In my experience having visited other countries where prostitution is often quietly tolerated (if not outright legal), there are plenty of whorehouses and liquor stores not far from elementary schools without any repercussion. I don't know about next door, but I've seen liquor stores and whorehouses yards away from elementary schools, and it didn't seem to make a whole lot of difference to anyone. But then, the people that lived in these countries didn't include a large bunch of folks proselytizing about how evil consensual "crimes" are, while regularly threatening the lives and livelihoods of those involved even tangentially.
Now, God only knows what you think about the propriety of a liquor store being open, anywhere, in the first place. But in my experience, there are plenty of liquor, beer and wine sales going on yards away from elementary schools in many states, without any problems.
While I think that in America, government shouldn't be zoning people out of a legal property use, yes, I probably wouldn't bat an eye at stupid government doing what you describe, purchasing poor land from the lowest bid for a school, regardless of the location and possible risks to the kids attending. Of course, I wouldn't be stupid enough to let my own kid attend such a public elementary school in the U.S. as that in the situation you describe.
First, with a whorehouse next door, and moral crusaders getting all riled up about how loose women/sex/horny men are the source of all evil, my kid might well be attacked in a pimps' turf war (since the value of whores would rise given the lack of supply, making any pimping position a high-end, cash-only, lucrative criminal business enterprise, as in many states today). Or my kid might be hurt by angry Carrie Nation wannabe types, either overtly, as in, a little overzealotry on their way to burn out the whores (maybe my child could be exposing her ankles that day, or loitering too overtly with a Judy Blume book or something), or accidently, as by an arsonist's fire in a whorehouse that spread to my child's school.
Second, what would any kid of mine be doing in any government-run "school" when I can afford an actual education for them instead?
The discussion above is predicated on the assumption that you meant a "public elementary school," because any private school would know better than to locate in such a dangerous area. Here in the U.S., because of those who think prohibition of prostitution is somehow productive for public health purposes, any private school would be forced to close or move the school away from a whorehouse immediately, or at least run out any house of ill repute that opened up. This would of course be in order to avoid having their students withdrawn by parents who fear their family members will become secondary victims of dangerous altercations between the proprietors, government/criminals, and, again, moralist crusaders.
It is interesting, given your implied preference for zoning laws that preclude whorehouses and liquor stores near elementary schools, that where prostitution is legal, its proprietors and the governments that permit the practice seem to have been successful in confining that business to certain zones--away from elementary schools. Your implied preference of banning prostitution and liquor use by minors outright is not at all successful at keeping whores or liquor away from minors or schools in the first place. Banning whores doesn't stop them from appearing to sell their 'product,' whereever they find demand. See (links not safe for work, I'd imagine) www.nytimes.com/2011/01/03/nyregion/03bronx.html, articles.latimes.com/2002/mar/23/local/me-swedish23, www.wdef.com/news/reverse_prostitution_sting_in_chattanooga_nets_20_arrests/11/2009, coedmagazine.com/2008/02/26/hot-for-teacher-top-18-sexiest-sex-offenders/. Banning liquor in students' hands doesn't do much for preventing the under-21 set from getting hold of it...too many links to that to even bother.
But whatever floats your boat. Sorry for collaborating in the thread highjacking, y'all. I just wanted to address the "hypothetical"...and insult.
Must of hit a nerve....