Mormon temple OK'd after Las Vegas zoning dispute

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gained approval to build a controversial 70,000-square-foot temple with a towering spire in the rural Lone Mountain neighborhood on the outskirts of Las Vegas.

The big picture: It's the Utah-based church's latest victory in a series of zoning disputes over its worldwide push to build more temples .

• Temples house religious ceremonies and are open only to church members who are deemed "worthy" by the faith's clergy.

Driving the news: The Las Vegas City Council on Wednesday voted unanimously to approve the temple — but with the height reduced by 20 feet.

• The church wanted to build a steeple so high that it would require a flashing beacon for flight safety — an annoyance that a neighboring councilmember begged the church to avoid.

Zoom in: The Las Vegas temple controversy got particularly heated, with neighbors and a city councilwoman saying they were targeted with harassment, threats, and vandalism.

The intrigue: Church representatives again invoked religious freedom in the effort to obtain zoning adjustments to build the temple.

• A Las Vegas planning commissioner in May said the risk of a lawsuit was central to the decision to approve the plans.
• A Fairview, Texas, city official also has said a church attorney threatened to sue the town if its temple plans there weren't approved.

What they're saying: The tall steeple "intentionally and symbolically is designed to direct all eyes towards heaven," Jennifer Lazovich, a Las Vegas attorney who represented the church, said Wednesday.

The other side: Nathan Taylor, a land use consultant who represented neighbors opposed to the temple plan, said the church didn't allow for any negotiation over the design until a voluntary meeting with neighbors last week.

• "I mean come on — 216 feet high, 70,000 square feet, additional buildings, 500 parking spaces?" Taylor said Wednesday. "I've never seen anything like this, this close to this type of neighborhood in the city."