NORTHERN TOWNSHIP
ORDINANCE REGULATING
ADULT ORIENTED BUSINESS
January 1, 2003
Purpose: The purpose of this ordinance is to regulate all Adult Oriented Businesses as identified herein in order to protect the health, safety and general welfare and property values of the citizens of Northern Township through reasonable and uniform regulation of said businesses throughout the Township.
Findings: Studies have concluded that adult establishments may have adverse impact on the surrounding neighborhoods. Based on those findings, this township concludes:
a) The adverse impacts caused by adult establishments tend to diminish if adult establishments are governed by local requirements.
b) It is not the intent of this township to prohibit adult establishments from having a reasonable opportunity to locate in this township.
c) Minnesota Statutes, section 462.357, allows the township to adopt regulations to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare.
d) The public health, safety, and general welfare will be promoted by this township adopting regulations governing adult establishments.
e) The Planning Commission finds, based upon the reports completed for the cities of St. Paul, Austin, Los Angeles, and Indianapolis, that sexually oriented businesses have a potentially negative impact on the value and marketability of properties in close proximity to those businesses, therefore, Northern Township seeks to minimize any potential impact on the value and marketability of land in close proximity to sexually oriented businesses.
f) The limitation on the hours of operation and the regulation of exterior appearance, including signage, of sexually oriented business activities is necessary to protect and secure neighboring uses, to control adverse noise and traffic impacts associated with those activities, and otherwise address, mitigate, and if possible, eliminate the adverse impacts and secondary effects of sexually oriented business activities on the areas in which such activities are located or taking place.
Scope: This ordinance applies to all business whose primary or secondary purpose is to distribute adult oriented materials through wholesale, retail or other distribution means or who provide adult oriented entertainment, education or other means of similar communication. It is not designed to effect or to place limitations or restrictions on the content of any materials nor to deny access to adult oriented materials as protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments. It is designed to place limitations on locations and to prevent concentrations of said businesses and to prevent additional criminal or otherwise harmful or undesirable behavior in residential neighborhoods.
ARTICLE I
Definitions
The definitions defined below have the meaning given them. All other words and phrases for which a definition is not provided shall be assumed to retain its common usage as found in a published dictionary.
101 – Administrator: The person or body appointed by the Town Board of Supervisors to administer the ordinance within the limits of the Township.
102 – Adult Uses: Adult body painting studios, adult book stores, adult car washes, adult hotels and motels, adult motion picture theaters, adult mini-motion picture theaters, adult massage parlors, adult health/sport clubs, adult sauna/steam room/bathhouses, adult companionship establishments, adult rap/conversation parlors, adult novelty businesses, adult motion picture arcade, adult modeling studios and other premises, enterprises or establishments, businesses, or places open to some or all members of the public at or in which there is an emphasis on the presentation or display, depiction or description of “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas” which the public could see. This definition does not apply to the practice of medicine, surgery, osteopathy, chiropractic, physical therapy or podiatry by State licensed or registered persons. Activities classified as obscene are defined by Minnesota Statutes Section 627.241, are not lawful and are not included in the definitions of adult uses.
103 - Adult Use/Accessory: The offering of goods and/or services classified as adult uses on a limited scale that are incidental to the principal activity and goods and/or services offered by the establishment. Examples of such items include adult magazines, adult movies, adult novelties and similar items.
104 - Adult Uses/Principal: The offering of goods and/or services classified as adult uses as a primary or sole activity of a business or establishment. They include but are not limited to the following:
104a -Adult Body Painting Studio: An establishment or business that provides the services of applying paint or other substances, whether transparent or non-transparent, to or on the body of a patron when such body is wholly or partially nude in terms of “specified anatomical areas”.
104b - Adult Book Store: An establishment, building or business or portion thereof engaging in the barter, rental or sale of items or merchandise consisting of printed matter, pictures, slides, records, audio tapes, video tapes, computer or video disks, motion picture film or any similar material if such shop is not open to the public generally or a portion thereof, but only to one or more classes of the public, excluding any minor because of age, if more than 10 percent of the useable floor area of the establishment, building or business, or if at least 100 square feet, whichever is less, has products or materials distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or related to “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104c - Adult Cabaret: An establishment, building or business that provides dancing or other live entertainment if such dancing or live entertainment is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on the performance or presentation, display, depiction or description of “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104d - Adult Car Wash: A wash facility for any type of motor vehicle that allows employees, agents, independent contractors or persons to appear in a state of partial or total nudity in terms of “specified anatomical areas”.
104e - Adult Companionship Establishments: An establishment of business, if such excludes minors because of age, and which provides the service of engaging in or listening to conversation, talk, or discussion between an employee of the establishment and a customer, if such service is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104e - Adult Entertainment Facility: A building or space in which an admission is charged for the entrance, or food or non-alcoholic beverages are sold or intended for consumption, and in which may be observed live presentation of entertainment distinguished by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or relating to “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104f - Adult Establishment: An establishment, building, or business engaging in any of the following activities or which uses any of the following business procedures or practices:
(1) Any business conducted exclusively for the patronage of adults and about which minors are specifically excluded from patronage thereat whether by law or by the operator of said business; or,
(2) Any other business that offers its patrons services, products or entertainment characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, exposing, describing, discussing or relating to “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”
104g - Adult Hotel or Motel: A hotel or motel from which minors are specifically excluded from patronage and in which material is presented that is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or relating to “specified sexual acts “ or “specified anatomical areas”.
104h - Adult Massage Parlor, Health/Sport Club: A massage parlor or health/sport club that restricts minors because of age and law, which provides the services of massage if such service is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104i - Adult Mini-motion Picture Studio: A business, building, or establishment in an enclosed building or outdoor venue with a capacity for less than fifty(50) persons used for the presenting of visual media material if such business as a prevailing practice excludes minors by virtue of age, and law, or if said material is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on “specified sexual activities” or “ specified anatomical areas” for observation by patrons.
104j - Adult Modeling Studio: An establishment or business whose principal or accessory business is the provision to customers of figure models who are provided with the intent of providing sexual stimulation or sexual gratification to such customers who engage in “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas” while being observed, painted, painted upon, sketched, drawn, sculpted, photographed or otherwise depicted by such customers.
104k - Adult Motion Picture Arcade: Any building or place to which the public is allowed or invited in which monetary remuneration facilitates access or operation of electronically or mechanically controlled still or motion picture machines, projectors, computers, or other image producing devices that show images which are characterized by an emphasis on depicting or describing “specified sexual acts” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104l - Adult Motion Picture Theater: A business premises within an enclosed building with a capacity of fifty (50) or more persons used for presenting visual media material if said business as prevailing practice excludes minors by virtue of age, or law, and if the material is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on the depiction or description of “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104m - Adult Novelty Business: A business that has as a principal or accessory activity the sale of materials or devices that stimulate human genitals or devices designed for sexual stimulation or which depict or which relate to “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104n - Adult Sauna/Steam Room/Bathhouse: A business that excludes minors because of age or law and which provides a steam bath or heat bathing room used for bathing, pleasure, relaxation or reducing, utilizing steam or hot air as a cleaning, relaxing or reducing agent, if the service provided by same is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas”.
104o – Private Club – A business that excludes the public through membership fees, gender, race, age or other means of distinguishing for the purpose of adult uses.
105 - Planning Commission: The Northern Township Planning Commission
106 - Township Board: Northern Township Board of Supervisors as elected by the citizens of Northern Township.
107 - Licensed Family Day Care: A home occupation holding a license from Beltrami County and a Conditional Use Permit from Northern Township.
108 - Licensed Group Family Day Care: A fully licensed and permitted facility whose primary activity is to care for children or adults.
108 - Minor: Any person under the age of eighteen (18) years.
109 - Nudity: The showing of the human genital, male or female, or pubic area with less than full opaque covering; the showing of the female breast with less than fully opaque covering of any portion thereof below a point immediately above the top of the areola; or the depiction or showing of the coverage of male genitalia in a discernibly turgid state.
110 - Public Library: Any library that provides free access to all residents of the Township without discrimination and is organized according to law.
111 - Public Park: A park, reservation, playground, beach, or recreation or community center in the Township owned or leased or used by the residents of the Township for recreational purposes.
112 - Place of Worship: A building or space that is primarily used as a place where people of the same faith or religion regularly assemble for worship.
113 - School: A building or space that is primarily or secondarily used as a place where twenty-five (25) or more persons receive a course of instruction. Any post secondary or post high school education building, including any college of any kind or any vocational-technical school, shall not be deemed a school for purposes of this ordinance.
114 - Sexually Oriented Business: An adult body painting studio, adult book stores, adult car wash, adult hotels/motels, adult motion picture theaters, adult mini-motion picture theaters, adult massage parlors, adult health/sport clubs, adult steam rooms/saunas/ bathhouses, adult companionship establishments, adult rap/conversation parlors, adult novelty businesses, adult motion picture arcades, adult modeling studios and other premises, enterprises, establishments, businesses, or places open to some or all members of the public at or in which there is an emphasis on the presentation or display, depiction or description of “specified sexual activities” or “specified anatomical areas” which the public could see. This definition does not apply to the practice of medicine, surgery, osteopathy, chiropractic, physical therapy, or podiatry by State licensed or registered persons. Activities classified as obscene as defined by Minnesota Statutes Section 617.241 are not lawful and are not included in the definitions of adult uses.
115 - Specified Anatomical Areas: Anatomical areas consist of; 1) Less than completely covered and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region or pubic hair, buttock, anus, or female breast or breast below a point immediately above the top of the areola or any combination thereof, and 2) Human genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.
116 - Specified Sexual Activities: Activities consisting of the following:
1) Actual or simulated sexual intercourse, oral copulation, anal intercourse, oral-anal copulation, bestiality, direct physical stimulation or fondling of unclothed genitals, pubic region, buttock, or female breast, flagellation, or torture in a sexual relationship, and any of the following sexually oriented acts or conduct: Anilingus, buggery, coprophagy, coprophilia, cunnilingus, fellatio, necrophilia, pederasty, pedophilia, piquerism, sapphism, sodomy, zooerasty, or:
2) Human genitals in the state of sexual stimulation, arousal or tumescence or:
3) Use or acts of human or animal ejaculation, sexual intercourse, sodomy, oral copulation, coitus, or masturbation, or:
4) Fondling or touching of human genitals, pubic regions or pubic hair, buttocks or female breasts or;
5) Situations involving a person or persons, any of whom are nude, clad in undergarments or in sexually revealing costumes, who are engaged in activities involving the flagellation, torture, fettering, binding, or other physical restraint of any such person; or
6) Erotic or lewd touching, fondling, or the sexually oriented contact with an animal by a human being; or
7) Human excretion, urination, menstruation, vaginal or anal irrigation; or
8) Any combination of the above.
ARTICLE II
Application of Ordinance
No structure shall be erected, converted, or altered in any manner nor existing land use be converted for the purpose of engaging in adult uses as identified in this ordinance except as permitted by this Ordinance. All adult uses shall be in conformity with this ordinance. Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed as authorizing or permitting conduct that is prohibited or otherwise regulated by other laws of the township, county, state of Minnesota or Federal Government of the United States of America.
201 – Permits required: All businesses engaging in adult uses as defined in this ordinance shall require a conditional use permit as defined and administered, including a public hearing, in the Northern Township Land Use Ordinance. An application form provided by the Township shall be completed and fees paid before any public hearings will be scheduled.
202 – Applications: An application for a business engaging in adult uses as defined in this ordinance shall be made on a form provided by the Administrator and approved by the Township. This application shall include;
a) The name, residence, mailing address, phone number and birth date of the applicant. If more than one or if a corporation, partnership, LLC or other entity the same information of all individuals involved.
b) A complete copy of the Beltrami County Application for a license for an adult use establishment or activity.
c) A copy of the Beltrami County Adult use license.
d) A detailed statement of all activities and types of business to be conducted on the premises. Statement shall be in sufficient detail to determine the extent to which said business fits the definitions of all businesses engaging in adult uses as defined in this ordinance..
e) The address and legal description of the land on which all businesses engaging in adult uses as defined in this ordinance..
f) A building plan of the premises to be built or renovated. Said plan shall include existing configuration and final configuration of floor plans.
g) Intended days and hours of operation.
h) Provisions made to restrict access by minors.
i) Provisions made to provide security for employees and patrons.
j) A signature to a statement attesting to the fact that any withholding of facts or information or the providing of false information through the course of the application and investigation process and subsequent operation of the business shall be grounds for denial or revocation of the permit.
k) A statement attesting to the fact that failure to report changes in information provided on the application shall result in denial or revocation of the permit.
l) The application is not complete until the appropriate fee has been paid.
203 - Location of Adult Uses: No Adult uses shall be located at any time in any Residential Zones, Public Ownership Zones, or Special Protection Zones. The Township shall permit adult uses as defined in this ordinance to be permitted with a Conditional Use Permit only in the C-1 Commercial Zones within the township subject to the following conditions:
a) No adult use facility/business shall be located closer than 1320 feet from another adult use facility within the township. Measurements shall be made in a straight horizontal line, without regard to governmental boundaries, intervening structures or other objects, from the nearest point of the actual business structure to the nearest point of the similarly permitted business structure.
b) No adult use facility/business shall be located closer than 1000 feet from any place of worship, hospital, school, daycare, public park, public library or other public institution boundary line within or outside the Township boundaries. Measurements shall be made in a straight horizontal line from the actual building in which the facility/business is located to the nearest aforementioned property boundary.
c) No adult use facility/business shall be located closer than 1000 feet from any residential lot line, residential zoning district, or residential planned unit development. Measurements shall be made in a straight horizontal line from the actual building in which the facility is located to the nearest property line of said zones or residences.
d) No adult uses facility/business shall be located closer than 1320 feet from any other establishment selling intoxicating beverages either onsale or offsale.
e) No adult use buildings shall be located closer than 100 feet from any CSAH or State trunk highway right of way.
f) There shall be only one adult use in any building, facility, establishment or place of business.
g) There shall be only one adult use business/facility per tax parcel of land.
204 - Conditions of Operation
a) All adult use business shall be confined to the interior of the building. All business shall be conducted in a manner that eliminates the possibility of observation by the general public either through casual observation while driving past or by viewing through the windows.
B) All adult uses facility/business shall not sell non-intoxicating imitation liquors, wines, beer or intoxicating beverages. Said business shall not allow the consumption of said beverages on the premises, including all portions of the property parcel.
c) All adult uses shall prominently display a sign at the entrance within two (2) feet of the door that clearly states; “This establishment sells or displays material containing adult themes. Persons under eighteen (18) years of age shall not enter.”
d) All adult use businesses shall prominently display hours of operation. Said businesses shall not operate between the hours of 0100hrs and 1200hrs Monday through Saturday. All said businesses shall not be open or sell products on Sunday. Sunday starts at 0001hrs.
e) All conditions listed above and any other conditions deemed necessary by the Planning Commission and the Town Board shall be clearly stated as conditions on the Conditional Use Permit when granted.
g) Persons with prior gross misdemeanor or felony convictions concerning sexually related offenses or assaultive behavior shall not be granted a Conditional Use Permit for an adult facility.
205 - Signs: All signs for adult use businesses shall be permitted separately IAW the Northern Township Sign Ordinance with the following restrictions;
a) All signs shall be affixed to the building in which the adult use is conducted. Freestanding signs and roof-mounted signs are not allowed. There shall be no directional signs placed in the township.
b) Signs shall not contain any flashing lights, electronic or mechanical message boards, or moving elements.
c) Merchandise, photos, caricatures or pictures of the products or entertainment on the premises shall not be displayed either on the sign or in the windows or other areas where they may be viewed from the public right-of-ways or adjoining properties.
d) With the exception of a sign stating the hours of operation, no signs may be placed in any windows.
ARTICLE III
Enforcement
301 – General
It is the responsibility of the Town Board of Supervisors to enforce and administer this ordinance. They may appoint an Administrator, delegate oversight to the Northern Township Planning Commission or divide the work among the Supervisors or any combination thereof.
302 – Administration
All requests for a Conditional Use Permit shall be submitted to the Administrator on the appropriate Township forms. A complete application includes a complete form, all supporting documentation, diagrams, and the appropriate fee as determined by the Administrator. An application shall not be accepted until the Administrator determines that all information and documentation is complete. Upon receipt of the complete application the Administrator shall schedule a public hearing to present the application to the Planning Commission. Prior to the hearing the Administrator shall physically visit the site and/or facility and assess the accuracy of the application and the possible impact to the surrounding neighborhood. A detailed report with a recommendation shall be forwarded to the Planning Commission for its hearing. The Planning Commission shall then consider all of the facts presented and the public testimony and forward a recommendation to the Town Board. The Town Board shall then approve, deny or refer the application back to the Planning Commission for additional information.
302a–Files
All files regarding an application and process shall be maintained in the individual parcel file for a particular parcel of land. Each parcel of land requires a separate Conditional Use Permit.
302b – Change of Ownership
Change of ownership of the adult use shall require a new Conditional Use Permit with all of the process and investigation.
302c - Appeals
All decisions of the Town Board are subject to appeal. An appeal may be initiated by the applicant within thirty days from the date of the Town Board’s decision. The appeal shall be initiated by service of a Notice of Appeal to the Town Clerk on the form specified by the Township. It shall also be filed with proof of service to the Beltrami County District Court Administrator within thirty (30) days of the Town Board’s action. Failure to serve and file the Notice of Appeal within the specified time shall deprive the District Court of jurisdiction to undertake review of the Town Board’s action. The Notice of Appeal shall state in detail:
a) The Article and Sections of the Ordinance involved in the appeal.
b) The errors of judgment or law claimed by the appellant to have been committed by the Town Board.
303 - Violations
303a Any person who violates, neglects, refuses to comply with or assists or participates in any way in the violation of any of the provisions or requirements of this ordinance is guilty of a misdemeanor. Said violator is subject to the maximum penalty prescribed by state law for a misdemeanor. Each day such violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.
303b Upon written notice of a violation the owner shall have 30 days to bring the violation into compliance with this and any other ordinances cited in the violation notice. Failure to comply shall result in immediate revocation of the Conditional Use Permit by the Town Board.
303c In the event of a violation of this ordinance, any costs of enforcement, including administrative and legal expenses incurred in the enforcement proceedings may be assessed against the party found to have violated the ordinance. Within forty-five (45) days after the conclusion of a civil or criminal case, Northern Township may certify the costs of enforcement for assessment against a the violator’s property where the violator has either been found to have violated this Ordinance by the court or has admitted the violation.
The Town Clerk shall prepare a bill for the amount certified. The Town Clerk shall mail a copy by certified mail to the violator’s last known address or the violator’s of record with the Beltrami County Auditor’s Office. If the total amount of the bill is not paid within thirty (30) days of receipt of mailing, Northern Township may certify the bill as any other special assessment.
The violator may appeal the certification of the costs to the Northern Township Board of Adjustment by filing an objection to the assessment within fifteen (15) days upon receipt of notice of certification. The appeal must include a detailed explanation for the objection.
304 - Fees and Recovery of Costs
In order to defray administrative costs associated with the processing of an application, investigations, and hearings, the Town Board shall adopt a fee schedule and charge fees accordingly.
All costs and services associated with enforcement against violations of this ordinance shall be assessed against the property to which they are attributable if not paid immediately by the violator.
305 - Review of the Ordinance
This ordinance shall be reviewed as needed by the Planning Commission and Town Board commencing one year from the date of adoption.
306 - Exclusion
The provisions of this ordinance shall not apply to:
a) Any theatrical production performed in a theater, by a professional or amateur theatrical or musical company, which has serious artistic merit; or,
b) by a woman breastfeeding a child.
307 - Severability
If any subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this ordinance.
APPENDIX A
A Report on Zoning and Other Methods of Regulating Adult Entertainment Uses in Amarillo, TX;
Adams County, Colorado, Nude Entertainment Study, 1991;
Adult Business Study, Planning Department, City of Phoenix, AZ (1979);
Adult Entertainment, a 40-Acre Study, St. Paul, MN Department of Planning and Economic Development (1987, Supplemented 1988);
Adult Entertainment Businesses in Indianapolis, Indiana (1984);
Adult Entertainment Perspectives, Rochester/Olmsted, MN Consolidated Planning Department (1988);
Report of the Attorney General’s Working Group on the Regulation of Sexually Oriented Businesses, Attorney General, State of Minnesota (1989);
Report on Adult Oriented Businesses in Austin, TX, (1986).
Study of the Effects of the Concentration of Adult Entertainment Establishment, Los Angeles Department of City Planning (1977);
