice produced off-site, are permitted in the C1, C2, TC, and Industrial (subject to location criteria) zoning districts, and the Downtown/Victorian Square, Mixed-Use Commercial, and Mixed-Residential areas of the Mixed-Use (zoning) District.

This Title 20 amendment process was initiated by the City Council’s vote at the May 14, 2018 meeting. On June 7, 2018, the Planning Commission reviewed the proposed amendments to Title 20 for urban wineries and recommended approval of the proposed amendments to the City Council. (Refer to the Planning Commission Report of Action).

Although Title 20 provides a mechanism through the Conditional Use Permit process (see SMC 20.02.013.B) to approve uses not contemplated at the time of adoption of the zoning code, this mechanism is not available in this instance because wineries were considered and limited to the Agricultural zoning districts.  Therefore, the way to potentially permit a winery outside the A40 and A5 zoning districts is by amending the permitted use table in Title 20 to add a winery as a permitted use in additional zoning districts.

The proposed amendments to Title 20 use the term “Urban Winery” for a winery that utilizes grapes or grape juice not grown on-site.  This use is functionally similar, in terms of its characteristics, to a Craft Distillery or Brewery, both of which are currently permitted in other zoning districts, including the Downtown/Victorian Square Mixed-Use District. The Planning Commission therefore determined that the Urban Winery use is appropriate in the Downtown Victorian Square, Mixed-Commercial, and Mixed-Residential sub-districts of the Mixed-Use zoning district, as well as the C1 (Neighborhood Commercial), C2 (General Commercial), TC (Tourist Commercial) and I/L (Industrial, subject to locational criteria) zoning districts.  The locational restriction within the I (Industrial) zoning district generally directs commercial uses to the Rock Boulevard, Glendale Avenue, Greg Street, and McCarran Boulevard corridors (see SMC 20.02.009). Restricting commercial uses to these corridors maintains sites for heavier industrial applications in the remaining areas of the Industrial zoning district. 

As identified earlier in this section, wineries are a permitted use in Sparks but are currently restricted to the Agricultural zoning districts.  The proposed code amendment therefore makes a distinction between an “Urban Winery” and a “Winery” through a change to the definitions section, as well as the permitted use table.  Two definitions are proposed for inclusion in SMC 20.08.002, as follows:

"Winery" means a bonded agricultural facility comprising a building or buildings used to convert fruit juices (all or part of which are produced on the property) to wine, and to age, bottle, store, distribute and sell said wine. A winery, for the purposes of this section, includes crushing, fermenting and refermenting, bottling, blending, bulk and bottle storage, aging, shipping, receiving, laboratory equipment and maintenance facilities, sales, and administrative office functions, and may include tasting and promotional events.

“Urban Winery” means a bonded winery facility where a building is utilized to convert fruit juices to wine from grapes grown at a remote location transported to the facility within the City for aging, bottling, storing, distribution and selling of said wine. An urban winery includes crushing, fermenting and refermenting, bottling, blending, bulk and bottle storage, aging, shipping, receiving, laboratory equipment and maintenance facilities, sales, and administrative office functions, and may include tasting and promotional events.

Due to the minimum five (5) acre size for sites zoned Agriculture, a parking requirement is not proposed for wineries located in the A5 and A40 zoning districts.  For an Urban Winery, however, the proposed code amendment includes a minimum parking standard.  City staff identified that Placer County Code 17.56.330(D)(2) requires one space for 300 square feet of a tasting room.  The other portions of a typical urban winery building’s floor layout tend to include storage and office space, which are already addressed in SMC 20.04.009 (Parking & Loading). 

Based on Placer County’s parking standard for urban wineries, the proposed amendment to Title 20 requires that an Urban Winery provide one parking space for every 300 square feet of tasting area. An Urban Winery located within the Parking District Number 1 (which covers Victorian Square) would be permitted to benefit from the exemptions identified in SMC 20.04.009(E)(4), which exempts certain commercial uses from minimum parking requirements if certain criteria are met.

Lastly, to permit an Urban Winery as a use in Sparks, the Use Table (SMC 20.02.013) must be amended. Urban Winery would be added to the Use Table (Attached as 03-The Use Table).

If adopted, the proposed amendments to Title 20 would allow a use that is consistent with existing permitted uses in areas of the City, thereby promoting the following Comprehensive Plan goals and policies:

Goal MG4              Facilitate infill and redevelopment

Goal MG4              Prioritize development and enhancement of the Downtown Sparks Center

Policy MG10          Facilitate infill, redevelopment and functionally-integrated mixed-use development through targeted infrastructure improvements, additional zoning code amendments, and when feasible and appropriate, public/private partnerships.  The identified activity centers on the Land use map will promote a broad mix of uses.

Policy CC2              Promote a mix of uses, including restaurants and shopping, to create a vibrant downtown district at Victorian Square.

Goal EV1               Grow and diversify Sparks’ economy.

Goal EV4               Maintain a physical and regulatory environment that facilitates innovation, entrepreneurship, and small business development while providing for long term environmental and fiscal sustainability.  

Policy EV6              Support entrepreneurs by providing appropriately zoned areas with the infrastructure, public facilities and services necessary to start and grow small business.

In conclusion, the Planning Commission recommended that the City Council approve an ordinance to amend the Use Table, the definitions section, and the parking ordinance to permit an Urban Winery in certain zoning districts as identified in the Use Table (SMC 20.02.013).

1. The City Council can adopt Bill 2741 amending Title 20 of the Sparks Municipal Code to permit Urban Wineries.
2. The City Council can modify and adopt the proposed amendments to Title 20.
3. The City Council can remand this item to the Planning Commission with direction.
4. The City Council can reject Bill 2741.

I move to adopt Bill No. 2741, an ordinance amending Title 20 of the Sparks Municipal Code to permit Urban Wineries in the MUD-DT/VS, MUD/MUC, and MUD/MR (Mixed Use District) and the C2 (General Commercial), TC (Tourist Commercial) and I/L (Industrial/Locationally Restricted) zoning districts, and providing other matters related thereto.