City of St. Charles, MO Article II Location, Building and Signage Restrictions

Section 665.060 Location And Building Restrictions.

[R.O. 2011 § 665.060; R.O. 2009 § 158.010; Ord. No. 06-330, 12-14-2006]

A. Sexually oriented businesses shall be permitted in any "I-2" Heavy Industrial District, provided that the sexually oriented business may not be operated within:

1. One thousand (1,000) feet of a church, synagogue, mosque, temple or building which is used primarily for religious worship and related religious activities;

2. One thousand (1,000) feet of a public or private educational facility including, but not limited to, licensed day care center, nursery schools, preschools, kindergartens, elementary schools, private schools, intermediate schools, junior high schools, middle schools, high schools, vocational schools, secondary schools, continuation schools, special education schools, junior colleges and universities; school includes the school ground, but does not include the facilities used primarily for another purpose and only incidentally as a school;

3. One thousand (1,000) feet of a public park or recreational area which has been designated for park or recreational activities including, but not limited to, a park, playground, nature trails, swimming pool, reservoir, athletic field, basketball or tennis courts, skating rink, pedestrian/bicycle paths, wilderness areas or other similar public land;

4. One thousand (1,000) feet of the property line of a lot zoned for residential use as defined in Chapter 400 as "R-1C," "R-1D," "R-1E," "R-2," "R-3A" or "R-M" and being devoted to residential use;

5. One thousand (1,000) feet of another sexually oriented business;

6. One thousand (1,000) feet of any establishment that offers for sale alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption or provides for on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages; or

7. One thousand (1,000) feet of the property line of any lot designated for residential use on a development plan approved under a "PD-R" Planned Development –Residential, "PD-MU" Planned Development – Mixed Use or "PD-RF" Planned Development – Riverfront Zoning District.

B. A sexually oriented business may not be operated in the same building, structure or portion thereof containing another sexually oriented business.

C. For the purpose of this Chapter, measurement shall be made in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or objects, from the nearest portion of the building or structure used as a part of the premises where a sexually oriented business is conducted to the nearest property boundary of the premises described in Subsections (A)(1) and (2); or to the nearest property boundary described in Subsections (A)(3), (4) and (7).

D. For purposes of Subsection (C) of this Section, the distance between any two (2) sexually oriented business uses shall be measured in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or objects, from the closest exterior wall of the structure in which each business is located.

Section 665.070 Sign Restrictions.

[R.O. 2011 § 665.070; R.O. 2009 § 158.015; Ord. No. 06-330, 12-14-2006]

A. Notwithstanding any other ordinance, code or regulation to the contrary, it shall be unlawful for the operator of any sexually oriented business or any other person to erect, construct or maintain any sign for the sexually oriented business other than the one (1) primary sign and one (1) secondary sign as provided herein.

B. Primary signs shall have no more than two (2) display surfaces. Each such display surface shall:

1. Not contain any flashing lights;

2. Be a flat plane, rectangular in shape;

3. Not exceed seventy-five (75) square feet in area; and

4. Not exceed ten (10) feet in height or ten (10) feet in length.

C. Primary signs shall contain no photographs, silhouettes, drawings or pictorial representations in any manner and may contain only the name of the establishment.

D. Each letter forming a word on a primary sign shall be of solid color and each such letter shall be the same print-type, size and color. The background behind such lettering on the display surface of a primary sign shall be of a uniform and solid color.

E. Secondary signs shall have only one (1) display surface. Such display surface shall:

1. Be a flat plane, rectangular in shape;

2. Not exceed twenty (20) square feet in area;

3. Not exceed five (5) feet in height and four (4) feet in width; and

4. Be affixed or attached to any wall or door of the enterprise.

F. The provisions of Subsection (B)(1) and Subsections (C) and (D) shall also apply to secondary signs.

G. Any sign erected prior to the enactment of this Chapter shall be considered a lawful non-conforming sign.

Section 665.080 Exterior Portions Of Sexually Oriented Businesses.

[R.O. 2011 § 665.080; R.O. 2009 § 158.020; Ord. No. 06-330, 12-14-2006]

A. It shall be unlawful for an owner or operator of a sexually oriented business to allow the merchandise or activities of the establishment to be visible from a point outside the establishment.

B. It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of a sexually oriented business to allow the exterior portion of the sexually oriented business to have flashing lights or any words, lettering, photographs, silhouettes, drawings or pictorial representations of any manner except to the extent permitted by the provisions of this Chapter.

C. It shall be unlawful for the owner or operator of a sexually oriented business to allow exterior portions of the establishment to be painted any color other than a single achromatic color. This provision shall not apply to a sexually oriented business if the following conditions are met:

1. The establishment is a part of a commercial multi-unit center; and

2. The exterior portions of each individual unit in the commercial multi-unit center, including the exterior portions of the business, are painted the same color as one another or are painted in such a way so as to be a component of the overall architectural style or pattern of the commercial multi-unit center.

D. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to require the painting of an otherwise unpainted exterior portion of a sexually oriented business.