Owner of Cork and Thorn says landlord is evicting her after council sets new rules

Randi Garrett, the owner of Cork and Thorn, told the Las Vegas City Council on Wednesday that her landlord is evicting her. Garrett made the statement after council members approved a set of strict conditions allowing the Arts District nightclub to remain open.

The council voted to limit the club's operating hours to 8 a.m. through 1 a.m. Live entertainment must conclude by midnight. The council also suspended the club's hookah license. All previous security mandates remain active, requiring armed and licensed guards inside the venue, at the entrance, and in the parking lot.

A review of the club's license is scheduled for February to determine if further changes are needed. Councilwoman Olivia Diaz, who represents Ward 3, stated that the city's responsibility is to ensure public health, safety, and welfare above all else.

The debate centered on three violent incidents in a city-owned parking lot across the street from the club. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department reported that these cases, occurring months apart, involved two stabbings and one shooting. One victim lost a leg, and another died. Police said the incidents began inside Cork and Thorn before moving into the lot.

The most recent incident was a fatal stabbing in September. Officers received a report just before 3 a.m. of a man with a stab wound in the 70 block of West Imperial Avenue. Medical personnel transported him to a hospital where he later died.

Gary Creagh, Garrett's landlord, sent a letter to the city asking for a permanent shutdown of the business. Creagh told the council that while it is easy to talk to Garrett, her response as tenant has been to say yes to death.

Garrett responded to Creagh's letter by noting that she has operated the business for nine years without incident. She said the recent events in the parking lot are unusual for her tenure there. She also noted that hookah represents a large portion of her profit and questioned the sustainability of the business under the new reduced hours.

Dozens of supporters attended the Wednesday meeting, including patrons, performers, and employees. They described the club as a rare space where people of color and local artists feel welcomed and connected to an audience.

William Taylor, a local poet who performs as 360 the Poet, has curated events at the club since 2016. He said he has known Garrett since the club's origin and found the move to evict her disheartening. He noted that the club was originally asked to move from Tivoli Village to the Arts District to bring cultural balance to the area.

Garrett said she is raising money through her other shops to support staff and performers who depend on the nightclub. She stated that she has been given a couple of months to find a new location and move out. She said she no longer feels the same level of welcome in the neighborhood as she did when she first arrived.